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Cavaliers Interested In Ryan Anderson

February 17th, 2016 at 10:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

10:27pm: The Wizards have talked with the Pelicans about acquiring Anderson, but prefer to pursue Kevin Durant rather than pay Anderson in free agency, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Anderson is expected to attract a salary starting at $16MM-$18MM when he hits the market this summer, and Washington would rather chase Durant without having to worry about Anderson.

Wojnarowski also reports that the Pistons and Pelicans had “serious talks” about Anderson before Detroit opted to trade for Tobias Harris on Tuesday. Detroit was interested in a larger deal with the Magic that included Evan Fournier, but Orlando wanted to keep him.

3:39pm: The Cavaliers are talking to the Pelicans about power forward Ryan Anderson, tweets Frank Isola of The New York Daily News. He adds that a three-team deal that includes Kevin Love is still possible. Cleveland has “strong interest” in acquiring Anderson, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.

The Pelicans are motivated to move Anderson because they aren’t sure if they can keep him once he enters free agency this summer. New Orleans expects Anderson to receive an offer with a starting salary in the neighborhood of $16MM-$18MM. The Heat, Kings, Wizards and Pistons are among the teams rumored to have interest in Anderson, although Detroit may have pulled out after Tuesday’s trade for Tobias Harris.

If Love is included in a deal, it will end a tumultuous season and a half with the Cavaliers. After being acquired from Minnesota in a 2014 trade, Love was supposed to be part of a new Big Three in Cleveland, but the fit was never as smooth as expected. He posted scoring and rebounding totals that were far behind his numbers with the Wolves.

Anderson, an eight-year veteran stretch forward, is averaging 16.7 points and 5.9 rebounds in 51 games with New Orleans. His salary is $8.5MM this season, while Love is making $19.5MM in the second season of a five-year max deal, so if they’re both involved in the same trade, some work will need to be done to match salaries.

Cavs Expected To Keep Love, Shumpert, Varejao

February 17th, 2016 at 9:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Despite a flurry of last-minute trade rumors, the most likely outcome is that Kevin Love, Iman Shumpert and Anderson Varejao all stay with Cleveland past the deadline, according to Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Lloyd adds that a minor deal is possible to improve the back end of the Cavs’ rotation.

That would be a blow to the Celtics’ dreams of adding Love in a rumored three-way deal with the Pelicans. It would also mean that Varejao isn’t headed to Orlando in exchange for Channing Frye, perhaps clearing the way for the Magic to ship Frye to the Clippers.

Lloyd writes that the Cavaliers want to take another shot at winning a title with Love and are reluctant to give up Shumpert, who is the team’s best perimeter defender. They have been trying for most of the season to find a taker for Varejao, who still has two years and nearly $19MM in guaranteed money remaining on his contract, but have been turned down repeatedly.

Lloyd confirms Cleveland’s interest in Frye, who spent time with Cavs GM David Griffin in Phoenix, but the writer believes other teams can put together better offers. The Cavaliers also have payroll concerns, already facing about $170MM in salary and luxury tax penalties.

Celtics Could Get Love In Rumored Anderson Deal

February 17th, 2016 at 7:17pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics’ desire to add Kevin Love could get a boost from the Cavaliers’ interest in Ryan Anderson, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. He hears from a source that Boston could wind up with Love as part of a three-team deal with Cleveland and New Orleans.

The potential deal is “very fragile,” but Love will wind up in Boston if it goes through, Blakely writes, adding that the Celtics have been trying for weeks to convince the Cavaliers to give up Love, and that Boston has been pursuing a third team to make the trade work. Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge is determined to find a star and sees Love as his best opportunity in years, according to Blakely.

The possibility of a three-team deal was mentioned by Frank Isola of the New York Daily News when he tweeted about the Cavs’ interest in Anderson earlier today. Anderson averages 16.7 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, but the Pelicans are concerned that they won’t be able to re-sign him in free agency this summer. Anderson is making $8.5MM this season, while Love’s salary is $19.5MM, so several other players will have to be included to make the proposed deal possible.

