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Pacific Notes: Jordan, Love, Pierce, Cousins

July 13th, 2015 at 6:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

DeAndre Jordan often returns the purchases he makes, friends tell Ramona Shelburne and Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, who note that he’s on his third agent in seven years. Thus, perhaps the Mavs might have known that Jordan wasn’t quite in the bag until he put pen to paper. They triumphantly celebrated when it seemed Jordan was on his way to Dallas, as Shelburne and MacMahon detail.

“I hear this scream in the backyard and it’s [Mavs owner Mark] Cuban, walking inside with his hands up like, ‘We got him!'” Chandler Parsons said. “It was unbelievable. I was so hyped, because he really is a franchise-changing type player. They don’t come around very often. It was awesome. His mom was crying. I think Cuban might have even cried.”

Parsons called Jordan’s decision soon thereafter to instead return to the Clippers “very unethical and disrespectful,” as the Mavs small forward said to the ESPN scribes. Still, the Jordan saga isn’t the only storyline that’s changed during NBA free agency. A few more are amid the latest from around the Pacific Division:

The Lakers reportedly had a meeting planned with Kevin Love before he recommitted to the Cavs, but the purple-and-gold were never under the impression they would get that visit, a Lakers source told Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link).
Paul Pierce doesn’t have a team option on the final season of his three-year deal with the Clippers, as originally reported, but he does have a partial guarantee of $1,096,080 on the final season, which is worth a total of $3,679,840, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). The deal is the most the Clips could have given him using their taxpayer’s mid-level exception.
Wesley Johnson‘s contract with the Clippers covers two years, instead of just one as originally reported, Pincus reports (Twitter link). Both seasons are at the minimum salary, and the second season is a player option, according to Pincus.
DeMarcus Cousins expressed his enthusiasm this weekend for playing alongside Rajon Rondo, notes Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Cousins reportedly wants a trade to the Lakers, but Rondo has committed to sign with the Kings.
The Suns had been eyeing Sonny Weems for more than a year, but Phoenix’s two-year, $5.8MM offer shocked him, and when he jumped on it, he turned down a fully guaranteed two-year, $6MM offer from Barcelona, as Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic details. The Phoenix deal reportedly includes a team option on year two, but the Suns think he can become the first guard off their bench, Coro writes. The Spurs also had a level of interest in the 29-year-old swingman, according to Coro.

Cavaliers Rumors: Love, Thompson, Smith, Haywood

July 11th, 2015 at 5:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

A pool-side meeting with LeBron James and a 12:01 a.m. phone call on July 1st helped convince Kevin Love to stay in Cleveland, according to Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer. “We talked everything out,” Love said of the session with James. “A lot of stuff was very honest. We came to a very good place and agreed on a lot of things.” Love added that the early phone call from the organization let him know he was a priority. He agreed to a new five-year, $113MM deal with Cleveland.

There’s more news regarding the Cavs:

The newly signed James reminded the Cavaliers that they still have offseason work left to do, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. While filming a movie Friday, James talked about moves the team has made this summer and some that are still left to finish. “We still got to re-sign Tristan Thompson,” he said. “Hopefully we can bring back J.R. Smith as well and see if there’s some other free agents out there that’d love to come here and play if we’re able to do that.”
Thompson and the Cavs were reportedly close to reaching a five-year, $80MM deal, but talks stalled when he asked for the $85MM that the Warriors’ Draymond Green received, according to Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group. He also notes that Smith, who turned down a $6.4MM option for next season, has found few suitors in free agency. Cleveland is reluctant to give him a large raise or a long-term deal, two things Smith is seeking.
Turning Brendan Haywood‘s non-guaranteed $10.5MM contract into a trade exception might be the best option for the Cavs, writes Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Today’s release of Deron Williams by the Nets eases Brooklyn’s financial strain and removes another potential suitor for Haywood, Lloyd writes. One possible alternative is to send Haywood to the Clippers for Jamal Crawford, but L.A. officials have denied they are dealing Crawford, and Cleveland won’t need him if Smith re-signs. Haywood is expected to be dealt before his contract becomes fully guaranteed August 1st.

Central Notes: Love, Bucks, Morris

July 10th, 2015 at 8:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

New Pistons forward Marcus Morris wasn’t initially thrilled with the Suns for dealing him to Detroit, Perry A. Farrell of The Detroit Free Press writes. “I wouldn’t say stunning, but in Phoenix, I would say I didn’t have a great opportunity,” Morris said today. “I kind of wanted to play with my brother [twin Markieff Morris] so much that I kind of took away from myself. I didn’t think I had an opportunity to get better. I don’t think I had the chance to grow as a player over there. I think the opportunity is here for me. Everybody knew how bad I wanted to play with my brother. Phoenix knew. For them to trade me without consent or telling me was like a slap in the face, because of the contract I took from those guys and the money I took from them. I’m happy to be here. I’m a Piston. I’m a Bad Boy. I’m ready to get started.”

