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Central Notes: Noah, Tellem, LeBron, Harris

October 30th, 2015 at 12:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

Joakim Noah set the record straight Friday, telling reporters that he didn’t ask Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg to remove him from the starting lineup. Hoiberg indicated in an interview with Grantland’s Zach Lowe that Noah had done so, as Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com and K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune relay (Twitter links).

“I never said I want to come off the bench,” Noah said. “I said I will do what’s best for the team.”

The coach didn’t directly say that Noah had requested the move, though that was the interpretation that Lowe took from the remark (Twitter link). In any case, Noah, a 2016 free agent, obviously would prefer to start, but in spite of the benching and Hoiberg’s comment, he isn’t upset with the coach, Johnson notes (All Twitter links). “The truth is I think I’m more effective playing the 5. And Pau [Gasol] is the same. And we have two very good 4s. So this makes sense,” Noah also said. See more from the Central Division:

  • Pistons owner Tom Gores continues to enthusiastically support coach/executive Stan Van Gundy, and he also suggested that owners around the league regard the addition of former agent Arn Tellem as a coup, citing comments his fellow owners made to him, notes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Tellem became vice chairman of Palace Sports and Entertainment, the parent company of the Pistons, over the offseason. “Most of the owners were wondering, how the heck did we get Arn? He lives in great weather, he’s probably the most renowned NBA agent ever, he knows everybody in basketball – and we convinced him to come to Detroit,” Gores said. “That was the good secret in the room. ‘How the hell did you do that, Tom?”
  • The upgrades the Cavs made to their bench during the offseason stand to give LeBron James a better chance to rest, but he still expects to play in 82 games after appearing in only 69 last year, observes Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net.
  • The Cavs appear to be questioning the potential of Joe Harris after an up-and-down preseason, Amico adds in the same piece. Harris has a fully guaranteed deal for this season, but next season’s salary is non-guaranteed.
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Eastern Notes: Knicks, Cavs, Raptors

October 11th, 2015 at 8:00pm CST by Will Joseph

Carmelo Anthony used to despise Sasha Vujacic back when both played in the Western Conference, but now that the combo guard is a member of the Knicks, Anthony sees it from a different perspective, Al Iannazzone of Newsday writes. The Knicks signed Vujacic to a guaranteed deal during the summer.

“We got into it a couple of times,” Anthony said. “He was one of them little dirty players, sneaky, grab your jersey, foul you after the play. He was speaking in his language and now I understand what he was saying to me — it makes me hate him even more back then. Having him on my team is a big plus, knowing how feisty he is. He’s a vet. He knows how to play the game. He knows the system. I think having him is a big plus.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

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Eastern Notes: Cavs, Riley, Harkless

April 20th, 2015 at 8:00pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Cavs improved their win total over last season’s by 20 games and appear to be the favorite to win the Eastern Conference. LeBron James returning to Cleveland was a huge factor in the team’s improvement, but GM David Griffin deserves credit for the moves he made during the last 14 months, as I wrote in his Executive of the Year Candidate piece.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • President of Basketball Operations Pat Riley may have taken a jab at LeBron James during the Heat’s season ending press conference today, Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald writes. “No more smiling faces with hidden agendas, so we’ll be going in clean,” Riley said in response to a question about the draft. When ask to clarify if that comment was about James, he said, “that could be anyone across the board. I’ve already got about half a dozen emails from people I don’t even know recommending [a player], and somewhere in that email or text is always a smiley.”  
  • Maurice Harkless regressed during his third season in the league and Ken Hornack of Fox Sports Florida believes he is unlikely to remain in Orlando long-term. The forward is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason.
  • The Cavs have recalled Joe Harris from their D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge, according to the team’s website. To date, the guard has played in 48 games for Cleveland this season while seeing only 9.1 minutes per game.
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And-Ones: Cauley-Stein, Parsons, Knicks

April 18th, 2015 at 5:22pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Mavs forward Chandler Parsons understands the criticism levied against him regarding his production not being worthy of his $14.7MM salary this season, Ben Golliver of SI.com writes. “The whole expectations of being a max player and taking that next step, it’s tough to manage at first,” Parsons said. “A lot of people look at me like I’m a different player. I’m the same player. I’ve gotten better. My numbers are down a little bit but at the same time I continue to get better. I’m on a different team. We’re very explosive offensively, we have more of a balanced attack, and I’m playing five minutes less than I did in Houston. I’m a basketball player and I impact the game in many different ways. My job is to be a good teammate, work extremely hard and do whatever it takes to win games.”

