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Northwest Rumors: Team USA, Pekovic, Nuggets

July 25th, 2013 at 9:53am CST by Luke Adams

Two Northwest stars, Kevin Durant and Kevin Love, announced yesterday that they'll play for Team USA in the 2014 World Cup of basketball, but we don't know exactly who'll join them. USA Basketball Executive Director Jerry Colangelo says he'll narrow the pool of prospects to 25 or 30 by January, and he'll have until 48 hours before next summer's event begins to name a final roster, as Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com points out (Twitter links).

Here's more from around the Northwest division:

Durant believes current Thunder teammate Russell Westbrook and former teammate James Harden will play in next summer's World Cup as well, ESPN.com's Marc Stein writes in his latest round-up of tidbits from Team USA's camp. That would leave just eight of 12 roster spots to be filled.
Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor remains confident that the team will finalize a new deal with Nikola Pekovic, and doesn't think he'll have to call Pekovic personally, though he'd be open to doing so, says Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Within his latest piece on the Nuggets, Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post writes that Denver remains likely to re-sign Timofey Mozgov, and hears from GM Tim Connelly that the team "absolutely" plans to keep Andre Miller.

Southwest Notes: Rockets, Mavs, Asik, Lin

July 13th, 2013 at 7:00pm CST by Spencer Lund

The Rockets made a big splash signing Dwight Howard this summer, but now they're left to figure out what to do with Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin, who they offered as part of a sign-and-trade for Josh Smith before he signed with the Pistons.

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tells Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle that Asik and Lin are "going to be here.” Morey has repeatedly said he doesn't want to move Lin and Asik, but he gave a more detailed reason why to Feigen today:

"The reality is James (Harden) and Dwight (Howard) want to play with Jeremy and Omer,” Morey stated. “I’ve been kicked down to assistant GM. They’re going to be here."

Here's more on the Rockets including an update on Asik's summer plans and updates from the Mavericks…

Feigen also tweets that Asik is in Turkey for national team workouts and will not be with the Rockets for at least a month. He also answers a cap question, via Twitter, that the Rockets have the smaller "room" exception, instead of the full MLE.
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com tweets that the Knicks don’t think they’re getting Brandan Wright because he’s close to re-signing with the Mavericks.
Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News reports that the Mavericks are nearing a deal for free agent big man Samuel Dalembert.

The NBA’s New Maximum Salaries

July 10th, 2013 at 8:57am CST by Luke Adams

After jumping by 5.77% a year ago, the maximum salary for NBA players increased by a much more modest amount this year — about 1%. Here's a breakdown of how this season's maximum salaries compare to last season's, via cap expert Larry Coon (Twitter link):

These changes to the maximum salary won't have an impact on players like Dwight Howard or Chris Paul, whose salaries had already exceeded the max and been previously established. However, they'll have an effect on James Harden and Blake Griffin, who signed max-salary extensions last offseason with the Rockets and Clippers respectively. Those new deals will take effect this coming season, and will use the new max figures.

Because Griffin was voted to two All-Star teams during his rookie-scale contract, he's eligible for the "Derrick Rose Rule" extension, which means he'll earn the max for a player with seven to nine years of experience. Harden will earn the standard max for a player with one to six years of experience. Here's how the two deals will break down:

The new maximum salaries would also impact free agents like Brandon Jennings and Nikola Pekovic, but it appears unlikely that either of those guys will receive max deals.

Warriors Meeting With Howard Next Week

June 29th, 2013 at 6:59pm CST by Spencer Lund

7:14pm: USA Today's Sam Amick tweets that Howard will meet with the large Rockets contingent (see below) at 9 p.m. PST Sunday when free agency officially begins.

6:59pm: Sam Amick of USA Today tweets that Howard's schedule next week in LA includes Warriors and Hawks on Monday and Mavericks and Lakers on Tuesday.

This comes after Dwight meets with the Rockets late Sunday night when the free agency period officially starts at midnight.

ESPN.com's Ric Bucher earlier said Howard would not be meeting with the Warriors (Sulia link), but they have been granted the option to visit him, and will take that opportunity league sources tell him. This despite the unlikelihood the Warriors could afford Howard without a sign-and-trade (Sulia link).

6:14pm: Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that Warriors owner Joe Lacob, GM Bob Myers and coach Mark Jackson will meet with Howard next week (Twitter).

5:51pm: The Dwight Howard drama continues as we come up on the month of July when teams, other than the Lakers, can pitch the big man on joining forces this summer. Dwight's the biggest question mark among the star free agents this summer, after the Lakers had initially appeared to be the frontrunners to retain the three-time Defensive Player of the Year.

Chris Paul is likely to re-sign with the Clippers after they traded a 2015 first round pick to hire Doc Rivers away from the Celtics, but now the Clippers might be making a move to challenge the Rockets, Mavericks and Lakers for D-12's services, reports Sports on Earth's Shaun Powell (Twitter links).

