Kevin Garnett Rumors | Hoops Rumors

No-Trade Clauses In New KG, Duncan Contracts

September 19th, 2012 at 11:33am CST by Luke Adams

While the NBA's collective bargaining agreement includes certain scenarios in which a team needs a player's approval to trade him, it's rare that an actual no-trade clause is negotiated into a deal. Heading into this summer, only Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki had official no-trade clauses in their contracts.

However, according to Mark Deeks of ShamSports, the number of no-trade provisions in the Association doubled this offseason. Deeks tweets that both Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan have no-trade clauses in their new deals with the Celtics and Spurs, respectively. Both players inked three-year contracts this summer, so they can't be included in trades until those deals expire in the summer of 2015 (or 2014, for Duncan, if he declines his third-year player option).

Of course, it's unlikely that either Garnett or Duncan would have been in danger of being moved even without the no-trade provisions. Duncan has been a Spur for his entire career, while Garnett recently reiterated that he intends to retire as a Celtic.

Doc Rivers Talks Garnett, Bass, Lee, Heat

September 17th, 2012 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

At Boston Community Development's Hoop Dreams event last week, Celtics coach Doc Rivers sat down with longtime Boston sportswriter Bob Ryan to answer a few questions about his team heading into the 2012/13 season. The Fab Empire provided video of the Q&A session in three parts, and CelticsBlog did a great job of recapping Rivers' most interesting comments, so let's check out the highlights….

Kevin Garnett feels fantastic — "the best he has felt in years," according to Rivers.
Rivers felt that playing Brandon Bass and Garnett at the four and five respectively created matchup problems, since opposing big men didn't want to come out of the paint to defend the duo's jump shots.
Even before Ray Allen was injured and Avery Bradley emerged as the starting two guard last season, Rivers had hoped to bring Allen off the bench to provide scoring for the second unit. Rivers added that he expects Courtney Lee to start at shooting guard this year, at least until Bradley is fully healthy.
Noting that the Celtics were third in field-goal percentage but 30th in field-goal attempts last season, Rivers stressed that his team has to play at a faster pace. He'd also like to see his players getting to the foul line more often, since that gives the team time to set up its defense at the other end.
The Heat are "always on my mind," says Rivers, who adds that he brings the Eastern Conference champs up constantly to his players and wants his guys to hate Miami. The C's coach confessed that his team wouldn't likely win a "track meet" with the Heat, but said that if the game became a "thinking meet," he would give his team the edge.

Atlantic Notes: D-Will, Knicks, Garnett, Sullinger

September 11th, 2012 at 11:31am CST by Luke Adams

Deron Williams has mentioned since his free agent decision in early July that he came very close to signing with the Mavericks rather than the Nets. And according to D-Will, if it weren't for the Nets' move to Brooklyn, he almost certainly wouldn't be back with the team this season.

"It was a huge factor," Williams told Tony Manfred of Business Insider. "I don't think I would have even thought about staying if [the Nets were] staying in New Jersey."

Williams' stance may not come as a surprise, but as Manfred notes, it's another reminder of the impact a larger market can have on the free agent decisions of NBA stars. Here are a few more Tuesday morning items from around the Atlantic Division:

Williams is "definitely open" to playing for Team USA at the 2014 World Cup of Basketball, according to an Associated Press report (via NBA.com).
The Knicks figure to hire an assistant coach to replace the departing Kenny Atkinson, and Lasalle Thompson is a leading candidate, according to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com.
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com shares his top five picks for Knicks-related storylines that just won't go away.
In a recent interview in China, Kevin Garnett discussed his last few years with the Celtics, including the end of the Big Three era. Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com passes along video of the conversation.
Forsberg and Greg Payne of ESPNBoston.com take a shot at predicting how Jared Sullinger's rookie season for the Celtics will play out.

Kevin Garnett Plans To Retire As A Celtic

September 10th, 2012 at 2:00pm CST by Luke Adams

While touring China to promote the shoe company Anta, Kevin Garnett participated in an interview with Chinese website Hupu.com, and was asked about his future in the NBA. According to HoopsHype's translation, Garnett indicated that he intends to finish his playing career with the Celtics.

