Luis Scola Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Players Still Ineligible To Be Traded

January 15th, 2013 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

Today is January 15th, which means that a number of players who had been ineligible to be traded until this point are now free to be moved by their respective teams. As Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors outlined last month, Eric Gordon, Brook Lopez, Kris Humphries, Ersan Ilyasova, and Jeff Green are among the players who weren't eligible to be dealt until today.

However, in addition to rules that keeps players from being traded until December 15th or January 15th, the CBA also includes a stipulation that a team must have a player on its roster for three months before being able to trade him. That means guys who have signed contracts since October 15th are still ineligible to be dealt.

Here are the players who can't be traded quite yet, along with the dates they'll become trade-eligible:

Leandro Barbosa (Celtics): January 18th
Daniel Orton (Thunder): January 31st
Shaun Livingston (Cavaliers): February 15th

Because the trade deadline arrives on February 21st, players signed after November 21st won't become trade-eligible until after the season. Here are the guys who fit that description:

Jeff Adrien (Bobcats)
James Anderson (Rockets)
Patrick Beverley (Rockets)
Daequan Cook (Bulls)
Kevin Jones (Cavaliers)
Mickael Pietrus (Raptors)
Garrett Temple (Wizards)

In addition to recent signees, players who were claimed off amnesty waivers last July are also ineligible to be traded until July 2013. Some amnesty victims, like Andray Blatche, cleared waivers without being claimed and signed new contracts, so they're trade-eligible now, but the following players can't be moved this season:

Elton Brand (Mavericks)
Brendan Haywood (Bobcats)
Luis Scola (Suns)

Finally, players on 10-day contracts, such as Dominic McGuire, Maalik Wayns, and Josh Harrellson, also won't be trade-eligible at any point this season, even if they eventually receive rest-of-season contracts.

Western Notes: Nash, Scola, Mayo, Nuggets

December 21st, 2012 at 4:28pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest updates from around the Western Conference on Friday afternoon:

Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com reports that there is a low chance that Steve Nash will return on Saturday when the Lakers face the Warriors, although he still hopes to play on Christmas Day.
Luis Scola reflects on his journey to the NBA and the long wait to get bought out from his team in Spain, as reported by Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
O.J. Mayo tells Jon MacHota of the Dallas Morning News that he holds no hard feelings towards the Grizzlies after signing with the Mavericks this summer.
The Nuggets do not plan to change course after a historically bad three-point shooting night against Portland, writes Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com.
LaMarcus Aldridge does not know when he will return from his recent ankle turn, writes Mike Tokito of The Oregonian.

Lowe On Lin, Anderson, Suns, Lee, Thompson

December 11th, 2012 at 11:21am CST by Luke Adams

Most players that signed new contracts over the summer will become eligible to be traded as of this coming Saturday, so Grantland's Zach Lowe took the opportunity to take a look around the league at some potential trade candidates. Here are a few of the highlights from Lowe's piece:

Even though the Rockets didn't expect to land Jeremy Lin this summer, and didn't expect to acquire another star ballhandler in James Harden, it's still "extremely unlikely" that they'd move Lin.
There's no indication that the Hornets would consider dealing Ryan Anderson, who Lowe clarifies (via Twitter) becomes trade-eligible this month rather than next month, as we'd previously thought.
Teams around the league are eyeing the Suns to see if they can extract some value there, but Phoenix almost certainly won't move Goran Dragic and can't trade amnesty pickup Luis Scola. Lowe also notes that "you can count on zero hands" the number of clubs interested in acquiring Michael Beasley.
It's not out of the question that Courtney Lee could become a trade candidate if the Celtics are seeking a big man.
Jason Thompson is "coveted around the league" due to his reasonable long-term salary, and is blocking Thomas Robinson in Sacramento, so the Kings could attempt to gauge his value.
The Mavericks may be a buyer rather than a seller, but they'll be wary of adding any salary that would affect their cap flexibility next summer.
The Sixers will be in the market for a big man once trade talks pick up.
Rival executives are wondering if it's too early for GM Neil Olshey and the Trail Blazers to explore the trade market for LaMarcus Aldridge.

Suns Notes: Scola, Harden

October 28th, 2012 at 3:55pm CST by Michael Pina

The Suns are an interesting team this season, with some observers thinking they'll be one of the worst teams in basketball, and others having faith that they'll fight for a playoff spot. Here's a look at a few recent articles about the team that should give us a clearer view of where they are, and where they're headed.

In their first post-Nash season, the Suns will hand the keys over to Goran Dragic with the hope that he can run the same up-tempo style of offense, writes Paul Coro of AZCentral.com.
According to Coro, incoming forward Luis Scola is happy to be in Phoenix, and believes the team has a good mixture of experience and skill to be competitive.
This offseason the Suns made it clear they weren't afraid to make a financial splash, offering Eric Gordon a maximum offer sheet that was eventually matched by New Orleans. Apparently, they were also very interested in the recently traded James Harden, tweets Coro.

Pacific Notes: Scola, Suns, Odom, Clippers, Bogut

October 18th, 2012 at 9:41am CST by Luke Adams

Let's round up the latest notes out of the Pacific Division, where the preseason standings, which feature the Warriors at the top and the Lakers at the bottom, are nearly an inverse of last year's regular-season standings….

While many players weren't happy on the Rockets last season, Suns forward Luis Scola wasn't one of them, says Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld (via Sulia). According to Ingram, Scola had been hoping to finish his career in Houston.
Michael Beasley and Wesley Johnson feel as if they've been cast off by their previous teams and are hoping to prove themselves with the Suns, according to Ingram (Sulia link). Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry still believes both players can live up to their draft slots (No. 2 for Beasley, No. 4 for Johnson).
Lamar Odom, acquired by the Clippers in the offseason, was held out of the team's game last night, and coach Vinny Del Negro attributed it in part to conditioning issues. "He's got to work through some conditioning things and some health things right now, which he's doing," Del Negro said, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. "Yeah, I wish he was in a little bit better conditioning, and he wishes he was. But he's just got to continue to work every day and I'm sure he'll get there eventually."
On the other hand, Chauncey Billups, who was re-signed by the Clippers this summer, is ahead of schedule in his rehab from an achilles injury, and Del Negro believes he could return in late November, according to Turner.
After having been traded by the Clippers to the Jazz this offseason, Mo Williams told Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com he holds no ill will toward the Clips.
Andrew Bogut will have his left ankle, which continues to keep him out of action, examined on Monday in Los Angeles, as Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group writes. Bogut hopes to be ready to play in the Warriors' regular-season opener, but he's "still a ways away," according to coach Mark Jackson.

Odds & Ends: Smith, Knicks, Rockets, Suns

August 28th, 2012 at 1:12pm CST by Zachary Links

On this date in 2004 at the Athens Olympics, Argentina won its first-ever Olympic gold medal in men's basketball and became the first country other than the United States to win the gold medal since 1988. Luis Scola had 25 points as Argentina steamrolled Italy to win it all, 84-69. Here's this afternoon's look around the Association…

J.R. Smith's brother Chris Smith has a good chance of making the Knicks' roster, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post (Twitter link). Berman cites Smith's defensive potential and Iman Shumpert's injury as reasons why the younger Smith could be a fit.
According to a Europa Press report (link in Spanish), Sergio Llull is happy with Real Madrid and has no intention of leaving the club. Llull, who played a major role for Spain at the Olympics in London, expressed a desire to finish his career with Real Madrid despite strong interest from the Rockets, the team that drafted him in 2009.
As part of the team's offseason makeover, the Suns are putting a greater emphasis on player development, as Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic writes.
Sixers coach Doug Collins says that he hopes to use Spencer Hawes in a "Pau Gasol role" alongside the newly-acquired Andrew Bynum, writes Max Rappaport of NBA.com. Collins notes that Hawes, like Gasol, has the ability to play on the perimeter thanks to his ability to shoot and pass.
Zach Lowe of SI.com wonders how Kobe Bryant will mesh with the revamped Lakers roster in 2012/13. Bryant's elite basketball IQ and style of play could make his transition to the Princeton offense a smooth one, but he'll have to work more quickly than he's used to.
Hawks GM Danny Ferry will bring back former coach Bob Weiss to join Larry Drew’s staff as an adviser, writes Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Former Knicks assistant Kenny Atkinson has also officially been hired as an assistant coach. Atkinson has been in talks with the club since early August.