Eastern Notes: Monroe, Carter-Williams, Love

February 15th, 2016 at 4:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

Greg Monroe isn’t available but Michael Carter-Williams is “undeniably gettable,” sources tell Marc Stein and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. That conflicts with one side of an earlier report indicating that Milwaukee had let other teams know it was open to giving up Monroe for the right price, but it confirms the other part, about the team’s willingness to trade Carter-Williams just a year after acquiring him from the Sixers at last year’s deadline. The Bucks are turning away calls on Jabari Parker, Stein and Windhorst also write. See more from the Eastern Conference:

Cleveland has made it clear it wants a star in return for Kevin Love, not the role players and draft picks the Celtics are offering, league sources tell Marc Stein and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. Some executives around the league are growing stronger in their belief that the Cavs are more likely to entertain Love trades in the summer than they are now. the ESPN scribes add.
The market is strong for the first-rounders that the Sixers have from the Thunder and Heat this year, according to Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports, and with a below-average draft class and several teams devoid of first-round selections, it would be wise for Philadelphia to thinking about trading the picks, Marks opines.
The Heat have recalled Jarnell Stokes from the D-League, the team announced (Twitter link). Miami sent Stokes, whom the team is reportedly dangling in search of a second-round pick and tax relief, on assignment late last week so he could play in the D-League All-Star Game this past weekend, notes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel (on Twitter).

Celtics Rumors: Lee, Thomas, Horford, Love

February 14th, 2016 at 10:02am CST by Arthur Hill

The trade deadline is just four days away, but the Celtics don’t feel any urgency to make a deal, according to Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. A league source told Murphy that Friday’s rumored three-team trade with Cleveland and New York “never existed” and that Boston hasn’t talked to the Rockets about acquiring Dwight Howard. The Celtics are willing to add a player for the right price, but they believe everyone currently in play is overpriced. The source said that includes the Hawks’ Al Horford, whom the Celtics don’t want to invest heavily in because of his looming free agency. Boston had interest in the Nuggets’ Danilo Gallinari, but the source said that would-be deal was “a dead issue” before it was even reported.

There’s more this morning out of Boston:

The Celtics haven’t found any teams interested in David Lee and his $15.5MM contract, Murphy writes in the same piece. The source said Lee has “no value” around the league, even though his expiring deal presents an opportunity for cap relief this summer.
Isaiah Thomas recently became a recruiter when a player from another team asked him about the benefits of Boston, Murphy adds. Thomas, who used the reputation of coach Brad Stevens as one of his selling points, wouldn’t offer any clues as to who the player was. “The coaching staff is great and the organization is 100% – it’s A1,” Thomas said. “I told him, You watch us. It’s fun to watch us. We were joking around the locker room about how everyone likes to watch the Boston Celtics, and how hard we play.”
The unidentified player may have been Horford, speculates A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. He noted that Thomas smiled and said, “I didn’t say that” when asked if it was Horford he was talking about. A late replacement pick for the All-Star Game, Horford is trying to focus on business as usual despite the trade talk. “I’m going to continue doing what I do,” he said. “I can’t control the speculation that’s going on.”
It’s unlikely the Celtics can get Kevin Love from Cleveland without a third team involved, Blakely said in an interview on SportsNet Central. Blakely explained that Boston has enough young players and draft picks to make a deal happen, but such a move wouldn’t get Cleveland any closer to a championship.

Celtics, Cavs, Knicks Have Discussed Love Trade

February 12th, 2016 at 10:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

MONDAY, 3:55pm: Cleveland has made it clear it wants a star in return for Love, not the role players and draft picks the Celtics are offering, league sources tell Marc Stein and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com.

10:15pm: The Cavs have been shopping Love but the asking price is very high, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe tweets.

FRIDAY, 9:00pm: The Cavaliers and the Celtics have had discussions regarding a trade that would send Kevin Love to Boston, Frank Isola of The New York Daily News reports. Preliminary talk also took place about a three-way deal that would include the Knicks and small forward Carmelo Anthony, Isola adds. Anthony’s contract includes a no-trade clause, which the veteran would have to waive in order for any deal involving him to occur. New York would be in line to receive draft picks and players in return for Anthony, including center Timofey Mozgov, who was part of the 2011 trade with Denver that landed ‘Melo in New York.

The talks involving the Knicks have not progressed, according to Isola, and Anthony remains committed to New York for the time being. Anthony did relay earlier today that if the Knicks were to miss the playoffs this season, he would have to think about his future with the franchise. “That doesn’t sit well with me to know that it can be three years if we don’t pick it up right away,” Anthony said. “I try not to think about that right now but in actuality you have to start thinking about that.”