While it's hard to determine the exact context of Garnett's comments when they've been translated from English to Chinese and back to English, it shouldn't come as a surprise that he intends to finish his career in Boston. The 36-year-old signed a three-year deal this summer to remain a Celtic, and though there's no guarantee he'll retire at age 39, it sounded like retirement was an option he was considering as early as this offseason.

If Garnett does play past his current contract, I still wouldn't expect him to leave Boston as long as Doc Rivers continues to coach the team. Former teammates Kendrick Perkins and Sam Cassell both suggested earlier this summer that they couldn't picture KG playing for any coach except Doc.

Celtics Re-Sign Kevin Garnett To Three-Year Deal

July 14th, 2012 at 1:08pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 14, 1:08pm: The move is now official, the Celtics have announced.

JUNE 30, 9:24am: The Celtics will re-sign Garnett to a three-year deal worth $34MM, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter).

Odds & Ends: Magic, Ellis, Turiaf, Bulls, Garnett

June 27th, 2012 at 10:39pm CST by Alex Lee

Earlier today we heard that the Magic general manager Rob Hennigan spoke with the media and addressed the plethora of issues he has on his plate in his first few weeks on the job. Following Hennigan's availability, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel put together a comprehensive story on the rapid rate of change with which the Magic have overhauled their organization. By Schmitz's count, the Magic have dispatched of 17 important pieces of the organization since December. Starting as early as tomorrow night's draft, it is Orlando roster's turn for a makeover.

Here are some some odds and ends from around the NBA on this Wednesday night:

Celtics Rumors: Garnett, Allen, White, Draft

June 27th, 2012 at 10:06am CST by Luke Adams

While NBA teams make final preparations for the 2012 draft, the Celtics got a headstart on the 2013 draft yesterday, as the league granted Boston an additional second-round pick. The second-rounder comes from Charlotte, by way of the Thunder, who reportedly failed to give the Celtics Jeff Green's full medical information when the teams agreed to a deadline deal involving Green in 2011. Still, GM Danny Ainge remains focused on this week, which includes tomorrow night's draft and the upcoming free agent period. Let's round up the latest comments from the Celtics GM on the team's plans….

Atlantic Notes: Deron Williams, Prigioni, Celtics

June 26th, 2012 at 6:00pm CST by Ryan Raroque

While optimists in Dallas believe that the chances of signing Deron Williams are 50-50, Ken Berger of CBS Sports writes that the Mavericks are becoming increasingly worried that their prized free agent target will re-sign with the Nets. On Sunday, we mentioned that Brooklyn can offer a $100 MM extension over five years, whereas Dallas can offer $75 MM over four. Here are more of this evening's rumblings out of the Atlantic Division…

Celtics Rumors: Garnett, Allen, Pietrus, Bass

June 22nd, 2012 at 11:56am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics may have not looked like a championship-caliber team for a good chunk of the 2011/12 season, but the end-of-season results were hard to argue. Unlike the Thunder, the Celtics managed to stretch their series against the Heat to seven games before falling to the eventual champs. Given how close Boston got to the Finals, a total rebuild this summer appears very unlikely. GM Danny Ainge continues to discuss his team's future in interviews, so here's the latest from Ainge on the Celtics' offseason:

Odds & Ends: Mills, Magic, Garnett, Shumpert

June 18th, 2012 at 3:19pm CST by Luke Adams

When Patrick Mills returned from China this season, he signed a two-year deal with the Spurs that included a player option for the second year. Mills will have to make a decision soon, and tells Chris Dutton of The Age that he wants to finalize his NBA future before heading to the Olympics.

"I feel like I need to do my due diligence and really go and see what there is, to make sure I explore every option," Mills said. ''But in saying that, I really enjoy being in San Antonio and being part of that program."

Mills' decision could have an effect on whether or not the Spurs need to pursue a point guard in free agency, as I discussed in my preview of the team's offseason earlier this afternoon. Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA: