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Pacific Notes: Thompson, Young, Clippers

July 28th, 2014 at 9:06am CST by Chuck Myron

Every coach in the Pacific Division next season will be in either his first or second season on the job. Presumably that group will include Byron Scott, who says he has just a few loose ends to tie up before he’s the next coach of the Lakers. Here’s more from the Pacific:

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are confident that the Warriors aren’t looking to break up the “Splash Brothers” backcourt tandem with a trade that sends Thompson to the Wolves for Kevin Love, as the Golden State guards tell Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Thompson said new coach Steve Kerr gave him the “vibe” that he won’t be traded. Kerr is reportedly among the advocates within the team’s brass for keeping Thompson.
Nick Young says he feels like the Lakers made him a priority when they re-signed him to his new four-year deal, but he acknowledged he might not have ended up with the team had Carmelo Anthony decided to go to L.A., as he tells Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
Matt Barnes said it’s realistic that Clippers players would boycott if Donald Sterling remains the owner into next season, as he said in an appearance on The Chris Mannix Show on NBC Sports Radio (Facebook link; hat tip to USA Today’s Nina Mandell). Still, he acknowledged that with the process tied up in court, he just wants to see the NBA move “swiftly and abruptly” toward Sterling’s ouster. ““It’s tough,” he said. “I think you guys [the media] are like we are, we’re not exactly sure how far they can push it. We know where they stand and what they want. At the end of the day it comes down to legalities and business, stuff that has to be handled in a court of law. It’s a very touchy, very iffy situation. We’re about two months out from camp, and I think as it gets closer and as we get a better understand of what’s going to happen I think you will have a better idea of what we are going to do.”

Poll: Should Cavs Deal Wiggins For Love?

July 27th, 2014 at 10:51am CST by Eddie Scarito

Heading into this offseason, the chances of Kevin Love heading to the Cavaliers were slim. But that was before LeBron James decided to return his talents to Cleveland. When LeBron announced his decision to sign with the Cavs, he preached patience, and in a move to lower expectations, implied that the team wouldn’t expect to contend for a championship this coming season.

But acquiring a player of Love’s caliber could certainly accelerate that timetable, which is one reason that Cleveland has seemingly been burning up the phone lines trying to work out a deal to acquire the stat-sheet-filling power forward. The feeling is apparently shared by Love, who, as recently reported, may have formally requested a trade to Cleveland via his agent.

Numerous other teams have been attempting to work out a deal, including the Warriors, Celtics, Lakers, Bulls and Knicks. Golden State still appears to be Cleveland’s main competitors for Love, but the Warriors have expressed an unwillingness to include Klay Thompson as part of the deal, which has stalled talks between the two franchises.

The potential blockbuster deal between the Wolves and the Cavs is being complicated by the insistence of Minnesota coach and president of basketball operation Flip Saunders that Cleveland include No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins as part of any package for Love. Wiggins recently signed with the Cavs, so they will have to wait 30 days before they can officially deal him away. But that is only a minor issue if both franchises are serious about making a trade.

Should the Cavs relent and include Wiggins if it nets them Love? Wiggins has a wealth of potential and could turn out to be a superstar, and the type of player you can build a champion around, but he has yet to play a minute of regular season action. Whereas Love has career averages of 19.2 PPG, 12.2 RPG, and 2.5 APG. He’s also only 25 years old and just entering his prime. The knock on Love of course is that in six seasons he has yet to lead his team to the playoffs, and that he is a subpar defender.

As for Wiggins, his value is more theoretical at this point. There have been numerous players, including first overall draft picks, who enter the league being touted as franchise changing talents, only to disappoint and underperform. The ceiling on the rookie appears to be incredibly high, but is holding onto him and gambling he’ll turn out to be a better player than Love worth the risk?

The other aspect to factor in is the leverage that Cleveland may have gained in the trade talks if Love indeed told the Timberwolves that he would opt out after the 2014/15 season and would not re-sign with the team. And if Love also specifically requested a trade to Cleveland, that could complicate matters further.

