Dwight Howard Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Rivers, Stan Van Gundy, Jazz

October 17th, 2013 at 11:07pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Clippers coach Doc Rivers sits down with Harvey Araton of the New York Times to discuss the scrutiny that accompanied his exit from Boston and his willingness to accept the responsibility if things don’t go well in Los Angeles: “But when (the opportunity to coach the Clippers) presented itself, I thought, ‘Wow, this would be a unique situation for me…If there’s a mistake, it’s my fault. I don’t want to blame someone else. I want to blame me.”

Rivers also commented on how the free throw shooting struggles of DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin has been somewhat of an achilles’ heel for the team in the past: “Blake and D. J., they missed a couple, and their whole game changed…Blake would stop driving, stop attacking, because he didn’t want to get fouled. D. J. didn’t even want to touch the ball. Then he would take all that defensive energy he had and throw it out of the game.”

Here are the rest of tonight’s miscellaneous links:

Despite the tumultuous way in which their working relationship ended in Orlando, former coach Stan Van Gundy still thinks that the Magic should retire Dwight Howard‘s number, writes Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel (Subscribers only).
Jazz camp hopeful Lester Hudson values his opportunity to stick in the NBA after being a career journeyman since entering the league (Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune). In another Utah-related piece, John Lucas III talks about being fueled to secure his NBA future after his international and D-League experiences: “Every time I step on the court, (I think), ‘I don’t want to go back to Italy. I don’t want to go back to Spain. Don’t want to go back to China (or the) D-League…I feel like I’m at home. I just have that in the back of my head all the time, so when I step on that court I give it everything I have” (Jody Genessy of the Deseret News).
Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston answered a few questions from his readers in his newest edition of “Celtics Mailbag.”
Bucks head coach Larry Drew spoke about the importance of having a veteran like Zaza Pachulia around the team, especially with their familiarity together stemming from their history in Atlanta (Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel).

Odds & Ends: Jazz, Odom, Howard, Nelson, Brooks

October 15th, 2013 at 9:03pm CST by Alex Lee

With seven preseason games on the schedule for Tuesday night, let’s take a look at some odds and ends from around the NBA:

Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune spoke to Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin and some of the team’s camp invitees — including Justin Holiday, Scott Machado and Brian Cook — about the roster cuts the team will have to make within the next couple of weeks to get down to 15 players.
We haven’t heard too much about Lamar Odom since the strange reports about his off-the-court issues surfaced in August. Ramona Shelburne of ESPN LA tweets that the Lakers reached out to Odom recently, but that the contact was strictly for personal reasons.
With the Magic in town to face the Rockets on Wednesday, Dwight Howard spoke to Orlando-area reporters, including Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, about what has been a whirlwind of a two years for the Houston center. While Howard expressed regret about how things ended in Orlando, he implied that the situation in Los Angeles was different, and that Houston simply represented the best place for him to be.
Meanwhile in post-Dwight Orlando, 31-year-old Jameer Nelson is happy to play the role of elder statesman on a young and improving Magic team, writes Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. Caplan writes that Nelson, a veteran in the second year of a three-year deal, is aware that he will probably be shopped this winter unless the Magic surprise everyone and contend.
We heard earlier tonight from Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News that MarShon Brooks had expressed a desire to be traded from the Nets before he was part of the blockbuster with the Celtics. Bondy provides several quotes from Brooks, now in Boston, in his complete story: “I wasn’t really sure with [Jason Kidd becoming coach]. I didn’t know what to expect. Last year obviously we knew what was going on, it was so rocky, I didn’t know if I was playing. There just wasn’t any structure to any of my minutes.. So it was kind of hard for me to perform under those circumstances and obviously I didn’t want to be in that situation next year.”