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Rich Kleiman of Roc Nation Sports and Leon Rose of the Creative Artists Agency will team up to represent Willie Cauley-Stein, as Liz Mullen of the SportsBusiness Journal reports in a subscription-only piece. The center from the University of Kentucky is the No. 6 prospect in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress rankings and No. 7 with Chad Ford of ESPN.com.
  • Nuggets GM Tim Connelly indicated that there are no players on Denver’s roster who are untouchable in terms of trades, Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post tweets.
  • The Knicks are expected to have a busy offseason, and team president Phil Jackson will need to make decisions regarding a large number of players on his current roster. Marc Berman of The New York Post breaks down the team’s roster, and who the franchise should retain for the 2015/16 campaign. Players whom the Post scribe believes the team should bring back include Louis Amundson, Lance Thomas, and Cleanthony Early, while the team should part ways with Cole Aldrich and Travis Wear.
  • The Cavaliers have assigned Joe Harris to the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team announced.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Central Notes: Middleton, Harris, Gasol

April 15th, 2015 at 7:14pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Soon-to-be restricted free agent Khris Middleton is in line for salaries of around $10MM this summer, several GMs and other executives tell Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops. Middleton said to Scotto that he would love to return to the Bucks but insists he’ll keep his options open. Still, multiple league sources tell Scotto that Middleton won’t be going anywhere, a sign that the Bucks intend to exercise their right to match any offer for him.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

  • A new arena in Milwaukee has seemed well on its way, but Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times has some doubt for the first time about whether the project will come to fruition, given the resistance that public funding has met in the Wisconsin state legislature. The NBA has the right to seize control of the Bucks if an arena deal isn’t in place by November 2017.
  • The Cavaliers have recalled guard Joe Harris from the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. Harris has played in three playoff games for the Charge this season, averaging 17.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in 30.0 minutes per game.
  • Pau Gasol has enjoyed a career resurgence in his first season with the Bulls, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune writes. “This season has been extremely positive individually,” Gasol said. “I’m just happy that I’m playing at this level and accomplishing things I haven’t done in the past, which is pretty remarkable at this stage of my career. I just want to continue to work and stay focused and extend my level of play as long as I can.“

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Eastern Rumors: Cavs, Kidd, Johnson

April 13th, 2015 at 6:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

GM David Griffin turned the Cavs into a potential championship contender with his in-season moves and unwavering support of first-year coach David Blatt, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today opines. Cleveland needed those improvements to be a true contender, Zillgitt continues, and his acquisitions of J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Timofey Mozgov made the desired impact. Griffin also diffused a potentially divisive issue with his public support of Blatt while the team was struggling, Zillgitt adds. Cleveland’s turnaround this season has made Griffin a prime candidate for the league’s Executive of the Year award.

In other news around the Eastern Conference:

  • Jason Kidd deserves Coach of the Year consideration after guiding the Bucks to the playoffs one season after they won 15 games, Matt Walks of ESPN.com writes. Kidd had to deal with the season-ending injury losses of Jabari Parker and Kendall Marshall as well as Larry Sanders‘ mental health issues that led him into retirement. Kidd also changed point guards from Brandon Knight to Michael Carter-Williams at the trade deadline, yet the club ranks second in defensive efficiency, Walks points out. The Bucks have a strong young core, provided they retains restricted free agent Khris Middleton, and has the draft choices to add more pieces, Walks concludes.
  • Tyler Johnson‘s story offers hope for prospects with seemingly little chance to be drafted, as he went from undrafted to a prominent role in the Heat’s playoff push within a single year, as Shams Charania of RealGM examines. Johnson, who’s averaging 18.4 minutes in 30 appearances, has a non-guaranteed salary for next season that becomes 50% guaranteed if he remains under contract through August 1st.
  • The Cavs assigned Joe Harris to their D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge, the team announced on Monday. The guard has played in 50 games for the Cavs this season, averaging 2.7 points in 9.5 minutes per game. Harris was available to play for the Charge in their postseason game on Monday against the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
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And-Ones: Rondo, Harris, Kaminsky

April 10th, 2015 at 10:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The career of Mavs point guard Rajon Rondo has included a number of clashes with coaches, and the question persists if Rondo is a good enough player to act out the way that he does, Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes in his in-depth look at the player. Rondo is set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and Dallas will have to make a difficult decision regarding whether or not to re-sign him, and if so, what the limit will be regarding his salary cap hit. In 43 games with the Mavs since being acquired from Boston, the 29-year-old has averaged 9.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 6.5 assists.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Joe Harris has been recalled from the Canton Charge, the Cavs‘ D-League affiliate, the team announced. The guard appeared in one playoff game for the Charge on his latest assignment, logging 24 points and 11 rebounds. Harris also played in nine regular season contests for Canton, averaging 15.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG and 3.2 APG in 31.7 minutes per night.
  • Virginia junior swingman Justin Anderson is leaning toward entering the NBA draft, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets. The 21-year-old is projected to be a late first round or early second round selection if he chooses to enter June’s draft. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com rates Anderson as the No. 33 overall prospect and Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) places him at No, 36 overall.
  • Wisconsin senior Frank Kaminsky has hired Kevin Bradbury of BDA Sports Management to be his agent, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). Givony rates the big man as the No. 10 overall prospect and Ford‘s list has Kaminsky ranked 13th.
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Cavs Notes: LeBron, Shumpert, Blatt, Harris