Cleveland could also decide to hold off on depleting its young assets and simply play out this season with its current roster, then try to clear enough cap room to sign Love next summer outright. This might allow them to keep Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and whichever other pieces, including draft picks, that they would have had to ship to Minnesota to get this deal done, but it would still be a challenge. The Cavs already have more than $48MM in commitments for 2015/16, assuming James opts in and the team picks up its option on Dion Waiters.

So now it’s time for you to step into Cavs GM David Griffin‘s shoes and make the call. Do you relent and include Wiggins if it will bring Love’s talents to Cleveland? Or do you draw a line in the sand and refuse to offer Wiggins, even if it potentially costs you a LeBron-Love pairing?

Klay Thompson Seeks Max Extension

July 19th, 2014 at 11:39am CST by Cray Allred

Klay Thompson‘s agent has been seeking a max deal in extension talks with the Warriors, reports Sam Amick of USA Today. While Thompson’s name bounces around trade rumors involving Kevin Love, the Warriors starting shooting guard’s extension talks are just as relevant to his future with the team. The Warriors have been bracing for a max demand from agent Bill Duffy and the two-way shooting guard after seeing Gordon Hayward and Chandler Parsons each receive max offers as free agents this summer. Golden State has reportedly been budgeting to accommodate such a deal for Thompson, and Andrew Bogut‘s extension structure was one part of those efforts.

If the two sides aren’t able to reach an extension agreement by the early-season deadline, Thompson will become a restricted free agent for the 2015/16 season, when he would likely fetch max offers from rival teams. Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob vowed to reach an agreement with Thompson, although at least some placed his value at $12MM per season at the time, a millions below the max for a player of his experience.

Thompson has been said to be open to being traded to Minnesota, at least partially because the Wolves would have more cap room to commit to a max deal upon acquiring the 24-year-old. If Golden State’s very public refusal to give up Thompson in a deal for a perennial All-Star in Love holds up, it would only seem to help his case in negotiations. Thompson’s improvement in three years as a Warrior has accompanied the team’s increased performance as a unit. His win shares have steadily risen from 1.7 as a rookie to 6.7 in 2014/15, and his career 41% three-point shooting percentage is all the more impressive considering he has launched 6.5 long distance attempts per game.

Latest On Kevin Love

July 18th, 2014 at 10:24pm CST by Chuck Myron

10:24pm: Multiple league sources are again refuting the notion that Wiggins has been made available in trade talks, telling Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com that the Cavs still aren’t budging (Twitter link).

8:25pm: Both Love’s camp and a Minnesota source tell Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities that it’s unlikely a deal happens this weekend (Twitter link).

6:00pm: While the Warriors are denying the report of their willingness to trade Thompson in a package for Love, Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders (video) suggests that Golden State is bluffing in case the Wolves wind up picking the Cavs package above theirs. Koutroupis reiterates that Love’s willingness to opt in for the 2015/16 season gives Minnesota more leverage in asking for Thompson in a trade, and increases the likelihood that the power forward is dealt before the season.

3:27pm: Chris Broussard of ESPN.com is the latest to contend that the Cavs are indeed willing to part with Wiggins in exchange for Love. Cleveland would also part with Anthony Bennett and a 2015 first-round pick, Broussard writes, though the Cavs would have to add more to make a deal work under the league’s salary-matching rules. A trade between the clubs was close at one point, but Minnesota’s demands exceed what the Cavs are offering, according to Broussard. The feeling around the league is that the Wolves are trying to pit the Cavs and Warriors against each other in a bidding war, just the sort of competition Golden State reportedly wants no part of, as we noted below.

11:28am: The Cavs haven’t offered Wiggins for Love, just as the Warriors haven’t offered Thompson for the Minnesota power forward, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press, seconding earlier reports that put the brakes on the idea that one or both were in play (Twitter link). The Warriors want no part of a would-be bidding war against the Cavs for Love, so it appears they’ve decided to set aside Love talks for now, writes Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group.

8:31am: The Warriors aren’t willing to trade Klay Thompson to the Wolves in a deal for Kevin Love, a source insists to Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group, insisting that a report from late Thursday that said Golden State was on board with giving up Thompson was untrue (Twitter links). Kawakami had heard from multiple sources throughout Thursday that the Warriors had considered the idea of including Thompson in packages but decided against doing so (Twitter link).