The Clippers have the OK from owner Donald Sterling to do whatever it takes, but the acqusition of Howard would depend on a salary and sign-and-trade options, since signing Paul and Howard to max contracts would be untenable under the current CBA with their cap space.

According to Powell, Howard wants to play with Paul because he feels the point guard would get him the ball. Despite both Doc and Paul wanting Howard, they won't pursue him at the expense of Blake Griffin (Twitter links). Here's some more surrounding Howard's upcoming week talking with various team's jockeying for his services.

The Rockets are meeting with Howard first on Sunday night, with owner Leslie Alexander, CEO Tad Brown, general manager Daryl Morey, former stars Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler (the latter of whom comes via MyFoxHouston's Mark Berman), and current stars James Harden and Chandler Parsons, expected to be in attendance.
But the Mavericks are also putting together a group to meet with Howard on Tuesday in Los Angeles, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter). Dirk Nowitzki and owner Mark Cuban are expected to be a part of the Mavs' formal pitch.
ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramond Shelburne tweets that Dwight is expected to meet with at least four teams. Emphasis hers.
Marc Berman of the New York Daily News believes Dwight will head to the Rockets if he leaves the Lakers.
Kobe Bryant sat down with Mike Trudell at Lakers.com to share his thoughts on Howard's free agency and the importance of Howard arriving at his decision on his own.

Odds & Ends: Copeland, Kings, Harden

May 22nd, 2013 at 9:01pm CST by Michael Pina

A few random notes from around the NBA.

Knicks rookie forward Chris Copeland had a few breakout moments in the NBA playoffs, and he's more than interested in making more memories in New York, telling ESPNNewYork.com's Jared Zwerling that it's "very possible" he stays with the team next season.
According to the Sacramento Bee's Jason Jones, Kings assistant coach Bobby Jackson would love to return to the team next season, but has no contract yet.
James Harden is spending his offseason recruiting free agents to join him with the Rockets next season, writes Hoopsworld.com's Alex Kennedy.

Odds & Ends: Harden, Rockets, Howard, Millsap

May 4th, 2013 at 11:40am CST by Zachary Links

Here's today's look around the Association..

When asked if he'll be an active part of the Rockets' efforts to recruit free agents, James Harden answered in the affirmative, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. When asked specifically about joining the Rockets' plans to chase Dwight Howard, Harden cracked a smile and said: "Maybe. Possibly," Stein tweets.
David Locke of 1280 The Zone (via Sulia) spoke to someone in the league who said a return to the Jazz for Paul Millsap might be tough. The market for the forward should be around $21MM for three years, which is less than the $24MM over three that Utah offered him last summer. The person reasoned that Millsap would take less than the $24MM offer from another club, but might not do that with Utah.
Detroit native Steve Smith is scratching his head at the idea of Phil Jackson consulting with the Pistons in their coaching search, writes Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News.

Odds & Ends: Jackson, Wall, Hunt, Sixers

April 18th, 2013 at 11:23pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Here are a few more miscellaneous notes to pass along tonight:

With the Nets basketball operations staff on expiring deals, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (via Twitter) wonders if Mikhail Prokhorov is preparing to offer Phil Jackson an offer to run the team and make his own hires.
Wizards guard John Wall tells J. Michael of CSN Washington that he won't be one to recruit free agents, and would rather have players want to join his team.
RealGM's Sham Charania mentions Nuggets assistant coach Melvin Hunt as someone who could draw interest from teams with head coaching vacancies (Twitter link).
Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs outlines a list of potential coaching candidates for the 76ers, mentioning team assistant Aaron Mckie, Villanova coach Jay Wright, Michael Curry (who will be interviewed for the head coaching job), Warriors assistant Mike Malone, and Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer as names that could be considered.
Grantland's Bill Simmons says that when Thunder GM Sam Presti was quietly shopping James Harden last October, he was quickly rebuffed after calling the Raptors to inquire about a deal involving a package centered on Jonas Valanciunas.

Western Notes: Kings, Grizzlies, Jazz, Warriors

March 20th, 2013 at 2:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Having dropped nine of their last 12 games, the Jazz will play a crucial contest tonight in Houston. According to ESPN.com's Kevin Pelton (Twitter link), Utah's playoff chances will increase to 38.7% with a win against the Rockets today, but would drop to 18.7% with a loss. As the Jazz prepare for what is virtually a must-win game, let's round up a few Western Conference notes….