April 3rd, 2015 at 11:35am CST by Chuck Myron

LeBron James wouldn’t mind seeing the Heat in the first round of the playoffs, as he made clear before Thursday’s Cavs-Heat game, notes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. Cleveland is more or less locked into the second spot in the Eastern Conference, while the Heat are a half-game out of the seventh seed. It would be an odd coda to two of the most momentous free agency decisions in NBA history, the ones that bookended LeBron’s tenure with Miami. James can once more hit free agency again this summer, though unlike the last two times, it seems he’ll almost certainly stay put. Here’s more from Cleveland:

  • Knicks team president Phil Jackson said he’s disappointed with how it turned out with Iman Shumpert, also saying that the numerous injuries in the swingman’s past played a role in the decision to trade him to the Cavs, according to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter links). Shumpert is set for restricted free agency this summer.
  • David Blatt hadn’t held an NBA job of any kind when the Cavs hired him, and he came under pressure earlier this season, but he’s shown growth in his first year in charge of the team, as Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group examines. James as well as soon-to-be restricted free agent Tristan Thompson are among those who praise Blatt, as Haynes relays.
  • The Cavs have assigned Joe Harris to the D-League, the team announced. It’s the ninth assignment for the rookie, who has a guaranteed minimum salary next season, and all of his trips to the D-League have come since Cleveland’s pair of midseason trades netted Shumpert, J.R. Smith and Timofey Mozgov.
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Eastern Notes: Napier, Lopez, Tavares

April 1st, 2015 at 7:57pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Shabazz Napier underwent successful surgery to repair a sports hernia, the Heat announced. The point guard is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season, though no mention was made about Napier’s availability for the playoffs, should Miami hold onto its postseason spot. The Heat currently hold a half game lead over the Nets for the seventh seed in the East. In 51 appearances for the Heat as a rookie, Napier averaged 5.1 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports hears estimates that Brook Lopez would draw offers with annual salaries of $13-14MM in a new deal this summer if he turns down his player option, as Wojnarowski said in a radio appearance with Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts on WFAN-AM (transcription via NetsDaily). Lopez’s option with the Nets is worth more than $16.744MM, but a long-term deal would guarantee him more.
  • A report Tuesday linked Brad Stevens to the University of Texas opening, but the idea that he’ll be coaching any team other than the Celtics anytime soon is far-fetched, as Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com explains. Stevens has indicated that he has no intentions of leaving Boston, flatly telling reporters today, “I’ll be in Boston,” as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com relays.
  • The Hawks intend to bring 2014 draftee Edy Tavares, who is also known as Walter Tavares, to the NBA next season, David Pick of Eurobasket.com tweets. Tavares’ deal with CB Gran Canaria contains NBA outs, Pick adds. The 7’3″ center was selected with the No. 43 pick in last year’s NBA draft.
  • The Cavs have recalled guard Joe Harris from the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. Harris has played in nine games for the Charge this season, averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 31.7 minutes per contest.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Eastern Notes: LeBron, Irving, Stevens, Shved

March 31st, 2015 at 10:58am CST by Chuck Myron

The relationship between LeBron James and Kyrie Irving was “rocky” at points earlier this season, Irving admits, but it’s grown into a bond that appears much stronger than the one between James and Kevin Love, as Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group details. Love and James say it doesn’t matter whether they become as tight as Irving and James are as long as they can develop a greater on-court connection, Vardon writes.

“People get so infatuated with the best of friends, things of that nature,” James said. “First of all, I’ve got three very good friends in this league, and that’s Carmelo [Anthony], and that’s C.P. [Chris Paul], and that’s [Dwyane Wade] Wade. And after that I have a bunch of teammates. I have guys I ride for every day. But Kyrie is a guy I understand how important he is to this team, how important he is. And the same with Kev as well.”

James and Love can opt out to hit free agency this summer, while Irving will enter year one of his five-year extension next season. Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated and CBS hears “some Brad Stevens chatter” in connection to the University of Texas coaching job (Twitter link). It’s unclear whether there’s interest on either side, though Texas athletics director Steve Patterson has spoken with NBA coaching agents of late, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com. Davis identifies Avery Johnson as a possible sleeper for the job. Stevens is just finishing up the second season of a six-year, $22MM deal and there have been no indications that he wants to leave the Celtics. Further, the Celtics would probably deny him permission to go, as Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com surmises (Twitter link).
  • Alexey Shved loves playing for coach Derek Fisher and is open to re-signing with New York after his contract expires this summer, sources tell Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link). The Knicks can make Shved a restricted free agent if they tender a qualifying offer of nearly $4.103MM.
  • The Cavs have assigned Joe Harris to the D-League, the team announced. It’s the eighth time Cleveland has sent last year’s 33rd overall pick to its affiliate, though none of the seven previous assignments have lasted as long as a week, as our leaguewide assignments/recalls log shows.
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