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Atlantic Notes: Young, Jackson, Sixers

March 16th, 2015 at 9:46am CST by Chuck Myron

Thaddeus Young said Saturday that he wants to remain with the Nets even though he hasn’t decided on his early termination option for next season, worth as much as nearly $10.222MM, observes Andy Vasquez of The Record. Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities can’t envision Young turning down that option and pointed to his earlier report that the forward had requested a trade from the Timberwolves through his agent (Twitter links). Young spoke of a mutual feeling of interest in a continued relationship with Brooklyn, and indeed Nets GM Billy King has said the team will do what it can to retain him, as King apparently sees him as a building block for the team’s future. While we wait to see exactly how Young and the Nets proceed, here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Marc Berman of the New York Post sees signs that Knicks president Phil Jackson will choose to leave the team before his five-year contract is through. The Knicks have fallen flat in Jackson’s first year at the helm, and he hinted to Harvey Araton of The New York Times earlier this season that he isn’t planning a long-term stay in New York.
Veterans Luc Mbah a Moute and Jason Richardson are favorites of Sixers coach Brett Brown, notes Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News, who takes a shot at sizing up the chances that many of the Sixers have of returning to the team next season. Richardson and Mbah a Moute are both set for unrestricted free agency this summer.
Celtics assistant coach Jay Larranaga has drawn the eye of George Mason University, which plans to make him a focus of its search for a new head coach, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Larranaga has surfaced as an NBA head coaching candidate in the past and interviewed for the C’s and Sixers head coaching jobs, Wojnarowski notes.

Atlantic Notes: Richardson, Randolph, Johnson

March 9th, 2015 at 3:47pm CST by Chuck Myron

Division titles matter little for the playoffs, but there’s a distinct chance the Atlantic crown plays a significant role in the first-round matchups this year. The champion of each division is guaranteed a top four seed, though first-round home-court advantage is not a given, so division titlists are in essence guaranteed only a top five position. Usually, the leader of each division is within the top five teams in their respective conferences, but the Raptors, sitting atop the Atlantic, are only four and a half games clear of the Bucks for sixth place in the Eastern Conference, and Toronto has been slumping. Still, even if the Raptors do finish sixth or worse in the East, they’ll still be in the No. 4 versus No. 5 matchup in the playoffs as long as they win the division. Here’s more from the Atlantic:

The idea of re-signing Jason Richardson was off the table for the Sixers until he returned last month from a more than two-year injury-induced absence, but now Philly is at least considering it, reports Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Sixers coach Brett Brown doesn’t see a reason why the 34-year-old couldn’t play for another couple of seasons, Pompey notes. Richardson, who’s in the final season of his contract, would like to remain with Philadelphia rather than chase a ring elsewhere and said that if he were to go to a title-contender, he’d want more than a bit role, as Pompey relays.
The Celtics scheduled a meeting with reserve power forward Shavlik Randolph when they appeared close to signing JaVale McGee, but that meeting was scuttled when McGee and the C’s failed to agree to terms, according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. That led Bulpett to speculate that Randolph was the likely roster casualty if McGee had signed.
Amir Johnson‘s declining numbers and expiring contract make it seem decreasingly likely that he’ll remain with the Raptors for next season, writes Eric Koreen of the National Post.

And-Ones: Richardson, Mekel, Jenkins

December 31st, 2014 at 7:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Sixers guard Jason Richardson said that he expects to return to the court in late January after being sidelined for nearly two years, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reports. Richardson last played in an NBA game on January 18th, 2013 before knee and ankle maladies sidelined him. “It will mean a lot to come back,” Richardson said. “I thought I was done playing. I really did. But seeing my son play AAU over the summertime, seeing his love for the game, it made me get the love back for the game. My thing is to always walk away on my own terms. I understand that things happen. Me having this knee injury, fading away like that is not the way I wanted to go out. Retirement is three or four years away from now.”