Here’s the latest from the Central Division:

The future second-rounder going to Indiana in the Roy Hibbert trade is the Lakers’ 2019 pick, tweets salary cap expert Larry Coon. The Pacers also net a trade exception equivalent to Hibbert’s salary of more than $15.5MM, Coon points out, but that will vanish when Indiana’s deal with Monta Ellis becomes official, unless the Pacers can somehow turn the Ellis transaction into a sign-and-trade.
The second-round pick heading from the Mavs to the Bucks in the Zaza Pachulia trade is Dallas’ 2018 selection, and it’s top-55 protected, according to RealGM. The same level of protection is on the 2020 second-rounder Milwaukee gets from the Wizards in the Jared Dudley deal, as RealGM also reveals. Both swaps produced trade exceptions, notes Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link). The Bucks get one worth $5.2MM from Pachulia and another for $4.25MM from Dudley.
The salaries in Khris Middleton‘s five-year, $70MM deal with the Bucks fluctuate up and down from year to year, but the starting salary is $14.7MM, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
Kevin Love indicated that he and LeBron James had what Love termed, “an honest talk,” prior to Love deciding to re-sign with the Cavaliers, Tom Withers of The Associated Press writes. “He happened to be in Los Angeles the same time I was,” Love said of James. “So, we just talked everything out and a lot of stuff was very honest and we came to a really good place and we agreed on a lot of things, so I think that was also a very big deal when you’re talking to the best player in the world.“

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Kevin Love Re-Signs With Cavs

July 9th, 2015 at 3:22pm CST by Chuck Myron

3:22pm: The Cavaliers have released a formal announcement regarding Love’s deal.

3:12pm: The Cavs still haven’t made any formal announcement, but a message with emojis on the team’s Twitter account indicates that Love has signed.

JULY 9TH, 10:07am: The Cavs have yet to make a formal announcement, but Love said in video for The Players’ Tribune that his contract is “inked and official,” as Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group transcribes.

9:35pm: Love’s deal includes a player option for the fifth year, Zach Lowe of Grantland reports (Twitter link).

JULY 1ST, 1:32pm: Kevin Love will re-sign with the Cavaliers, as he says in a self-authored piece on The Players’ Tribune. Love has long insisted that he would remain with Cleveland, in spite of plenty of stories indicating that he would look elsewhere, and a meeting he apparently had planned with the Lakers. It’ll be a five-year deal for about $110MM, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, in what appears to be a long-term commitment at the max.

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

“Yeah, of course I’ve heard the free agency rumors,” Love wrote. “But at the end of the day, and after meeting with my teammates (it turns out pools are great meeting places) and with the front office, it was clear Cleveland was the place for me. We’re all on the same page and we’re all in. We have unfinished business and now it’s time to get back to work.”

Love’s revelation brings to a close months of back-and-forth as rumors that Love would leave Cleveland continually surfaced and Love consistently denied them. The power forward did change his mind about declining his player option, as he said in January that he planned to opt in, but opting out was always the more financially sensible proposition, since the max will almost certainly entail more money for this coming season than he would have made on the option, worth only about $16.744MM.

The Lakers and Celtics were most often connected to him, but the Rockets and Blazers were also identified as teams with interest in recent days, and indeed, he seemingly remains a sought-after commodity around the league even in the wake of a down season that ended with a shoulder injury in the first round of the playoffs. He struggled to mesh with LeBron James both on and off the court, but James apparently still wanted him to stay.

Spurs Sign LaMarcus Aldridge

July 9th, 2015 at 2:39pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

JULY 9TH, 2:39pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

JULY 4TH, 11:21am: The Spurs and unrestricted free agent LaMarcus Aldridge have reached an agreement that will bring the talented forward to San Antonio, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter links). The arrangement will be for four years, and approximately $80MM, Wojnarowski notes, almost assuredly a max deal. The pact also includes a player option for the final season, the Yahoo! scribe relays.

The deal between San Antonio and Aldridge brings his nine year career with the Trail Blazers to a close. The 29-year-old appeared in 71 games for Portland during the 2014/15 campaign, averaging 23.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 35.4 minutes of action per contest. His shooting numbers last season were .466/.352/.845. Aldridge’s career numbers through 648 games, all with the Blazers, are 19.4 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 1.9 APG, with a slash line of .485/.276/.796.