Rumors surrounding Love perked up when a dispatch Thursday afternoon indicated that the Cavs would be willing to part with Andrew Wiggins for love, but another report denied that this year’s No. 1 overall pick is available for a trade. Still, a source who spoke with Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal before the return of LeBron James to the Cavs said that aside from Kyrie Irving, no one on the Cleveland roster was off-limits for a potential trade that would net Love.

Wolves owner Glen Taylor and Cavs owner Dan Gilbert spoke at length this week about a trade, just as Taylor did last month with Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. The talks between Taylor and Lacob produced a framework of a deal that included Thompson, but Lacob ultimately spiked the idea on the advice of consultant Jerry West, a source tells Zgoda. West is reportedly an opponent of trading Thompson.

Cavs Willing To Trade Andrew Wiggins For Love?

July 17th, 2014 at 11:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

11:53pm: The Warriors are now willing to include Thompson in an offer for Love, reports Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders. With reports swirling that the Cavs will part with Wiggins, Golden State has given in on their refusal to include Thompson partly because they believe Love is willing to exercise his 2015/16 and in turn extend his stay in the Bay Area for at least two seasons. While no trade is imminent, Koutroupis still expects Harrison Barnes and David Lee to be part of the deal.

7:07pm: LeBron has reached out to Love to tell his former USA Basketball teammate that he’d like them to play together in Cleveland, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter).

5:52pm: Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio disputes the report that the Cavs have changed their stance on dealing Wiggins, writing that the sides are still not close to a deal for Love. Amico adds that the Cavs are still determined to keep the Kansas product for the foreseeable future and are weighing the caveats of having three max players against the benefits of having young, cheap talent like Wiggins, Bennett and Dion Waiters.

5:06pm: Warriors GM Bob Myers is the one among the team’s brass who’s most open to moving Thompson, while ownership, coach Steve Kerr and consultant Jerry West are resisting, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.

4:59pm: There are no indications that the Warriors will up their bid for Love, a source tells Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). Ostensibly, that means that they’re still unwilling to include Klay Thompson in such a deal.

3:28pm: The Wolves and Cavs haven’t engaged in conversations of any substance about Wiggins just yet, but things appear to be picking up on multiple fronts, Krawczynski tweets.

2:31pm: The Cavs are OK with giving up Andrew Wiggins in a trade for Kevin Love, having changed their stance against dealing this year’s No. 1 overall pick away, a league source tells Bob Finnan of The News-Herald. The Wolves have reportedly insisted that Wiggins be a part of any deal for the All-Star power forward. The Cavs apparently told Wiggins he wouldn’t be moved, but it seems any such promise might not hold water.

The latest proposal appears to involve Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and a first-round pick, and perhaps Brendan Haywood, too, Finnan writes. Minnesota reportedly quickly rebuffed an earlier package of Waiters, Bennett and a first-rounder.

LeBron James wants the Cavs to acquire Love, a source tells Finnan. The idea of playing with the four-time MVP continues to intrigue Love, who said before James signed with the Cavs that he’d be “100%” on board with staying long-term in Cleveland if James were there, too. Love can opt out of his contract and become a free agent next summer.

The Wolves maintain that they ultimately don’t have to trade Love, even as rival GMs perceive that stance as a bluff, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press. Some within the Wolves would prefer to see Love walk next summer, giving Minnesota cap flexibility, over a trade in which they would end up with mid-tier contracts in return, according to Steve Aschburner of NBA.com.

Western Notes: Terry, Love, Williams

July 15th, 2014 at 7:55pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Jason Terry may still be under contract with the Kings for one more season, but he isn’t ruling out an eventual return to the Mavericks, as both Tim MacMahon (via Twitter) and Bryan Gutierrez of ESPN Dallas note. The former Dallas guard was a guest on 103.3 FM’s Fitzimmons and Friedo Show and expressed his desire for a reunion.

“I won’t rule out returning back to Dallas. It’s my home and my heart…I bleed blue. I’m a Maverick.” Terry added that championships are his driving force as he finishes out his career. “I want to get back on a team that has a realistic shot to win a championship, and I think Dallas is doing those types of things.