Here’s more from around the league and abroad:

Michael Jenkins has signed a deal with the Turkish club Istanbul BSB, David Pick of Eurobasket.com reports (Twitter link). Jenkins was in training camp this season with the Thunder prior to being waived.
NBA scouts and executives are essentially in agreement that Tyler Ulis and Devin Booker are better pro prospects than fellow Kentucky backcourt studs Andrew Harrison and brother Aaron Harrison, according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com, who writes in his weekly chat. Booker is No. 35, Ulis is No. 48, Andrew is No. 65 and Aaron is No. 67 in Ford’s prospect rankings.
Gal Mekel is still hoping to land with an NBA team after being released by the Pelicans earlier this month, Allon Sinai of The Jerusalem Post writes. “After I was released by New Orleans I received several offers from Europe and Israel,” Mekel said. “I wanted to give them the respect they deserve and listen to them all. It is no secret that I really want to remain in the NBA and I believe with all my heart that I can succeed in this league. But I also really want to play, lead and realize my potential.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Eastern Notes: Powell, Young, Humphries

October 11th, 2014 at 12:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Celtics have 16 players with guaranteed contracts on their preseason roster, and Dwight Powell is determined to be one of the 15 players on the regular season roster, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes. Powell, a second round pick in the 2014 draft, said that he is willing to do whatever is needed to make the team. Powell told Blakely, “For every young guy, your first niche is defense and find a way to stop guys and not be a liability on the court. That’s my focus now; be active and try to prevent them from scoring.” Powell is in camp on a two year deal, with the first year fully-guaranteed. Blakely also notes that Boston coach Brad Stevens has been impressed with Powell’s performance in camp.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Also in Boston, James Young scoffs at the suggestion that he might be sent to the D-League. The 17th pick in this year’s draft told Ben Rohrbach of WEEI 93.7 that he plans to make an immediate impact on the Celtics, and Young said of his goals, “Coming in and being the best team player I can be. If that means scoring, I can definitely do anything to score. And then just getting on the defensive end and bringing a lot of energy and just getting the crowd involved and everything.” Coach Stevens praised Young’s play in practice, saying the rookie “picks things up really quickly” and has made hardly any defensive mistakes.
Kris Humphries underwent successful surgery yesterday to repair nerve damage in his right small finger, the Wizards announced. The forward is expected to miss three to four weeks before being cleared to resume basketball activities.
At age 33, the Sixers‘ Jason Richardson is contemplating life after his playing days are officially over, Michael Kaskey-Blomain of Philly.com writes. With his on-court role diminished, the 14-year veteran may look to stay in the league in another capacity after this season, notes Kaskey-Blomain. Richardson said, “[Not being able to play] has been challenging, but it has opened my eyes up to a lot of things. To study the film, to actually break down the film and look at it, help the guys out when they were doing something wrong. It just gave me a different perspective of basketball that I hadn’t seen before. It has given me a look at what the future beholds. Maybe some coaching, maybe a front office job, you never know, but I definitely want to continue to be involved with the basketball aspect, definitely in the NBA.”

Arthur Hill contributed to this post.

Jason Richardson Opts In To Remain With Sixers

June 12th, 2014 at 3:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

Sixers swingman Jason Richardson has opted in to the final year of his contract, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). The move was thoroughly expected, as it enables him to collect slightly more than $6.6MM next season in spite of a troublesome left knee that hasn’t allowed him to play since January 2013.

Richardson has appeared in only 33 games for the Sixers since he came to Philadelphia as part of the four-team Dwight Howard trade in August 2012. He averaged a career low 10.5 points per game in his lone season of action with the Sixers, well off his scoring average of 17.3 PPG over the course of 12 years in the NBA.

The Sixers still have plenty of cap flexibility this summer, as Richardson’s contract becomes part of only about $26MM in commitments for 2014/15, not counting their pair of first-round picks. It’s unlikely that Philadelphia embarks on a free agent spending spree, but the ability to open plenty of cap space gives the club a mechanism to absorb salary in an unbalanced trade.

