The Knicks have officially tendered qualifying offers to Jeremy Lin and Landry Fields, making them restricted free agents, tweets Al Iannazzone of Newsday. The move allows the Knicks the opportunity to match any offer either player receives this summer.
The Knicks and Nets have both been busy since their respective seasons came to a conclusion earlier this spring. For the Knicks, the team's attention has been focused on the future of Jeremy Lin while the Nets' energy has been spent on convincing Deron Williams to remain with the franchise. With the draft looming on Thursday and the start of free agency set to begin less than two weeks later, both New York and Brooklyn are in store for a working summer as the two teams look to reload for the fall. Let's check in on the latest news from Madison Square Garden and the Barclays Center…
Earlier this week, we learned that the Suns believe that their three biggest competitors for Steve Nash are out of the Atlantic Division: the Knicks, Nets, and Raptors. However, a piece of news today from Knicks coach Mike Woodson might indicate that they're not going to be the players for Nash that the Suns are expecting. Here's the latest from Madison Square Garden and the rest of the Atlantic..
Tomorrow night's draft lottery will have huge implications for the Warriors and Jazz, writes the Deseret News' Jody Genessy. Here are a few more items from around the NBA:
- Hoopsworld.com's Stephen Brotherston asks what position the Raptors should be targeting as they head into the draft.
- On June 13, a hearing to determine whether the Knicks can re-sign Jeremy Lin and Steve Novak without using any of their exceptions will be held, writes Newsday's Al Iannazzone. The union is seeking the restoration of both players' Bird rights, and a decision will be made before July 1. The union is expected to lose the hearing.
- The Oregonian's Joe Freeman writes about the Trail Blazers working out two centers today: North Carolina's Tyler Zeller and Illinois' Meyers Leonard.
- Sources have told ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin that the Lakers are talking about making Los Angeles D-Fenders general manager Glenn Carraro their team's assistant general manager.
- ESPNDallas.com's Jeff Caplan writes about how tomorrow night's draft lottery could have an especially large impact on the Nets and Mavericks.
- FoxSports.com's Chris Tomasson says LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are doing more than enough to fill in for Chris Bosh's absence.
- CBSSports.com's Ken Berger writes that at a time he's badly needed by his team, there's something wrong with Ray Allen.
Let's round up a few of today's Knicks-related items….
- Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald expects Jeremy Lin to re-sign with the team and doesn't foresee a scenario in which the franchise is unable to retain him, writes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. "We can keep him if we want him, and we do want to keep him. I believe that Jeremy had a great experience here and I believe he wants to come back. So that's where that is."
- Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com reports Grunwald would like to bring back free agent Steve Novak and hopes J.R. Smith picks up his player option so he can remain with the Knicks.
- After working out for the Knicks, Iona's Scott Machado spoke to Al Iannazzone of Newsday about New York's potential hole at point guard: "For any point guard that wants to play here, I feel like it's a good opportunity. They got some players that are banged up, hurt or some players that are retiring or old…. As far as the opportunity here, it's a wonderful spot, they have a lot of pieces. Somewhere they need to grow solid in is the point guard spot. That's my opinion. I feel like it's a good opportunity for any point guard."
- Re-signing Lin would help the Knicks solidify that point guard spot, but there's no guarantee New York will re-sign the restricted free agent. Dennis Velasco of The Basketball Jones examines a few potential landing spots for Lin.
- Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com spoke to Marquette guard Darius Johnson-Odom, who also worked out for the Knicks and could be a second-round target for the team.
- Mike Woodson's former agent Joe Glass is upset Woodson let him go before negotiating with James Dolan and the Knicks, but wishes the coach success in the future, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Larry Brown, the Glass client that initially created tension between the agent and Dolan, tells Berman that Woodson did the right thing for his future by changing agents.
- I previewed the Knicks' summer earlier today in the latest installment in our Offseason Outlook series.
The 76ers defeated the Celtics tonight in an ugly, defensive affair to force a Game 7 on Saturday night in Boston. Early in the game, an ESPN reporter spoke with Allen Iverson who was in town to deliver the game ball to tonight's referees. Iverson said he still wants to play basketball, whether in the NBA or elsewhere. Here are other links from late Wednesday night:
- Arash Markazi and Pedro Moura from ESPN Los Angeles give their differing takes on whether Clippers stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin will be teamed up in LA for the remainder of their careers.
- Derek Page of HoopsWorld says that for the Mavericks, in lieu of letting key pieces of their championship team leave via free agency, anything in the offseason short of Deron Williams would deem that decision a "momentous mistake." Meanwhile, Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News says via chat that Pau Gasol would not be a good fit in Dallas.