Texas Notes: Parsons, Alexander, Mavericks

October 3rd, 2013 at 9:49pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Without a doubt, Chandler Parsons proved to be one of the most intriguing young talents in the NBA last season, averaging 15.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 3.5 APG while shooting .486/.385/.729 across the board. Not to mention that the 6'9 forward is set to earn around $925K this year and is entering the third season of a four-year contract in Houston. Any team with hopes of landing the precocious neophyte via free agency may not have that chance, as Rockets owner Leslie Alexander was clear about his long-term commitment to Parsons:

"He'll be here. We'll sign Chandler. We always do. Nobody's ever left. He's an integral part of the team. We don't want to let a terrific player go" (Mark Berman of FOX 26)

Here's more news and notes to pass along out of the Lone Star State tonight, including more from Berman:

The Rockets' interest in keeping Parsons around for a long time is clearly mutual, based on Parsons' reaction to Alexander's comments: "I know at the end of the day it's a business, but when you have someone's word like that and you're happy here and you got a good thing going, I don't see this changing. I want to be here. So it's a good match."
With a history that includes bringing in Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen, and Tracy McGrady to Houston, Alexander says that Dwight Howard has been "most important acquisition."
Tim Cowlishaw of SportsDayDFW thinks it'll be a miracle if the Mavericks approach 50 wins this season, instead offering 44-45 wins as a more realistic number.
Though the Mavs have 15 players signed to guaranteed contracts, head coach Rick Carlisle took notice of training camp invitee Renaldo Balkman: "He avoids the catastrophic mistakes some younger guys tend to struggle with" (Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram via Twitter).
In this video from Spurs.com, Manu Ginobili speaks to the media about holding training camp at the Air Force Academy, which just so happens to be head coach Gregg Popovich's alma mater.
In another clip from the Spurs' team website, Marco Belinelli briefly comments about camp and says that his experiences with coach Tom Thibodeau in Chicago has helped him adapt to coach Popovich's expectations thus far.

Western Notes: Carter, Dwight, Trail Blazers

October 3rd, 2013 at 6:51pm CST by Ryan Raroque

While we heard earlier today that Shawn Marion may not be entirely sure of what the future holds beyond this season, his Mavericks teammate Vince Carter feels eager to continue his NBA career as long as his body allows him to: "I don’t want to limit myself. I think doing that, you start thinking about it as the season goes on. I just go. I just let the body pretty much dictate how I feel at the end" (Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas). The 36-year-old guard/forward is entering the final year of his three-year contract this season, though MacMahon notes that team owner Mark Cuban has already gone on record saying he'd like to re-sign Carter this summer.

Warriors owner Joe Lacob tells Sean Deveney of the Sporting News that the team was much closer to landing Dwight Howard than people might think: "…we would not have gone after him if we didn’t think we had a chance or that it made sense…We were a lot closer than people realize to perhaps that actually happening."
The Oregonian's Mike Tokito thinks Robin Lopez will not only help expedite the development of Meyers Leonard, but also provide a viable frontcourt partner for LaMarcus Aldridge on the opposite block. In another piece, Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com reports that Aldridge had sustained a strained hip flexor during practice last night. However, the Trail Blazers' PR Twitter account clarifies that the injury was a left quad strain (Twitter link). Head coach Terry Stotts, while somewhat concerned, doesn't believe it to be serious.
Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press underscores the tough road that Timberwolves training camp hopeful Othyus Jeffers has had to endure to get to this point.
Nuggets coach Brian Shaw is pleased with how his players have responded in training camp as he prepares to get the team to push the pace this season (Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post). In a separate article, Dempsey writes that JaVale McGee still has a ways to go before establishing himself as a legitimate post presence.

Odds & Ends: Nelson, D12, Blazers, Gomes

October 2nd, 2013 at 4:40pm CST by Luke Adams

As news of the first few cuts of training camp begins to trickle in, let's round up a few odds and ends from around the Association….

Jameer Nelson realizes that he could eventually become a trade chip as the Magic continue their rebuilding process, but for now he's focusing on his role as a team leader and mentor, as Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel details.
Dwight Howard and Stan Van Gundy are more than a year removed from their days in Orlando, but Howard tells Bill Reiter of FOX Sports (Twitter link) that his former coach played a part in his free agent decision this summer, encouraging him to consider the Rockets.
While the Blazers' announcement that they've exercised third-year options for Damian Lillard, Meyers Leonard, and Thomas Robinson could be viewed as "trivial housekeeping," Mike Tokito of the Oregonian suggests it's a good sign for the improving long-term health of the team.
Ryan Gomes earned another $25K when he wasn't waived by the Thunder by October 1st, as Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com outlines in his breakdown of Gomes' deal.
Ron Anderson, who spent the 2012/13 season with the Tulsa 66ers and played for the Thunder in Summer League play this year, has agreed to a one-year deal with Argentina's Estudiantes Concordia, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.com (via Twitter).