Here’s more out of out of the Western Conference this evening:

Terry also commented on the current state of the Kings and his plans for the near future. “(They’re) in transition right now. For me, at this point in my career, I want championships…I wouldn’t say it’s rebuilding, but a building process…DeMarcus Cousins (is) a huge talent. (His attitude is) a little shaky. Rudy Gay (is) not a proven winner in this league but a tremendous talent and a guy you can build around…I think there will be some more conversations with my agent and the Sacramento Kings to get a better picture of where they are headed and what they’re trying to accomplish.”
An increasing number of executives around the league expect the Timberwolves will trade Kevin Love before the start of the season, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Warriors and Wolves have resumed their trade talks involving Love after having hit a stalemate earlier, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press. Minnesota believes Golden State will eventually relent and be willing to trade Klay Thompson in a deal for Love, and that the Cavaliers will come around to including Andrew Wiggins in their offers, sources tell Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.
The Mavericks are still looking for another point guard and have spoken with free agent Mo Williams, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports; team president Donnie Nelson doesn’t seem too optimistic about their chances of landing him, notes Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star Telegram (Twitter link).
Nelson later acknowledged that the team won’t have any money to make a play for Carlos Boozer (Twitter link).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Western Notes: Gasol, Love, Mavs, Deng

July 13th, 2014 at 9:56pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lakers have officially renounced the rights to Pau Gasol along with an entertaining list of long-retired players, according to Mark Deeks of ShamSports (via Twitter). Prepare for a stroll down memory lane. The Lakers renounced the rights to Horace Grant, Ron Harper, Jim Jackson, Karl Malone, Ira Newble, Theo Ratliff, Mitch Richmond, John Salley, Brian Shaw, Joe Smith, and Shammond Williams. The Lakers had to drop the rights to those players in order to help make the Jeremy Lin trade possible. For more on cap holds, check out our cap holds entry in the Hoops Rumors Glossary. More out of the West..

The main holdup in the Kevin Love talks between the Wolves and Warriors is obviously Klay Thompson, but there’s more to it, as Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News explains. The Wolves don’t regard David Lee and Harrison Barnes as highly as Golden State does, thanks to Lee’s hefty contract and Barnes’ down season in 2013/14.
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak told reporters, including Bill Oram of the Orange County Register, that he wasn’t banking on landing Carmelo Anthony this summer. “We always felt like it was a longshot,” Kupchak said. “We gave it our best shot and we’re happy to accomplish what we did and we still have more work to do.”
Lance Stephenson could prove to be this summer’s Monta Ellis for the Mavericks, tweets Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. The Mavs weren’t necessarily high on Ellis last summer but he fell to them at a great price after everyone else passed.
The Cavaliers’ re-signing of James complicated Deng’s situation, as sign-and-trade options that could have led to a bigger payday for him were no longer available and James’ decision to sign a two-year deal set a new precedent on the market that came into play, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. The Mavericks‘ preference to go after Stephenson if they can’t land Chandler Parsons also limited Deng’s options.

Western Notes: Suns, O’Neal, Jazz

July 13th, 2014 at 11:04am CST by Eddie Scarito

The Suns recent contract agreement with Isaiah Thomas has puzzled some since the team already has point guards Eric Bledsoe, Goran Dragic, and recent draftee Tyler Ennis on the roster. But Phoenix believes they have only strengthened their “dual-playmaker” offense with the acquisition, writes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. GM Ryan McDonough said, “We feel like the strength of our team is the backcourt. We feel like this move has made us even stronger in the backcourt. We were very good when Dragic and Bledsoe were on the court, and we think Isaiah is that caliber of player where if you can have one or two of those guys on the court at all times, you really don’t have any dropoff scoring-wise. You always have multiple weapons. You have guys who can run pick-and-rolls from either side of the floor and can push the floor in transition.”