Eastern Notes: Sixers, Price, Free Agency

March 7th, 2014 at 7:23pm CST by Cray Allred

Mike Sielski of The Philadelphia Inquirer spoke with the Sixers marketing firm that has been tasked with selling Philly fans optimism in the midst of a miserable season. The “Together We Build” campaign has tried to convince fans that enduring short term on-the-court sacrifices will make future, more competitive Sixers rosters even more sweet. The message hasn’t landed with many fans, as attendance has dropped by more than 3,000 per game compared to last year. Here’s more from around the East:

Sixers coach Brett Brown said his gut feeling is that Jason Richardson will not play this year, he tells Christopher A. Vito of The Delaware County Daily Times (via Twitter). Richardson has been out all season while recovering from knee surgery, and owns a player option for next year at $6.6MM.
Magic point guard Ronnie Price has embraced his role as a veteran mentor to younger players in Orlando, he tells John Denton on the team’s site. “I think it is part of my responsibility and part of my respecting the game and respecting the people who mentored me when I was a rookie and a young guy in this league. I would be selfish to not try to mentor some of these guys and share what I’ve learned in this league.” The 30-year-old has another $1.3MM non-guaranteed year left on his contract, but is aware that his playing career could be over soon. “I like my role right now as a player and I still think of myself as a player. What I do as far as talking to guys on and off the court, that just comes naturally to me. I don’t consider myself a player-coach or anything like that; I love the game of basketball so I know that I will always be around the game.”
In a 5-on-5 post for ESPN, J.A. Adande, Chris Broussard, Israel Gutierrez, Marc Stein, and Ethan Sherwood Strauss weigh in on whether stars for the Heat and Knicks will become free agents this off-season. Their consensus is that LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade will opt out of their player options this off-season.

Atlantic Rumors: Smith, ‘Melo, Young

January 15th, 2014 at 6:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

J.R. Smith expressed his displeasure both during and after Monday’s game to Mike Woodson, who had decided against starting him for overtime that night, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Smith was late for a meeting Tuesday, sources told Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com, and Woodson benched him for the entirety of last night’s game. Begley hears Smith is still angry at the team for waiving his brother last month. Still, Woodson said today on The Stephen A. Smith and Ryan Ruocco Show on ESPN New York 98.7 that he’s not “kicking J.R. to the curb,” and that he’ll remain a “big part” of the club, Berman notes. Here’s more from the Atlantic Division on the day that Smith and six others become eligible to be traded.

Woodson also said on radio that he’s “concerned” that the events of this season might lead Carmelo Anthony to sign elsewhere, but the coach nonetheless believes Anthony will play for the Knicks his entire career, Newsday’s Al Iannazzone observes.
The Sixers are ramping up discussions with other teams about potential Thaddeus Young trades, and executives around the league consider it a “lock” that they’ll try to trade Evan Turner, writes Grantland’s Zach Lowe in a piece on today’s three-team swap.
The Warriors reportedly passed on Kyle Lowry because they were worried he’d be a poor fit for their locker room, but the Raptors point guard tells Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that he’s unaware of how the team would get that impression.
Nerlens Noel has been medically cleared to play, and while Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com hears he could make his NBA debut in four to six weeks, Sixers coach Brett Brown says there’s no such timetable, and that he still may sit out the season, notes Tom Moore of Calkins Media (Twitter link).
Conversely, Jason Richardson says there’s a “good chance” he’ll come back from injury to play for the Sixers this season, Moore tweets.
The Sixers recalled Lorenzo Brown from the D-League today, one day after sending him down, the team announced via Twitter. He had 22 points and eight assists for the Delaware 87ers last night.
Rajon Rondo‘s brief trip to the D-League today didn’t involve any travel, as the Maine Red Claws came to the Celtics practice facility in Waltham, Massachusetts, to practice with him, as Chris Mannix of SI.com explains (on Twitter).

Odds & Ends: Bargnani, Nets, Jennings, Greene

February 19th, 2013 at 4:28pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier today, we heard that the Sixers are a good bet to stand pat at this year's deadline, and given how their last trade turned out, perhaps that shouldn't be a surprise. One player acquired by the 76ers in the deal, Jason Richardson, underwent successful surgery on his left knee this morning, according to a team release. Meanwhile, the centerpiece, Andrew Bynum, told reporters today that he still intends to play for Philadelphia this season, though it won't happen until at least March.