Lakers Rumors: Free Agency, Dwight, SGs

September 29th, 2013 at 11:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Boston Globe scribe Gary Washburn's weekly look around the NBA includes a dispatch from Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak's chat with reporters this week in which Kupchak made it clear that his team won't settle for second-tier free agents.

"I know at some point in time we’ll be able to put together a very competitive and attractive team," Kupchak said. "I don’t think this is a franchise that can take 15 years to build through the draft. The worst thing you can do is be burdened with contracts that are $6-$7-$8MM a year that go out three or four years and have average players, and you’re kind of stuck in the middle. You’re not going to get a good draft choice and you don’t have financial flexibility. So in my opinion, we’re probably best set up as we can be for the future."

While Kupchak ponders future Lakers, here's more on Lakers past and present:

Dwight Howard appeared to waver on his choice to join the Rockets before it became official, but the ex-Laker insists to Sam Amick of USA Today that he was firm in his decision, and that his 11th-hour meeting with Kupchak was always part of the plan.
The Lakers have loaded up on shooting guards to cover for Kobe Bryant, who's still without a timetable for his return from injury, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports examines.
This is the final season on the contracts of most of the players on the Lakers roster, and that can either lead to motivated team play or selfish, stat-driven gunning, posits Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.

Dwight On McHale, Health, Houston

September 26th, 2013 at 7:54pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Jason Friedman of Rockets.com sat down with Houston center Dwight Howard for a Q&A session earlier today. Here are some highlights from the transcript:

On his relationship and strong connection with head coach Kevin McHale:

I think Kevin sees a lot of potential in me and how I can grow as a player. I’m so excited to have him as my coach and just having the opportunity to really learn and grow from him. I’m just happy that he has more life than he’s had in a while. I think he’s very excited. Just watching him and just the few times I’ve been around him getting the chance to talk basketball and to share his past experiences with me, I really enjoy it.

How he feels now compared to last year's offseason, when he was still recovering from injuries:

I’m so much better. My body feels a lot better. The little aches and pains that I was having for the most part of last season are gone already. It’s going to continue to get better. I’m very excited. I’m excited about the possibilities of what I’ll be able to do this season because my body is so much healthier. It’s a big difference. Last year I couldn’t really move the way I’m used to moving until the end of the season. Some of my bounce is coming back. I’m so happy about that.

On the idea of playing pick-and-roll with James Harden and Jeremy Lin:

We’ve had a lot of conversations about it. The main thing that I tell any guard that I play with is that when I set the screen, attack that big. Make the defense make a decision. Make my man make a decision. If he’s going to stay with me, you’re going to get a dunk or a layup. If he leaves me, just throw it to the rim. We’ve talked about all of this. The biggest thing I tell those guys is that every time they get the ball in the pick-and-roll is to just be aggressive – it opens up the whole floor. I want to be aggressive in rolling, but there’s times where, the way that I set those guys up, it’s going to open up everything for everybody else. I’m going to get my shots.

People who know basketball understand the effects of a good screen-and-roll. It starts with the point guard, it goes on to the bigs and then the rest of the guys on the perimeter. So I’m looking forward to it.

On rediscovering his joy in Houston:

The last two years haven’t been easy. It was very tough to get through that, but storms don’t last forever. One thing that I allowed those situations to do to me was take my joy away. I can’t let that happen. These guys, especially these young guys, they’ve brought some life back to me. Just being in this city, the opportunities we have as a team and the things I feel like I can do for this community, it’s given me new life. I’m excited about it and just so full of joy to be able to get back to doing what I do, and doing it with joy.