Here’s more from the western half:

Jermaine O’Neal is expected to make a decision on his retirement soon, reports Diamond Leung of The Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). O’Neal appeared in 44 games for the Warriors last season, averaging 7.9 PPG and 5.5 RPG while playing 20.1 minutes per contest.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr has spoken with Klay Thompson and David Lee about the trade rumors surrounding both players, writes Leung. According to the article Kerr said, “They both get it. I told them, I know you get it. It doesn’t make it any easier. But this is why you really get paid. I mean, you get paid all this money, is it really for coming into a gym for two hours a day and shooting jump shots? We’ve been doing that for free our whole life, you know? You get paid because you can get traded, and you have to uproot your family. You can get hurt, you can get booed, and people on the message board are crushing you. That’s where you actually earn your money in this league, where it actually feels like work.“
Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey was noncommittal when asked what Gordon Hayward‘s new contract would mean for Alec Burks and Enes Kanter and any discussions on signing those players to contract extensions, notes Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).
With the Lakers seemingly striking out on all the big name free agents this summer, the team will have to turn to “Plan B,” writes Bill Oram of the Orange County Register.

Latest On Kevin Love

July 11th, 2014 at 6:16pm CST by Chuck Myron

6:16pm: Sources told Broussard that the Cavs made an offer of Dion Waiters, Anthony Bennett and a first-round pick for Love, but that framework is a no-go, Broussard writes.

3:49pm: The Cavs have told Wiggins he won’t be traded, but the Wolves continue to insist on his inclusion if they’re to give up Love, tweets Chris Broussard of ESPN.com, who says that the Cavs would have to bring a third team into the deal to find a workable solution.

2:36pm: The Warriors would be willing to trade David Lee, Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green and a future first-round pick in a deal that would net them Kevin Love, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Still, Klay Thompson remains off-limits, and the Warriors remain steadfastly against taking Kevin Martin in any such deal, Wolfson adds in a second tweet.

Golden State faces plenty of competition for the league’s top trade candidate. Love, who can hit free agency next year, is seemingly “100%” on board with the idea of staying in Cleveland long-term, should the Wolves deal him there, now that LeBron James is back with the Cavs, so Cleveland seems like a major player. Most reports have indicated that the Cavs wouldn’t give up No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins to acquire Love, as the Wolves are demanding, but multiple executives from around the league told Ken Berger of CBSSports.com that they believe Wiggins will be in play in those talks, as we noted earlier.

Still, the Warriors maintain that they won’t give up Thompson even if the Cavs make a strong push for Love, a source tells Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). Thompson is eligible for a rookie-scale extension this summer, and co-owner Joe Lacob has vowed to lock him up, though Lacob didn’t specify whether he envisions doing so via extension or next summer in restricted free agency.

And-Ones: Dragic, Tolliver, Bogdanovic, Aldridge

July 9th, 2014 at 11:30pm CST by Cray Allred

Dahntay Jones has met with the Clippers, and has received interest from the Knicks, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Here’s more from around the league:

Zoran Dragic has signed a two-year contract extension with his Spanish League team, the Euroleague announced (H/T Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). NBA teams including the Rockets had shown interest in the brother of Goran Dragic. The original deal had a $500K NBA buyout clause for the upcoming season, although it is unclear if the extra years will feature the same flexibility.
Free agent Anthony Tolliver has been in serious discussions with six teams, including the Clippers, Cavs, Pistons, Spurs, Wizards, and Hornets, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.
Bogdan Bogdanovic and the Suns signed a declaration that the 2014 draft pick will not play in the NBA this season, a formality that clears his rookie scale cap hold from the team’s books, tweets Mark Deeks of ShamSports. Bogdanovic is signed overseas and can’t opt out until at least 2016.
LaMarcus Aldridge‘s choice to seek a new deal with the Blazers as a free agent next summer was one of two options presented him by Portland owner Paul Allen and GM Neil Olshey last month, reports Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. The Blazers brass suggested the All-Star consider a three-year, $55MM extension he could sign immediately, or wait to become eligible for a five-year, $108MM max deal as an unrestricted free agent. “I don’t want it to be perceived that I’m not happy or I’m not staying on because I’m not signing a three-year deal,” Aldridge said. “It’s just financially smarter to wait … and I’m looking forward to signing the five-year deal when the chance comes.”
Considering the recent max offers extended to Gordon Hayward and Chandler Parsons, it seems certain that Klay Thompson will also merit a max deal when he becomes a free agent. Tim Kawakami of Bay Area News Group hears that the Warriors have budgeted measures to find room for the shooting guard, should he not be traded away in a deal for Kevin Love.