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Curry Intends To Remain With Warriors

January 14th, 2017 at 9:31pm CST by Arthur Hill

Two-time MVP Stephen Curry has no plans to leave the Warriors when he becomes a free agent this summer, according to Tim Kawakami of The San Jose Mercury News.

Appearing today on the “The TK Show” podcast, Curry said he’s aware of the potential opportunities he might have, but can’t imagine a better organization for him than Golden State.

“Like I’ve said from Day 1 when I was first asked about free agency, this is a perfect place to play,” Curry said. “Bay Area fans are amazing, our organization’s amazing, we’ve put together an amazing team that’s competing for championships every year. There’s really no reason that I can see right now that would draw me elsewhere.”

Under the new CBA, Curry is eligible for “designated veteran player” status, which would allow him to receive an extension from his current team valued at approximately $209MM over five seasons. Other teams, Kawakami notes, would be limited to offers of about $133MM over four years.

Curry adds that he wanted to make it clear to Kevin Durant during recruiting last summer that he plans to be part of the Warriors for a long time. Durant signed a two-year contract with a player option and is expected to become a free agent again once the season ends.

Curry adds that he expects Durant to join him in signing a long-term deal.

“I don’t see why not,” Curry said. “I think he really enjoys playing with us as a team. He enjoys living in the Bay Area, the opportunities that are out here. I think he just genuinely enjoys coming to work every day. That’s a good recipe for hopefully a long-term presence in the Bay.”

Heat Notes: Whiteside, Durant, Spoelstra

January 11th, 2017 at 7:48pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Hassan Whiteside said he doesn’t pay attention to the rumors and trade speculation surrounding his name, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel relays. “If I pay attention to it, I wouldn’t be back in the league. There’s all kind of rumors. A lot of people said a lot of things to keep me from being back in the league,” Whiteside said.

It was previously reported that no member of the Heat was off-limits in trade talks, but on Tuesday, a team spokesman shot down that report.

Here’s more from Miami:

Dealing Whiteside just six months after signing him to a four-year, $98MM contract would be troublesome for the franchise, Winderman argues in his weekly mailbag. Part of the value in retaining Whiteside was not letting an asset leave without getting anything back in return, Winderman adds before stressing that the team should be patient when evaluating possible trades.
If Whiteside is going to be the team’s franchise player, he needs to be more consistent, Winderman writes in the same piece. The scribe calls for more performances like the one against the Warriors on Tuesday, where the center pulled down 20 rebounds and scored 28 points.
The Heat always thought they had a chance to sign Kevin Durant in free agency up until the 2013/14 MVP signed with the Warriors, Winderman writes in a separate piece. “We’re all wired to think that we always have a chance,” coach Erik Spoelstra said of the Heat. Spoelstra added that he was impressed with how Durant handled himself when the small-forward met with the team over the summer. “Big fan before I met him. That was the only time I had ever met him. Bigger fan after that, even after he chose Golden State,” he said of Durant.

Pacific Notes: Barnes, Paul, Warriors, Kerr

January 7th, 2017 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Matt Barnes has become a veteran leader since signing with the Kings in July, but he entered free agency expecting to return to the Clippers, relays Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Barnes spent three years with the Clippers before being traded to Charlotte after the 2014/15 season. Ten days later, he was shipped to Memphis in another deal. Even though coach Doc Rivers opted to get rid of him, Barnes was expecting a reunion this summer. “I thought it was a done deal, I was going to the Clippers,” Barnes said. “The day before I was supposed to meet with Doc, they decided to go in another direction with Wesley Johnson. That was obviously my first choice at the time, to be close to my kids. Golden State was always a choice; they just didn’t have very much money. I’ve always been the guy to take less money to play on a better team, but the price gap was too far on this one.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Chris Paul‘s return has boosted the Clippers‘ confidence as they try to fight back from their recent six-game losing streak, writes Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. Paul believes he is finally over the left hamstring problems that sidelined him for seven of the past eight games. “I want to hoop, regardless,” Paul said. “But the toughest thing is when you can’t. Ain’t no point coming out there and not being you and hurt the team.”
Friday’s meltdown against the Grizzlies is part of an ongoing problem for the Warriors, writes Anthony Slater of The San Jose Mercury News. Even with a 31-6 record, Golden State has been outscored by 15 points this season in the fourth quarter and overtime. The Warriors have played 38 clutch minutes since December began and have been outscored by 21 points. “We’re not used to these fourth quarter struggles,” said coach Steve Kerr. “We’ve really closed teams well the last couple years. So it feels different. It feels weird.”
Kerr has a lot of work ahead to turn a wealth of talent into a “super team” in time for the playoffs, contends Marcus Thompson II of The Mercury News. Thompson argues that the free agent signing of Kevin Durant disrupted team chemistry and says Kerr has three months to restore it.