The departure of Aldridge doesn’t come as surprise to the Blazers, who were informed by the forward on Friday night that he had narrowed his choices down to either the Spurs or the Suns, Wojnarowski tweets. A source told David Pick of Eurobasket.com as early as Wednesday that Aldridge would sign with the Spurs and turn down the hard-charging Suns (Twitter links), though he continued to take meetings in the days that followed. Aldridge had two sit-downs with the Lakers, and also met with the Heat, Rockets, Raptors, and Mavs during the free agent process. He cancelled a scheduled meeting with the Knicks, who never appeared to be serious contenders to land the big man.

Aldridge’s signing will have an impact outside of lining the forward’s pockets and giving the Spurs a new star to pair alongside Kawhi Leonard, who reached an agreement on a five year, estimated $90MM contract of his own with the team on Wednesday. Popovich, who has mulled calling it quits when Tim Duncan decides to hang up his sneakers and retire, is now looking to coach for the four remaining years on his contract, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. San Antonio is now aggressively pursuing unrestricted free agent David West as it reloads for 2015/16, tweets Wojnarowski.

Phoenix is likely heartbroken over missing out on the star forward, as it had reportedly made a strong impression on Aldridge, and he would have been the star the team so desperately seeks to acquire. The Suns would have instead focused on trying to convince Kevin Love to come to Arizona if Aldridge had simply stuck to his pledge of a year ago to re-sign with the Blazers, Jake Fischer of SI Now relays (via Twitter). Love has reportedly agreed to a five-year deal for about $110MM with Cleveland. While the agreement cannot be finalized until July 9th, it would indeed have been a shocking turn of events for Love to spurn the Cavs for the Suns, so Phoenix will have to settle for Tyson Chandler as its lone coup on the big man market.

Cavs Rumors: Smith, Crawford, Love

July 6th, 2015 at 3:23pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers struck deals on the first day of free agency with Kevin Love and Iman Shumpert, and they were reportedly close to doing the same with Tristan Thompson the same day, but their pace has slowed considerably since then. The Thompson talks have reportedly bogged down, with LeBron James apparently unwilling to talk about a deal for himself until Thompson, a fellow Rich Paul client, is taken care of. The Joe Johnson trade discussions with the Nets appear to be in limbo, too. Still, there are plenty of rumors, as we’ll pass along:

The Cavs don’t see the wisdom in giving J.R. Smith the long-term deal he’s seeking, and Smith “pretty much signed his exit papers” from Cleveland when he opted out, writes Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer. That’s in spite of Smith’s apparent inclination to remain in Cleveland and LeBron’s desire to have the former Sixth Man of the Year back. Still, James is a fan of Johnson, and Pluto suggests the Nets swingman as a possible replacement for Smith on the wing. Those talks with the Nets about Johnson appear to be stagnant, however.
Pluto hears rumors linking the Cavs to Jamal Crawford, and the Plain Dealer scribe suggests Crawford as another possible trade target with the Brendan Haywood contract. The Clippers were reportedly exploring trades for Crawford shortly before the draft.
The Cavs and Love had a verbal agreement in place before July 1st, as Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group hears. That would technically violate collective bargaining agreement rules, since the sides weren’t allowed to talk contract until this month, but the practice of engaging in clandestine early negotiations wouldn’t exactly be unprecedented, Haynes notes.

Atlantic Notes: Love, Fields, Lin, Bass

July 1st, 2015 at 7:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Celtics would have been bigger contenders to land Kevin Love if the team’s roster wasn’t stocked with still developing players, Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald writes. “Look, Kevin’s first choice is to stay with Cleveland, and I have no doubt that’s going to get worked out,” a source close to Love said. “But I think Kevin’s liked Boston for a while as a place to play. If their roster was more ready to win right now, maybe there’s a chance we’re having a different conversation. And maybe he’d be going back to Cleveland no matter what. All I know is that a lot of teams wanted in on him, and Boston was one of the only ones he spoke to.” Love announced his intention to return to the Cavaliers earlier today.

With the free agent signing period now officially underway, here’s the latest rumblings out of the Atlantic Division:

The Knicks have reached out to swingman Landry Fields, who is an unrestricted free agent, Marc Berman of The New York Post relays (Twitter link).
New York has also expressed interest in 2014/15 Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams, who is an unrestricted free agent, Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops tweets.
Free agent point guard Jeremy Lin was contacted by the Knicks, who need to add backcourt depth this summer, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders tweets. The Lakers, Mavericks, Grizzlies, Pacers, Bulls and Clippers have also shown interest in Lin’s services.
The Celtics still aren’t sure if they will re-sign Brandon Bass, but did contact the forward today to let him know the team hasn’t forgotten him, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes (Twitter link).
The Knicks have been in contact with forward Lance Thomas regarding a return to the team, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com relays (via Twitter). The Spurs and Nets have also expressed interest in the 27-year-old, Begley adds.
There is mutual interest between free agent forward Thomas Robinson and the Nets, Robert Windrem of NetsDaily tweets.
The Knicks have expressed interest in K.J. McDaniels, who is a restricted free agent, so the Rockets would have an opportunity to match any offer sheet the forward were to sign, Begley relays (on Twitter).
Members of New York’s front office will meet with free agent center Robin Lopez in Los Angeles this week, Begley tweets.
The Knicks are among the teams interested in guard Wayne Ellington, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News notes (Twitter link). Also interested in the 27-year-old are the the Cavaliers, Warriors, Wizards, Spurs and Hawks.
The Knicks were prepared to offer DeMarre Carroll a similar deal to the four-year, $60MM arrangement he reached with the Raptors, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today reports (Twitter link). Carroll felt that Toronto’s long-term outlook was better than New York’s, Zillgitt adds.