Anthony has expressed his desire to play alongside another star player, which LeBron James certainly qualifies as if Anthony were indeed to end up in Cleveland. “I think everybody always kind of dreams and hopes that they can play with another great player, another star player,” Anthony said. “It’s a star players’ league. I think that’s what we all talk about every time we get together. ‘I want to play with you. I want to play with you.’ Even here different guys say, ‘Come play with me, come play with me.’ That’s always the mindset. I think everybody that’s in my situation, in my position, they all want the load off, especially the older that they get. You realize that you just can’t do it by yourself. Everybody knows that. You have teams, great teams, great guys — individual guys on the teams — that still haven’t won either. They realize it just doesn’t work like that.”

The Celtics could also look to deal with the Knicks directly if they are unable to land Love, Isola notes. Boston executive Danny Ainge is determined to add a star player and is intrigued by Anthony, the Daily News scribe adds. Boston certainly has assets the Knicks would likely be interested in, including multiple future draft picks and perhaps second-year playmaker Marcus Smart, who could be the answer at point guard for New York, though that is merely my speculation. With their lack of future draft picks thanks to a number of ill-advised trades, the Knicks could benefit from hitting the reset button and building around rookie phenom Kristaps Porzingis.

Central Notes: Meeks, Love, Christmas

February 2nd, 2016 at 3:09pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Pistons have been linked to soon-to-be free agents Ryan Anderson and Al Horford as well as trade candidate Markieff Morris, but they’re satisfied with incumbent power forwards Ersan Ilyasova and Anthony Tolliver, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. That doesn’t mean they won’t seek an upgrade in the offseason, when Tolliver’s contract expires, but GM Jeff Bower made it clear to Ellis why the team is in no rush to make a deal now.

“That upheaval creates upheaval throughout the locker room,” Bower said. “When you do make changes like that, you’d like to think you’re doing it for more than just minor, insignificant shuffling. Sometimes you need a major shakeup, but usually when those scenarios exist, you have a group you don’t think is functioning well and you don’t see a long-term lifespan with them.”

See more on the Pistons amid the latest from around the Central Division:

Jodie Meeks will face limitations for the rest of this month after encountering a setback in his recovery from the broken foot he suffered at the start of the season, and he’s unlikely to play much this season, Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy told reporters, including Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter links). “For practical matters, it’s really hard to see him being able to get back and make much of a contribution this year,” Van Gundy said.
David Blatt didn’t prioritize making Kevin Love comfortable in the Cavaliers offense, but in Tyronn Lue‘s brief time as Blatt’s replacement, Love already looks more comfortable than he’s ever been since joining Cleveland before last season, writes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.
The Pacers have assigned Rakeem Christmas to the D-League, the team announced. The 36th overall pick from the 2015 draft has spent the vast majority of the season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants and he’s still yet to play in an NBA regular season game.

Central Rumors: Cavs, Meeks, Vasquez

February 1st, 2016 at 9:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

All-Star small forward LeBron James, point guard Kyrie Irving and power forward Kevin Love admitted fault of their own even as they laid out expectations for their teammates during a sometimes contentious players-only meeting the Cavs had in the immediate wake of David Blatt’s firing, as reported by Dave McMenamin, Brian Windhorst and Zach Lowe of ESPN.com. Accountability and double standards were key issues in the meeting that GM David Griffin asked reserve shooting guard James Jones to organize, as McMenamin, Windhorst and Lowe detail. The net effect appears to have been positive, based on the team’s 4-1 record since and the input a pair of sources gave the ESPN scribes.

In other news around the Central Division:

Pistons shooting guard Jodie Meeks has suffered a setback during his rehab from a broken right foot, David Mayo of MLive.com tweets. Meeks met Monday with surgeon Martin O’Malley, who determined that the foot had not fully healed, Mayo continues. Meeks must stop practicing, which he began doing last week, and he also has to cut his rehab activity, Mayo adds. Meeks was expected to miss 12-16 weeks after he was injured during the team’s home opener but the club was hopeful of getting him back by the All-Star break.
Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy, who is also the team’s president of basketball operations, doubts he would trade for a player that becomes an unrestricted free agent after the season, Rod Beard of the Detroit News reports. Detroit has been linked to Pelicans power forward Ryan Anderson, who is in his walk year, but Van Gundy doesn’t want to mortgage the future for a player who might depart after this season. “I’m not willing to yield an asset right now — even for a guy I really like — if he’s unrestricted and we could lose him in the summer for nothing,” Van Gundy told the team’s beat reporters. “That would be a step back in our building, even if it’s a minor one. We’re not going to give up a pick for a guy. If we were going to make a trade, it would be a for a guy who’s still got contract time left after next year, that we know we’d have.”
Bucks point guard Greivis Vasquez expects to play again this season, Charles Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports. Vasquez, who underwent right ankle injury in mid-December, is not close to returning but Vasquez remains optimistic, as he told Gardner. “I didn’t play the way I wanted to, but I needed to get healthy,” he said. “I know I’m going to come back before the season is over. Hopefully, we rack up a few wins and I can help.”