Pacific Notes: World Peace, Griffin, Green

January 7th, 2017 at 9:17am CST by Austin Kent

When Metta World Peace racked up three fouls in two minutes on Friday night there was an ominous undertone that the performance may be the veteran’s last. It’s unclear whether the 37-year-old’s leadership will be enough to convince the Lakers brass to retain him after today’s deadline, writes Mark Media of The Los Angeles Daily News.

January 7 marks the last day that teams can release players on partially guaranteed contracts and still have them clear waivers. The Lakers have the option to release both World Peace and 25-year-old Thomas Robinson should they wish to free up a roster spot for an acquisition later on down the road.

World Peace has played sparingly in his sixth season across two stints with the Lakers, but will forever hold a spot in team history after winning a title alongside Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol in 2010.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Lakers head coach Luke Walton knows what today represents for World Peace and has voiced his desire to keep the veteran forward. “I like him with us,” Walton tells Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times, “but that’s a front office decision. My recommendation is to keep him.“
After undergoing knee surgery on December 20, Blake Griffin has been making consistent progress, writes Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. “You can tell he’s in better spirits,” says Clippers head coach Doc Rivers.
After blowing a 24-point lead and ultimately losing to the Grizzlies yesterday, vocal Warriors forward Draymond Green told the media “I’m happy we lost.” Green believes that the loss will help the team address some bad fourth-quarter habits. After a timeout earlier in the game, Green was seen having a heated conversation with summer acquisition Kevin Durant.

Warriors Notes: Pachulia, Chase Center, Durant

January 4th, 2017 at 7:59pm CST by Austin Kent

When Zaza Pachulia opted to sign with the Warriors this summer, he left millions of dollars on the table. The big man’s decision to take the $2.9M offer rather than other more lucrative ones came at a time when his value was at one of the highest points of his 13-year-year career.

According to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders, the 32-year-old’s choice to forego more money and longer terms wasn’t all that tough to make, either.

“Not really,” Pachulia tells Scotto. “Honestly, at the moment that’s what my gut feeling was, especially after talking to Steve Kerr.”

In Pachulia, the sharp-shooting Warriors get a heady veteran capable of clearing floor space with his broad-shouldered screens.

Pachulia has seen action in 31 games so far this season and averaged 4.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in the process.

That’s not all the news on the Warriors front:

The Warriors will officially break ground on their new arena on January 17, the team has announced in a press release. The Chase Center, built in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood, should be ready in time for the 2019/20 NBA campaign.
In a phone interview with Steve Nash, Tim Kawakami of The Mercury News spoke at length about the retired point guard’s relationship with Kevin Durant. Nash, now a player development consultant with the Warriors, stressed that Durant’s free agency decision was a personal one. “He’s at a stage of his life where he wanted to challenge himself as a man and put himself in an environment where he felt there was room for a different kind of growth,” Nash said.
Throughout his tenure with the Thunder, Durant’s relationship with the media was spotty. Recently, the superstar connected with ESPN’s Chris Haynes for a candid discussion about what’s different now versus then.

Western Notes: M. Gasol, Carter, Green, Richardson

January 1st, 2017 at 9:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Grizzlies need Marc Gasol‘s injured ankle to heal as quickly as possible, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. Gasol rolled his left ankle in Saturday’s game, providing a scare for the team’s top player this season. The 32-year-old center is averaging a career high in points and rebounds, while anchoring the NBA’s top defense. X-rays were negative and Gasol was listed as day-to-day with a sprained ankle, according to ESPN. “It hurts, but it’s not broken,” Gasol said. “It’s tender right now, so we will take it day-to-day, just like always.”

There’s more out of the Western Conference:

The contracts for Grizzlies Vince Carter and JaMychal Green both became guaranteed today, tweets Bobby Marks of The Vertical. Carter will make $4,264,057 this season, while Green will collect $980,431. Both players will become free agents when the season ends.
The Kings are planning to give more playing time to rookie guard Malachi Richardson, writes James Ham of CSNBayArea. Richardson has gotten into just five games with Sacramento, averaging 6.4 minutes. But he has played well in the D-League, with 21 points per night in 11 games, and coach Dave Joerger is ready to give him a chance at the NBA level. “I think that it’s time for Malachi to get into the rotation, especially with Rudy [Gay] out,” Joerger said. “That’s something that you’ll see, probably, going forward.”
Agent Rich Kleiman will leave Roc Nation to become the manager and business partner for the Warriors‘ Kevin Durant, according to Mark J. Burns of SportTechie (Twitter links). The agency will continue to represent Durant.

New York Notes: Galloway, LeVert, Porzingis

December 31st, 2016 at 9:14pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Knicks made an effort to re-sign Langston Galloway over the summer, but the lure of returning to his home-state propelled the combo guard to join the Pelicans, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. “I didn’t think I would leave [New York],’’ Galloway said. “But I had an opportunity to go home. That definitely was big, important for me and my family and wife. It’s definitely been great playing back home, loving the atmosphere New Orleans has.’’

Here’s more from the Big Apple:

Caris LeVert has only played 12 games this season because of a foot injury, but Nets coach Kenny Atkinson likes what he’s seeing from the rookie, Brian Lewis of the New York Post relays. “[LeVert’s play has been] Super positive. I just said that to our coaches, his energy, how hard he plays, how fast he is, his athleticism, how aggressive he is,” Atkinson said. “So that’s the positive we take out of [it], that he’s really starting to grow in front of our eyes. That’s good to see.”
Randy Foye is taking advantage of his playing opportunity this season and he credits his experience playing alongside diverse play-makers for his ability to help the Nets run an effective offense, Lewis writes in a separate piece. “I played with [Blake Griffin in the past], last year being with [Russell Westbrook] and [Kevin Durant], and seeing the double team and just knowing you’ve got to have the right spacing,” Foye said. The shooting guard signed a one-year deal with Brooklyn during the offseason.
Kristaps Porzingis said Anthony Davis‘ game has greatly influenced his own, Berman passes along in a separate piece. “Before I got to the NBA, I was watching him a lot — skinny guy coming out of college, how he was able to adjust to the NBA, at this level,” Porzingis said of Davis. “Obviously, I learned from him — even seeing defensively, able to hold guys in the post. His skill set is his, pretty all-around. He can do everything, but it was more seeing how he can adjust with his physicality.”

Officiating Report Adds Another Critic

December 29th, 2016 at 8:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy is the latest NBA figure to criticize the Last Two Minute Report regarding officiating in close games, according to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.

Warriors forward Kevin Durant and Cavaliers forward LeBron James were both critical this week of the NBA’s practice of publicly reviewing officiating calls in the last two minutes of close games. Van Gundy has now joined the chorus.

In Cleveland’s one-point win over Golden State on Christmas Day, Durant felt he was tripped up on the final play of the game. But when the officiating report confirmed that, Durant felt it was unfair for the officials to be subject to additional scrutiny, claiming it makes them more tentative to do their jobs.

“The refs didn’t lose us that game,” Durant said. “We lost that game. I think it’s (terrible) the NBA throws the refs under the bus like that.”

Van Gundy agrees with that assessment, as he told Ellis and other reporters on Thursday.

“I understand Kevin Durant’s comments because the referee could have had a great game and, when they grade them out, he could have been great, but he makes one crucial bad call at the end of the game, and that’s all the public knows about,” Van Gundy said.

The report on the Cavs’ win also indicated that a technical should have been called against James for hanging on the rim. That prompted him to say the NBA should cut the officials some slack.

“I think it discredits what the referees are doing for 48 minutes,” he told the assembled media. “If that’s the case, you might as well do a 48-minute report.”

