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Pacific Notes: Gay, Clippers, Kerr

November 20th, 2014 at 11:59am CST by Chuck Myron

The Kings were in a position of power when DeMarcus Cousins signed his rookie scale extension last year, but Rudy Gay‘s decision to sign a veteran extension with the team this week is demonstrative of the strides the franchise has taken, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee examines.

“Obviously, when my contract was ending, I thought about going into free agency and maybe seeing what happens, but why search it when you have what you want right here?” Gay said.

Owner Vivek Ranadive and GM Pete D’Alessandro convinced the forward that the Kings were no longer the disorganized club that he’d heard stories about, Gay said, adding that having spent the offseason with Cousins helped influence his decision, too, Jones tweets. A bond with new point guard Darren Collison and comfort with the Sacramento community were also factors, Gay acknowledged, as fellow Bee scribe Ailene Voisin notes (Twitter link). There’s more on the Gay extension amid the latest from the Pacific Division:

The Clippers planned to re-sign Willie Green after waiving him this summer, but the Magic stymied that when they claimed him off waivers, writes Dan Woike of the Orange County Register. “We were not very happy with the Magic on that one,” Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said.. “We just assumed that no one would pick him up. Willie’s one of those guys you just want around.” Rivers also said that Green can serve as an assistant coach for him after he retires, Woike notes.
Turning down Knicks president Phil Jackson to take the Warriors job instead was “probably the hardest thing that I had to do professionally,” Steve Kerr tells Michael Lee of The Washington Post. “He basically made my career. From my experience in Chicago, that allowed me to have the success to sign as a free agent in San Antonio, where I had another incredible experience. My career path, started with Lute Olson [at Arizona] … but Phil’s the guy who got me rolling and gave me all the opportunities that I have in front of me right now.”
The Gay extension was a positive step for the Kings, and one the team had to make to move toward playoff contention, Voisin opines.

Draft Notes: Cavs, Pistons, Thunder, Blazers

June 19th, 2013 at 4:42pm CST by Luke Adams

With the 2013 NBA draft just eight days away, various outlets continue to update their mock drafts, with Chris Mannix of SI.com and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com the latest experts to provide new versions of their respective mocks. Mannix and Givony actually agree on the top four – Nerlens Noel, Ben McLemore, Otto Porter, and Alex Len, respectively – but starting at No. 5, their first rounds diverge significantly. Here are more of today's draft-related updates:

Mannix's latest mock draft includes a number of interesting tidbits, including word that the Cavaliers continue to shop the first overall pick, but "have completely overvalued it," according to one executive.
We already passed along one notable update from Chad Ford's latest chat at ESPN.com, but the entire chat was full of interesting answers, as Ford addressed nearly every first-round pick.
C.J. McCollum and Michael Carter-Williams worked out with the Pistons today, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News.
If Carter-Williams falls to No. 12, he'd be an ideal fit for the Thunder, says David Thorpe of ESPN.com (Insider-only link).
The Trail Blazers worked out Mason Plumlee, Archie Goodwin, Myck Kabongo, Phil Pressey, E.J. Singler, and Dewayne Dedmon today, according to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com (Twitter link).
The Grizzlies, who hold three second-round picks, will work out Erick Green, Elias Harris, Brandon Davies, Jason Jones, D.J. Stephens, and Mareks Mejeris tomorrow, the team announced in a release.
James Ennis was among the players who worked out for the Clippers today, according to the team's official site.

Odds & Ends: Spurs, Nets, Pekovic, Muhammad

June 11th, 2013 at 11:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs blew out the Heat tonight, behind 51 combined points from Danny Green and Gary Neal. Though Green and Neal are American-born success stories, many of the Spurs' accomplishments have been built around players from overseas, as Seth Wickersham of ESPN The Magazine examines. Foreign players are "fundamentally harder working than most American kids," Gregg Popovich says. GM R.C. Buford is similarly high on imports, as no team in the league has more players from outside the U.S. than the Spurs do. We'll see if San Antonio's global approach sparks copycats in the years to come, but in the meantime, here's the night's news from the Association:

The Nets, reportedly deciding between Brian Shaw and Jason Kidd for their next coach, want to make their choice by the end of the week, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. The Nets can give Shaw, also in the hunt for the Clippers job, the more lucrative offer, Bondy adds, speculating that Shaw's interview may be little more than a courtesy, given how high Brooklyn is on Kidd.
Timberwolves president Flip Saunders had to cut short his meeting with Nikola Pekovic in Italy this past weekend, but the team still "badly" wants to re-sign their restricted free agent center, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
Shabazz Muhammad will work out for the Blazers, The Oregonian's Mike Tokito notes via Twitter.
Peyton Siva highlights a group of second-round hopefuls set to work out Thursday for the Grizzlies, reports Chris Vernon of 92.9 FM ESPN in Memphis (Twitter link). Julian Gamble, Jason Jones, Murphy Holloway, Jordan Aboudou and Romero Osby will also participate.