Sacramento city officials remain on track to unveil a proposal for funding a new arena on Thursday, according to Tony Bizjak, Ryan Lillis, and Dale Kasler of the Sacramento Bee. Releasing the term sheet for public viewing on Thursday would give Sacramento City Council five days to examine it before voting on Tuesday.
Grizzlies players have come around on management's belief that Memphis is a better team following the trade that sent Rudy Gay to Toronto, as Zach Randolph tells Sam Amick of USA Today: "You're (getting) the whole team playing one way, and guys sticking to what they do and playing together, playing for each other and playing defense and playing inside-out basketball. It's a lot better – a better mindset – playing like that…. When it first happened, everybody was down about it, especially because Rudy was like a brother to us. It was difficult at first. You wouldn't think it would be this way now, but it is."
Asked about his 2013/14 player option, Marvin Williams said that he hasn't even thought about his decision yet, according to Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune (via Twitter). Oram notes that Williams is unlikely to exceed the $7.5MM he'd make in his option year on the open market, and he seems to like playing in Utah, so he's a good bet to be back with the Jazz (Twitter links).
Responding to a Tim Kawakami piece on how a rumored James Harden/Klay Thompson swap between the Thunder and Warriors in 2012 would have been impossible, Daniel Leroux of RealGM.com explores some ways in which a deal could have worked.

Proposed Harden For Thompson Deal “Impossible”

March 16th, 2013 at 10:15pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Although we recently picked up on Bill Simmons' Grantland article mentioning that the Warriors and Thunder engaged in exploratory talks involving Klay Thompson and James Harden last summer, Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News firmly refutes the interpretation that Golden State 'turned down' an offer with Oklahoma City. While he says that Simmons' information in the article is correct and acknowledges that GM Sam Presti's interest in Thompson was accurate, Kawakami explains why a deal would have been "practically impossible."

First, Kawakami looks at Harden's eventual max-contract extension, which would have likely required the Warriors to simultaneously unload Richard Jefferson or Andris Biedrins' contracts. That alone, he says, was already a non-starter for the Thunder, who would not have been willing to take back either of those deals. Secondly, Kawakami points out that the earliest draft choice that Golden State could have offered would have been a 2015 first-rounder, due to the fact that this year's pick is owed to the Jazz and that teams are unable to trade a first-round pick in consecutive seasons (therefore eliminating the inclusion of a 2014 pick). With that in mind, he argues that Oklahoma City wouldn't have favored or been able to gauge the value of a draft choice that would be determined two years from now.

He then refers to what the Thunder actually received in the deal: Kevin Martin on a short-term contract, two potential first round picks this summer (one likely to fall in the lottery), and Jeremy Lamb (a lottery pick from 2012).

While it's reasonable to presume that Presti would have been willing get into more serious discussions with the Warriors if they were able to somehow acquire one or two 2013-14 draft picks, Kawakami says that doing so would have required a major roster shake up, possibly costing Harrison Barnes and/or trading David Lee for much lesser value, and thus leaving a roster with heavy financial commitments to Stephen Curry, Harden, and Andrew Bogut.

In the event that Golden State wouldn't have had to give up Lee and also kept Jefferson and Biedrins, Kawakami shows how the team could have had an annual salary figure of $78MM spanning just 8 players, with the task of filling out the roster potentially costing an additional $6MM. In summation, he concludes that there was no draft choice for the Warriors include, no clear way of making the numbers work, and "no official give and take in the supposed offer."

Western Notes: Harden, Warriors, Kings, Mavs

March 8th, 2013 at 2:21pm CST by Luke Adams

After looking at the NBA's most cap-friendly deals a week ago, Grantland's Bill Simmons returns today with his picks for the league's top 30 worst contracts. Within the piece, Simmons passes along an interesting nugget regarding the Thunder's James Harden trade talks.

Multiple sources tell Simmons that the Warriors were the first team Sam Presti called when he explored a Harden deal, as Oklahoma City hoped to land Klay Thompson. However, Golden State, wary of future tax bills, wanted the Thunder to take back Richard Jefferson or Andris Biedrins, rather than cheaper or shorter-term contracts, which resulted in Presti exploring other options and eventually reaching an agreement with the Rockets.

While the Warriors would have been in line for a huge tax bill for 2013/14 if they'd extended Harden to go along with all the other big-money contracts on their books, it's hard not to be intrigued imagining what a Harden/Stephen Curry backcourt would have looked like.

Here are a few more Friday notes from around the Western Conference:

Sports marketing expert David Carter spoke to Sam Amick of USA Today about the Kings sale, exploring whether Sacramento is a better basketball market than Seattle, why a public subsidy in Sacramento's arena proposal could appeal to the NBA, and a handful of other topics.
ESPN.com's Chris Broussard explains why he believes it's in Dwight Howard's best interests to re-sign with the Lakers this summer.
Another busy summer is in store for the Mavericks, as the team continues to seek a talent that would make Dirk Nowitzki the second-best player on the roster, writes Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Despite the team's projected cap space, the future isn't looking particularly bright for the Mavericks, according to Gil Lebreton of the Star-Telegram.