Suns Notes: O’Neal, Scola, Cap Space

August 15th, 2012 at 4:53pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns officially finalized their signing of Jermaine O'Neal today, and the veteran big man appears excited about the opportunity to spend the season in Phoenix. According to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, O'Neal chose the Suns because he thought he could "go there and be happy playing basketball again." O'Neal added that his health has improved significantly and that he aims to be an impact player this season (Twitter links).

Coro also published a column last night in which he hears from GM Lance Blanks about the team's summer makeover, so let's check out the highlights from that piece:

With the Suns seeking a commitment to the franchise from players they target, all of the club's new players had Phoenix as their first choice, says Blanks.
Blanks on his expectations for the coming season: "We're still in an extended honeymoon. I'm cautiously optimistic about the season. I don't think this is a team you want do much predicting with in terms of numbers. What I can see in the future for this team this year is a team that is fun to watch and plays hard every night. It is a group of guys who will play together because of the type of guys they are."
Blanks praised Luis Scola's "griminess and crustiness" and said the former Rocket will provide a good example for younger players.
The Suns will have about $7MM in cap space for an in-season move, and could have about $15MM in space next summer. Blanks stressed the importance of maintaining that financial flexibility, since the team's next star could come via the draft, a trade, or free agency.

Suns Claim Luis Scola

August 8th, 2012 at 6:05pm CST by Michael Pina

AUGUST 8, 6:05pm: The Suns will pay Scola $4.15MM this year, $4.5MM in 2013/14 and a partially guaranteed $4.87MM in 2014/15, according to Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic (via Twitter).

JULY 16, 3:49pm: A source tells SI.com's Sam Amick (Twitter link) that the winning bid for Scola was actually $13.5MM for three years. Either way, Phoenix will be paying for the forward between $4MM and $5MM annually.

JULY 15, 9:35pm: An NBA source has confirmed that the Suns' winning bid was $13MM for three years, tweets Mary Schmidt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. She also confirmed that the Cavaliers did submit a bid.

Odds & Ends: Hennigan, Fields, Asik, Harden

July 28th, 2012 at 6:09pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Magic GM Rob Hennigan will not rule out Dwight Howard being on Orlando's roster come opening night, says Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Robbins also thinks that Howard starting the season with the team could open up the possibility of the disgruntled center expanding his list of trade destinations or other teams improving their offers at that point. Here's more of what we've heard this evening…

Mark Deeks of ShamSports examines the Gilbert Arenas provision and demonstrates how the Knicks and Bulls could have avoided facing hefty offer sheets to Landry Fields and Omer Asik this summer by signing them to three-year deals in 2010.
Royce Young of DailyThunder.com says that fans shouldn't jump to conclusions about James Harden's recent comments about considering the Suns if he were a free agent. Harden, who attended Arizona State University before joining the NBA, is still eligible to sign an extension with the Thunder before October 31st and could thus avoid free agency next summer.
Forward Omri Casspi is very happy to be a part of the Cavaliers and thinks the team has a very bright future, writes Stephen Brotherston of HoopsWorld.
Frank Isola of the New York Daily News says that Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola, and Jose Calderon all gave a "thumbs up" to recently-signed Knicks guard Pablo Prigioni (Twitter link).
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports discusses the challenge that NBA stars face amidst the NBA owners and FIBA working together to potentially re-direct its stars out of the Olympics and into a rebranded world championship tournament similar to the World Cup of soccer. The new Olympic format would involve a "23-and-under" competition, which would essentially prevent many NBA stars from being able to participate. Wojnarowski adds that the inefficacy of NBPA executive director Billy Hunter has only made the efforts to preserve the current Olympic format a more difficult task.
Eddie Sefko of SportsDayDFW wonders if the Mavericks are improved after their additions this summer (Subscribers only). In a separate piece, Sefko explains why he thinks the team projects to win 47 games and finish sixth place in the Western Conference.
Sean Deveney of the Sporting News writes that despite being teased by his Team USA teammates, Carmelo Anthony continues to reiterate his support for Jeremy Lin.

Central Notes: Scola, Cavs, Korver, Pistons

July 14th, 2012 at 11:15am CST by Zachary Links

Yesterday, the Rockets officially used their amnesty clause to release forward Luis Scola. It's possible that the big man will clear waivers and become an unrestricted free agent, but there are interested teams out there, including one out of the Central division..