Latest On Kevin Love

July 1st, 2015 at 12:56pm CST by ChrisCrouse

WEDNESDAY, 12:56pm: The Cavs remain confident of retaining Love and are willing to offer the max, reports Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.

TUESDAY, 10:13pm: Love’s representatives and the Lakers have spoken, and a meeting is planned for this week, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN (Twitter link).

SUNDAY, 9:51am: Kevin Love has indicated to the Cavs recently that he plans to return, Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio tweets. Love officially opted out of his contract on Thursday.

Cleveland is prioritizing signing Love in free agency, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com (Twitter link). “We’re very much intending to pursue him the instant that we’re able to,” GM David Griffin said. Griffin said last week that he was expecting Love to opt out but re-sign with the club in July.

LeBron James expressed his desire for the team to re-sign Love as well as Tristan Thompson, Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith, but he won’t actively recruit any of them. Love will have no shortage of suitors this offseason as the Rockets, Blazers, Lakers, Suns and Celtics have all expressed interest in the power forward.

Free Agency Rumors: LeBron, Cavs, Leonard

June 30th, 2015 at 10:51pm CST by Zachary Links

A league source told Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group that the Cavs “do not value” pending free agent J.R. Smith. LeBron James reportedly wants the Cavs to re-sign the guard, so one has to wonder if that could outweigh the team’s reservations about him. Vardon adds that it is not known if the Cavs will immediately submit offers to James, Kevin Love, and Tristan Thompson when the clock moves past midnight. Here’s more as we get set for the start of free agency..

There’s a growing belief that Thompson’s postseason performance coupled with his ties to LeBron could earn him a max contract or something close to it, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon-Journal writes. Lloyd also writes that the Cavs were aware that Iman Shumpert would be seeking a ~$10MM per year deal this summer when the acquired him.
Spurs star Kawhi Leonard is on track for five-year, ~$90MM max deal after San Antonio takes care of other free agency business, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express News tweets. It was previously believed that Leonard was in line for a lucrative four-year deal rather than five.
Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki will join the team’s recruiting contingent in Wednesday’s meetings with DeAndre Jordan and LaMarcus Aldridge, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com tweets.
James Harden will join coach Kevin McHale, GM Daryl Morey and executive VP Gersson Rosas in the Rockets‘ meeting with LaMarcus Aldridge Tuesday night in Los Angeles, a source tells Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
The Knicks‘ selection of Kristaps Porzingis may scare free agents away, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. “They took a Latvian guy who may or may not be good,’’ an individual connected to a free agent said. “It’s very strange. They should’ve taken more of a tried-and-true guy, even a Justise Winslow. Top free agents are looking at winning now. It’s fun to go the playoffs and have a chance to compete for the Finals. They’re not going to win this year.’’

Pacific Notes: Calipari, Lakers, Chandler, Love

June 30th, 2015 at 10:02pm CST by Zachary Links

Despite his denials, people close to Kentucky coach John Calipari tell Stefan Bondy of the New York Post (on Twitter) that he wants another shot at the NBA as a coach/GM. This week, Coach Cal was heavily connected to the Kings‘ head coaching job but both sides have since denied such talk. Of course, Calipari’s last run in the NBA with the Nets did not go well.

Howard Beck of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) has heard rumblings of both Tyson Chandler and Kevin Love joining up with the Lakers. Both players are represented by Excel Sports Management.
Even if the Lakers roster were to consist of just Kobe Bryant and no one else, the Lakers could not afford both DeAndre Jordan and LaMarcus Aldridge at their market value, Larry Coon of CBA FAQ writes. On Tuesday, it was reported that the Lakers could be trying to corral both players this summer.
It was reported on Tuesday afternoon that Jim Buss would not be in attendance for the Lakers‘ pitch meeting with Aldridge, but plans have changed and he will in fact be there, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter). The meeting will also include Bryant, team president and governor Jeanie Buss, GM Mitch Kupchak, assistant general manager Glenn Carraro, coach Byron Scott, senior vice president of finance Tim Harris, as well as representatives from Time Warner Cable and AEG.