Cavs Notes: Mozgov, Love, LeBron

January 27th, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers had talks with the Pelicans about a potential Timofey Mozgov trade, but it didn’t go anywhere, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports in his latest edition of “The Vertical” podcast (audio link, scroll to 53-minute mark). Omer Asik was involved in some talks as well, but Cleveland had no interest in doing a deal, Wojnarowski adds. The Yahoo Sports scribe reported earlier this month that the Cavs had begun to explore the market for Mozgov, who’s making $4.95MM this year in the final season of his deal. See more on the Eastern Conference leaders:

No one has wanted to acquire Kevin Love more than Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, Wojnarowski says in the same podcast (scroll to 51-minute mark). Still, podcast guest and Yahoo colleague Chris Mannix suggests it’s too soon for the Cavs to trade Love, who just re-signed with the Cavs to a five-year max deal this past summer. Cavs GM David Griffin wants a versatile, defensive-minded wing player, Mannix hears, speculating that Jae Crowder would fit that bill.
Griffin has indicated in the wake of David Blatt‘s firing that the onus is on the players to put the team first, though with little recourse for major roster changes, new head coach Tyronn Lue would likely be the one to face the consequences if the Cavs don’t perform up to their potential, as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt examines. “Our most glaring need is to understand and communicate role delineation and team sacrifice,” Griffin said. “We have to have group buy-in and team-first habits in order to become the team that intend to be. We don’t have to concern ourselves with expectations of a destination. We need to work towards tomorrow and honor one another with total commitment every single day.”
LeBron James was pointed in his denial that he’s ever undermined a coach in the wake of rumors that he was behind the dismissal of Blatt and sought to have Erik Spoelstra fired, saying that it “does suck that people want to throw my name in dirt for no particular reason, because of speculation or whatever the case may be.” Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal has the details.

Central Notes: Hammond, Monroe, Irving, Love

January 26th, 2016 at 3:45pm CST by Chuck Myron

Bucks GM John Hammond said he still believes in his team’s young players despite a disappointing season so far and “can’t imagine life without” offseason signee Greg Monroe, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Hammond said the Bucks are doing their “due diligence” as the trade deadline nears, but he balked at the idea that the team is in a rebuilding situation.

“Absolutely not,” Hammond said. “A rebuild is saying, ‘We don’t have players.’ We like the players we have. For that reason I say it’s not a rebuild, not even close to a rebuild. We took two major steps forward last year, going from a 15-win season to a 41-win season. Those were historic measures. Sometimes this happens. It happens in life, it happens in business, it happens in sports. Sometimes you take two major steps forward, you might take a step backward. Maybe the step backward might be healthy; maybe it’s the right thing for you. The most important thing is not to panic.”

See more from the Bucks GM amid news from the Central Division:

Hammond identified 50-win seasons as “the mark of excellence” in the NBA, saying the team’s goal is to reach that threshold and remain above it, Gardner also relays. Nine teams won at least 50 games last season, so while it’s the domain of quality teams, it’s not necessarily symbolic of the elite.
New Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue appears to believe that Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love have offered too much resistance to their roles, remarking Saturday that “it’s still about their brand,” notes Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Lue tempered it a bit by later saying he encouraged the entire team to put winning before brand, Vardon notes. “Me and Kev will do a great job with adjusting to it, but our brands are the last thing we’re worried about,” Irving said. “If Kevin was worried about his brand, I don’t think Kevin would’ve came back. And for me to sign here, it was for a legitimate reason and we have a bigger goal at hand that we want to accomplish. That’s always coming first.”
Former Pistons affiliate player Ryan Boatright has signed with Italy’s Orlandina, the team formally announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). La Gazzetta dello Sport first reported a signing was close.