- Speaking of Deron Williams, Colin Stephenson of the Newark Star Ledger examined the Nets offseason uncertainties outside of their potential free-agent-to-be point guard. The Nets have only four players that are guaranteed to be under contact for next year's Brooklyn debut.
- The Bird Rights hearing between the NBA and NBA Players Association will be in mid-June, says Ian Begley of ESPN New York, citing an unnamed source. Begley notes that the Knicks will be particularly impacted due to waiver pickups of Steve Novak and Jeremy Lin.
- The 2012 Olympic schedule for Team USA was unveiled, according to Chris Sheridan of Sheridan Hoops.
- ESPN's Chris Broussard and Marc Stein offer their takes on Shaq as a potential fit as the future general manager of the Magic. Broussard says Shaq has acted as a mentor to Dwight Howard throughout the season as they apparently bonded over their dislike for Stan Van Gundy. Hiring O'Neal could be an attempt to persuade Howard to stay. Meanwhile, despite previous reports, Broussard adds that the Bobcats will in fact reach out to Van Gundy.
A few Tuesday afternoon odds and ends from around the NBA:
- After reporting yesterday that Dwight Howard still wants to be traded out of Orlando, Chris Sheridan of SheridanHoops.com outlines why the Nets and Knicks may be the most logical trade partners for the Magic.
- If Howard is dealt this summer, it's probably bad news for the Mavericks, writes Jeff Caplan of ESPNDallas.com. The Mavs could have the cap space for Howard next summer, but don't have the trade chips to get him right now.
- In an Insider piece for ESPN.com, David Thorpe examines some potential landing spots for Jeremy Lin, concluding that the Raptors, Nets, and Suns might be the best fits besides the Knicks.
- Rasual Butler has heard from several teams and plans to be ready to sign in July, according to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. The Raptors released Butler in March, in time for him to catch on with another team for the postseason, but the 33-year-old didn't sign another contract before season's end.
- In an interview with Gazzetta.it, Marco Belinelli said he expects to receive offers from the Hornets and other NBA teams, and wants to determine where he'll sign before trying to join the Italian national team for the Olympics. Hat tip to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando for the translation.
Jeremy Lin's agent Roger Montgomery spoke with the New York Post about his client's future and stated that a return to the Knicks is not a guarantee, writes Marc Berman. Lin is set to become a restricted free agent on July 1 which allows for the Knicks to match any offer made by another team to retain Lin's services. When asked about whether he thought negotiations with the Knicks would be a simple process this summer, Montgomery expressed his concern that getting Lin a new contract would be a drawn out endeavor.
"I don’t expect that. We’re not anticipating that’s going to happen. We don’t have assurances of anything. I know history shows most restricted free agents go back to their team, but I’m not going to assume anything. We’re waiting to see what happens."
Montgomery's goal as an agent is to create buzz that Lin may not re-sign with the Knicks so that other teams provide his client with a robust offer sheet. While the Knicks have the opportunity to match any offer sheet, they may face luxury tax issues during the third and fourth years of the contract if other teams make him a large offer (up to $15MM per season). If this is the case, the Knicks will have to determine if the money received from Lin-related merchandise sales will outweigh the luxury tax the franchise will surely have to pay if the former Harvard star is presented with a back-loaded offer sheet.
Look for Toronto to make Lin an impressive offer as the team is in search of a young point guard who will bring buzz to the beleaguered franchise in a city with a large Chinese population. Lin made $765K during the 2011/2012 season in which he averaged 14.6 points per game and 6.2 assists per game in 35 games with the Knicks. For more on Lin, check out Hoops Rumors' Free Agent Stock Watch series where we analyze the star point guard's prognosis for free agency this summer.
If the NBPA is successful in its appeal to allow players claimed on waivers to retain their Bird rights, the Knicks will head into the offseason in much better position to keep their free agents. But either way, New York figures to make locking up Jeremy Lin a top priority this summer.
The Knicks won't be the only team looking to sign Lin though. According to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld, the Mavericks, Nets, Raptors, Trail Blazers, and Warriors are among the clubs eyeing the point guard.
Because Lin will be a restricted free agent that has played two years or less in the NBA, he'll be subject to the Gilbert Arenas provision. Rival teams will be able to offer Lin lucrative, back-loaded deals, but the Knicks will be able to match any offer sheet using their mid-level exception, since the first-year salary can't exceed $5MM.
We've heard the Raptors mentioned as a possible suitor for Lin, and the Mavs and Nets both make sense, depending on whether they miss out on Deron Williams. The Blazers also figure to have plenty of cap space and a need for a point guard, as I outlined earlier today. It's hard to imagine the Warriors being serious contenders for Lin, since they won't have cap room, and have a more glaring hole at small forward.