During the offseason, the referees’ union called on the league to stop releasing the report publicly. At the time, commisssioner Adam Silver defended the practice, saying transparency was the best policy.

“It’s our hope that you take the Last Two Minute Reports together with using a certain amount of replay that we’re building to build trust and integrity in the league,” he said. “People are going to recognize that we are going to make mistakes, the officials are going to make mistakes. Human error is going to be part of this game, just as it is with players. … I’d say largely what these Last Two Minute Reports are showing is that the referees get it right about 90 percent of the time.”

How do you feel in this hot button issue? Should the Two Minute Report stay or go? Weigh in on the comments section below.

And-Ones: CBA, Roster Spots, Bynum, Senegal

December 21st, 2016 at 9:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Negotiators for the league were determined to make it more difficult to assemble “super teams” under the new collective bargaining agreement, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of the Vertical. In a brief video, Wojnarowski recounts a meeting this summer in which Commissioner Adam Silver told team owners that he was troubled by Kevin Durant‘s move to Golden State, fearing it would impact competitive balance. Warriors owner Joe Lacob defended his organization, saying it managed its salary cap in a way to enable the signing of a max player. In negotiations, the league tried to give small-market stars more incentive to re-sign with their current teams. Wojnarowski says the new system creates a “far more punitive financial choice” for players who want to leave for larger cities or more competitive teams. However, he adds that some small-market owners are concerned that the league didn’t go far enough with its rules changes.

There’s more basketball news tonight:

The new CBA will add two roster spots for each team, which will be two-way contracts for players who shuffle back and forth from the D-League, notes Chris Reichert of The Step Back. In a transcript from an interview with onthenbabeat.com, Reichert notes that the salary range for those players will be $50K to $75K, which is more than typical D-League players receive. The rise in NBA minimum salaries will also benefit D-League players because the 10-day contracts that teams can offer starting in January are based off minimum salaries adjusted for a player’s years of experience.
Veteran guard Will Bynum has signed a contract with the D-League, according to a tweet from D-League Digest. The 33-year-old was among the last players cut by the Hawks in training camp. He spent the majority of his 360-game NBA career with the Pistons, but also played for the Warriors and Wizards. He played most of the past two seasons with the Guangdong Southern Tigers in China.
The NBA plans to open an academy in Senegal next year, writes Gerald Imray of The Associated Press. This will be the sixth international academy for the league, which already has three in China and one in Australia, with another in India set to begin in April.

Warriors Notes: Curry, Durant, Pachulia, West

December 16th, 2016 at 8:55am CST by Luke Adams

Stephen Curry is one of the players who stands to benefit most from the league’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement, as Brian Windhorst and Marc Stein of ESPN.com detail. Under the previous CBA, and based on previously reported cap projections, Curry looked to be in line for a new deal that started at around $29MM. However, the designated player rule should allow Curry to get a starting salary closer to $36MM.

According to Windhorst and Stein, the “widespread expectation in league circles” is that there’s little chance Curry leaves the Warriors next summer, but the extra money the team can offer him should even further increase his odds of remaining in Golden State. If the Dubs were to offer a full five-year max deal and it started at $36MM, it would be worth a staggering $208MM+ over five years, including $47MM+ in the final season. In other words, there’s a decent chance Curry could become the NBA’s first $200MM player in July.

Here’s more on the Warriors:

While Windhorst and Stein focused on Curry, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post takes a closer look at what the new CBA means for Kevin Durant. As Bontemps details, if Durant wants a new maximum-salary contract next summer, Golden State will have to make some tough roster decisions on their complementary players, including Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala.
The Warriors’ frontcourt is banged up, with Zaza Pachulia already out of action and David West leaving Thursday’s game early. According to Shams Charania of The Vertical (via Twitter), Pachulia’s MRI showed a deep bruise – but no fracture – on his right wrist, and he has no definitive timeline for a return. West, meanwhile, will undergo an MRI today after injuring his hip, tweets Chris Haynes of ESPN.com.
Before the NBA and NBPA finalized an agreement on a new CBA this week, Haynes published a conversation with Draymond Green in a piece for ESPN.com, examining (in part) the big man’s penchant for speaking in mind. A day later, Green lived up to that reputation when he became one of the only NBA players to criticize the new CBA deal.