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

According to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter), while the Raptors would move Andrea Bargnani in the right offer, teams don't sense an urgency on Toronto's part. That falls in line with comments Bryan Colangelo made today.
I questioned earlier today whether Nets GM Billy King was being honest when he told reporters there's a 10% chance he makes a trade, but Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News says (via Twitter) that's the same line King has been giving privately to rival teams.
Despite his agent change, Brandon Jennings really doesn't have a ton of leverage, and the Bucks should still be expected to match any offer sheet he receives this summer, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Donte Greene, who was set to sign with the Nets last summer before he fractured his ankle, is back to 100% and is drawing interest, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The Nets, Pacers, Hornets, Spurs, Bulls, Knicks, Magic, Rockets, and Cavaliers have inquired on Greene, says Spears.

Eastern Notes: Josh Smith, Turner, Richardson

February 10th, 2013 at 1:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Rumors have been swirling around Josh Smith the past couple of days, yet HoopsWorld's Lang Greene says that the Hawks aren't actively shopping Smith for now, and are simply listening to offers to gauge the power forward's value. Greene also passes along the comments Smith made about the speculation in a video report by Atlanta journalist Nubyjas Wilborn. Smith is far from the only player who's had to respond to trade chatter as the February 21st deadline approaches, as we hear from another who could be on the move in our roundup from the Eastern Conference:

Evan Turner's name has also emerged on the trading block, and the former No. 2 overall pick acknowledges the decision is out of his hands, as John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer notes.
Mitchell wouldn't be surprised if the Sixers and Jason Richardson wind up pursuing a buyout. Richardson, who could be out as long as 12 months with a cartilage tear on his kneecap, is due $5.8MM this year and $6.2MM next season, with a $6.6MM player option for 2014/15.
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com hears the Knicks will assess the health of Rasheed Wallace, who's dealing with a left foot injury, after the All-Star break, and if the results aren't favorable, they'll pursue another big man.
Coach Tom Thibodeau and the Bulls agreed to a four-year extension worth up to $20MM in October, but Thibodeau has yet to sign the contract, reports Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News.

Jason Richardson To Miss Rest Of Season

February 8th, 2013 at 11:28am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 11:28am: Richardson confirmed to reporters, including Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News (Twitter link), that he'll undergo surgery next week and could be out as long as 9-12 months.

WEDNESDAY, 8:06pm: Spears provides more detail on Richardson's injury, which is a cartilage tear on his kneecap.

7:49pm: Sixers shooting guard Jason Richardson will have left knee surgery and miss the rest of the season, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reports, via Twitter. The recovery will take six to nine months, Spears adds, and that could put his return for the start of next season in jeopardy as well (Twitter link). It's unclear exactly what kind of injury Richardson suffered, but he's been out since January 19th with fluid in that knee.

It's frustrating news for Sixers fans, who've yet to see Andrew Bynum play a game for Philadelphia. Richardson was the only other player acquired in the blockbuster four-team summer deal that brought in Bynum for Andre Iguodala, Nikola Vucevic, Maurice Harkless and a first-round pick. It's also a blow to the team's playoff hopes, as Philly stands three games behind the similarly banged-up Celtics for the last Eastern Conference playoff spot entering tonight.

It's past the deadline to file for a disabled player exception, but the Sixers some have room to maneuver, since they still have a prorated portion of their $2.575MM room exception available, plus they have an open roster spot. It's unlikely they'd find a player of Richardson's caliber unless they made a trade, but his impact on the team was muted this year as the 32-year-old struggled to career worsts in shooting percentage (40.2%) and points per game (10.5). Richardson is making $5.8MM in the second season of a four-year deal, so the Sixers probably wouldn't have much luck dangling his contract in a trade, especially given his decline in production.

While Bynum may return around the All-Star break, the Sixers are also without Thaddeus Young for at least three weeks with a hamstring injury. Before the news about Richardson broke, GM Tony DiLeo told reporters, including John Finger of CSNPhilly.com, that the team would emphasize a forward-looking approach with any deadline deals, as opposed to a quick fix. That isn't likely to change with Richardson out.

"We’re talking to every team in the league and if there is something we think that will improve the team, and not just in the short-term, we’ll see what we can do," DiLeo said. "We’re looking to build."