The Magic plan to pick up J.J. Redick's $6MM option on the final year of his contract, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter). The former Duke star enjoyed a strong season as he set career highs in points per game (11.6), rebounds per game (2.3) and assists per game (2.5). Orlando has until July 8 to officially pick up Redick's option after agreeing to terms with Jameer Nelson on a multiyear deal earlier Thursday.
It was only a week ago that Rob Hennigan accepted the Magic's offer to become the team's new general manager. With the draft just over 24 hours away and free agency around the corner, the Orlando GM has a lot on his plate, and spoke to the media today about a few key decisions he's facing. Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel has Hennigan's quotes on Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick, and more….
While Thunder GM Sam Presti is getting plenty of justifiable credit for the job he's done building the team, Heat president Pat Riley deserves some praise, too, for attracting marquee talent and surrounding it with enough to earn consecutive trips to the NBA Finals. As Luke Adams detailed yesterday in his look at how the Heat were built, every player on the roster has either signed a new deal or an extension within the past two years, which represents a lot of front-office legwork in a short amount of time. While Miami endures its fair share of criticism, plenty of teams wouldn't mind switching places, and there's news on a few trying to do just that.
Let's round up a few Friday afternoon odds and ends out of the Southeast Division….
- J.J. Redick has one non-guaranteed year remaining on his contract and the Magic haven't indicated whether he'll be brought back, as he tells Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel: "I think I'm down the totem pole. Obviously, the Magic have a decision to make about my contract. It's pretty much out of my hands. I think I've done everything I can do at this point."
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel is "hearing whispers" that Mike D'Antoni would be interested in coaching the Magic if the job opened up (Twitter link). Of course, even if that were true and the team fires Stan Van Gundy, there's no guarantee the interest would be mutual.
- An NBA.com column examines the decisions the Hawks will have to make on their front office and roster this offseason.
- Heat players and coaches aren't bothered by comments made by Pacers coach Frank Vogel about the team's propensity for "flopping," writes Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star.
- The Bobcats likely won't hire a coach this month, according to Tom Sorensen of the Charlotte Observer, who implores the team to take its team and make sure they find the right candidate for the job.
6:13pm: According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, Golden State has moved away from talks of a three-team deal that would send Monta Ellis to Orlando. In a tweet, Stein says the Warriors are far more interested in assembling a package to offer Milwaukee for Andrew Bogut. Stein went on to say that the Warriors would be unwilling to part with Ellis, even if it meant getting rid of Andris Biedrins' contract, one of the worst in the league. According to an ESPN report by both Stein and Chris Broussard, the Magic will continue to spend the next 48 hours seeking various options on how they can add an enticing player to keep Dwight Howard happy. If they can't make a splash, they'll then spend the last 24 hours before the deadline looking at all their trade options.
1:57pm: The Magic, Hornets, and Warriors are discussing a three-way trade that would send Monta Ellis to Orlando, multiple league sources tell Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com. According to Rudolph, Warriors players being discussed include Ellis, Andris Biedrins, and Dorell Wright, while Magic players mentioned include Ryan Anderson, J.J. Redick, Hedo Turkoglu, Quentin Richardson, and Daniel Orton. Taking into account the Warriors' reported interest in Chris Kaman, the Hornets' involvement likely means Kaman would be going to Golden State if a deal was reached.
Although nothing is imminent, talks are ongoing, says Rudolph. I'd be surprised to see the three clubs work out an agreement, given all the moving parts involved, not to mention the presence of the league-owned Hornets — with David Stern still acting as the team's de facto owner, he'll have the opportunity to turn down any trade he doesn't feel benefits the team.
Reports in recent weeks have also indicated that the Warriors aren't looking to move Ellis unless they can acquire Dwight Howard. So it would be unexpected to see them move the Western Conference player of the week to Orlando for non-Howard assets. As Sam Amick of SI.com tweets, Joe Lacob seems unlikely to help the Magic keep Howard, since the Warriors owner covets the star center himself.