Odds & Ends: Dwight, Bulls, Deron

September 19th, 2013 at 10:50pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Amidst the buzz surrounding the 2013 Basketball Hall of Fame induction a little over a week ago, you may have heard legendary Brazilian basketball player Oscar Schmidt proclaim that he could have been one of the best 10 players ever if he had joined the NBA. In hindsight, it's interesting to ponder some of the 'what ifs' and how they may have altered the landscape and history of the league.

One could think about how the NBA would have been different if Larry Bird didn't fall five spots to the Celtics during the 1978 draft, if Kobe Bryant hadn't fallen to number 13 in 1996, or if Michael Jordan hadn't retired before the 1993/94 season to name a few. Regardless, there are plenty of other possibilities to consider.

Jonathan Abrams of Grantland sheds light on one particular what-could-have-been, chronicling the rise and fall of Korleone Young, a promising 6'7" small forward who like Kobe, Tracy McGrady, and Kevin Garnett before him attempted to make the jump from high school to the NBA in 1998. In his comprehensive piece, Abrams supplements Young's story with commentary from several people who had crossed paths with him along his journey, including Young's prep-school rival Al Harrington, former Pistons head coach Alvin Gentry, and former Pistons assistant (and current Bucks GM) John Hammond, who had this to share based on what he'd seen in practices:

"We used to talk about the way in which (Young) defended (then-star) Grant Hill on a daily basis. We used to say it tongue-in-cheek but [also] somewhat seriously: 'No one defended Grant Hill in this league as well as Korleone Young."

With that aside, let's round up the rest of tonight's miscellaneous links from the NBA:

Sam Amick of USA Today writes about how Dwight Howard has found greener pastures in Houston and why the rest of the NBA will have to lament the reality that another Western Conference contender has been born.
A handful of HoopsWorld panelists put together a season preview of the Bulls for 2013/14. With much of the team's success hinging on how much Derrick Rose can return to form, three writers pick Chicago to finish second in the Central Division, while two have them running away with the division title.
Nets guard Deron Williams was spotted at his charity dodgeball event earlier today with a walking boot over the same ankle that had been giving him problems last season, though he insisted that the boot was just precautionary: “As long as I’m ready (for the season opener), that’s all that matters to me…If it was up to me, I would be playing right now. I can walk fine. It doesn’t hurt. It’s just protecting me from myself” (Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News).
Eddie Sefko of SportsDayDFW says that with Dirk Nowitzki healthy, the Mavericks won't take a backseat to anybody in the league in terms of talent at the power forward position.
Tommy Dee of Ridiculous Upside presents a scouting report of free agent big man Hassan Whiteside, who had recently drawn reported interest from the Knicks, Heat, and Bucks.
Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside explains why the NBDL will continue to develop front office executives at a much more efficient rate than players at this point, mentioning that while prospective staffers can work to rise up the ranks while committed to a specific NBA franchise, the players can be called up at anytime and by any NBA team regardless of D-League affiliation.
HoopsWorld's Moke Hamilton held his weekly chat with readers earlier this evening, offering his thoughts on why he thinks the Knicks will repeat as Atlantic Division champions, why teams might be shying away from Renaldo Balkman, the Western Conference playoff race, and the Warriors' ceiling among other topics.
Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com continues his countdown of reasons why New Orleans fans should be excited about training camp, placing the offseason progress made by the team's quartet of sophomores – namely Anthony Davis, Austin Rivers, Brian Roberts, and Darius Miller – at number 13.

Odds & Ends: Odom, Brown, Mudiay, Mavs

August 24th, 2013 at 10:50pm CST by Spencer Lund

A number of outlets have relayed the TMZ report last night that 33-year-old free agent forward Lamar Odom has been battling a "hardcore" drug addiction for the past two years. Odom hasn't failed an NBA-mandated drug test since 2001, but the report claims he entered a drug treatment facility in San Diego last summer and was clean during the 2012/13 season with the Clippers before beginning to use again this summer.

Odom averaged a career low 4.0 PPG and 1.7 APG in 19.7 MPG while appearing in all 82 games with the Clippers last season. Here's what else is happening around the league during a quiet, late-August Saturday night:

Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer spent the day with new Sixers coach Brett Brown's family in Portland, Maine.
Adam Zongoria of Zagsblog.com describes how SMU coach Larry Brown landed the top class of 2014 high school point guard, Emmanuel Mudiay, who announced his decision at halftime of Brooklyn's Elite 24 game tonight. Zongoria opines that Mudiay will be a one-and-done player and a likely lottery pick in the 2015 draft.
The Trail Blazers made a lot of moves to improve their league-worst bench from last season. One of those additions, Dorell Wright, is profiled by the Oregonian's John Canzano.
HoopsWorld's senior NBA writer Bill Ingram tweets that the rumors Dwight Howard issued an ultimatum that Mike D'Antoni be fired and Kobe Bryant amnestied in order to re-sign with the Lakers "seem silly" since Howard chose the Rockets early on. Ingram also wonders, via Twitter, what it says about Howard (assuming the reports are accurate) for him to think he has anything on Bryant.
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban answered questions on the new "Fox Sports Live" program last night, as transcribed by The Dallas Morning News. He discusses flip-flopping on wanting Dwight Howard in free agency this summer, whether the Mavs are rebuilding this coming year, and the health of 35-year-old franchise star Dirk Nowitzki.
The Mavs are also one of the eight teams wearing the new GPS tracking devices, reports The Dallas Morning News.
ESPNNewYork.com's Jared Zwerling tweets that former St. John's star Justin Burrell, who has played overseas since graduating in 2011, will play for Italy's Montepaschi Siena this coming season.

Western Notes: Bryant, Nuggets, D’Antoni

August 24th, 2013 at 8:04pm CST by Spencer Lund

As fallout from the Ric Bucher revelations about Dwight Howard's demands to remain with the Lakers continues, CBS Sports' Matt Moore looks at how Bucher's quotes have been portrayed in the media. While listing the headlines, Moore shows that they've primarily focused on the Lakers protecting Kobe Bryant in lieu of Howard's stipulation that he not be re-signed next summer.

As we already updated, Howard never explicitly said that he'd re-sign with the Lakers if Mike D'Antoni were ousted as coach. The focus in the media, as Moore shows, was on the back-and-forth between Bryant and Howard: two superstars possessing egos that wouldn't allow them to co-exist on the same roster, and how the Lakers would rather let Dwight walk than entertain the idea of Bryant leaving LA.

Here's some more on the Lakers chances next season, and a report card on the Nuggets tumultuous offseason…

Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver gives the Nuggets an F in his recent offseason report card grade at SI's The Point Forward blog.
Golliver compares the offseason of the Pacers with the Nuggets to show how, despite both teams experiencing impressive regular seasons, the Pacers continued to trend up in the playoffs, and the Nuggets failed to keep everything together this summer.
They lost GM Masai Ujiri – who accepted the Raptors' high-paying GM role – and the 2013 NBA Coach of the Year George Karl – who they did not retain for the final year of his contract.
Not only did the Nuggets lose their coach and GM, but they also lost free agent Andre Iguodala to the Warriors in a three-team deal involving the Jazz, Nuggets and Warriors.
Unlike the Pacers – who were able to re-sign David West this summer and significantly upgrade their bench – the Nuggets signed offense-first players like Nate Robinson and J.J. Hickson and allowed others, like defensive wing-stopper Iggy, to bolt the sinking ship.
HoopsWorld's Jabari Davis put together a plan for the Lakers while pretending to be their GM during a chat with readers earlier today.
In his plan, Davis said the Lakers should try and land a top 12 spot in next summer's heralded 2014 NBA Draft.
Davis also discusses the possibility that Jordan Farmar and Steve Blake improve next season, how the additions of Nick Young, Wesley Johnson and Farmer's athleticism will translate well with D'Antoni's uptempo offense and the chances Bryant sits out the full season – similar to Derrick Rose last season with the Bulls – while they attempt to position themselves higher in the the 2014 draft.
Davis also believes the Lakers can win between 44-47 games next season and finish with a 6-8 seed in the West if Pau Gasol, Steve Nash and Bryant all play at least 70 games together.