Mikhail Prokhorov Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Fredette, Saric, Prokhorov, Celtics

November 5th, 2015 at 1:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Jimmer Fredette is working with Knicks D-League GM Allan Houston on shooting and the triangle offense, but he said he hasn’t heard from Knicks team president Phil Jackson or coach Derek Fisher, observes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Fredette downplays the notion that he’s gunning for the team’s open NBA roster spot, though he acknowledges that roster construction plays into his decision-making, as Zagoria relays. It wasn’t a certainty that Fredette would join the Westchester Knicks when he signed with the D-League, but when the Jazz affiliate took Jeff Ayres No. 2 in Saturday’s D-League draft, Westchester was free to pounce on Fredette with pick No. 2, a move that was apparently designed chiefly to draw fans. See more from around the Atlantic Division:

Draft-and-stash prospect Dario Saric wished he could have joined the Sixers this past offseason and confirmed to the Croatian outlet Vecernji list that he intends to sign with Philadelphia when his overseas contract allows him to this coming summer (translation via Matt Lombardo of NJ.com). Saric, the 12th pick of the 2014 draft, added that he’s in constant communication with Sixers officials.
The NBA blocked Mikhail Prokhorov’s plan to borrow money against his share of the Nets to purchase the minority portion that Bruce Ratner owns because it would give the team more than $250MM in debt, sources told Josh Kosman and Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. NBA teams can’t borrow more than that amount without a waiver. So, Prokhorov and Ratner are attempting to restructure the deal that would give Prokhorov 100% of the team, the Post scribes write, and it’s still on track to be complete by year’s end, a league source tells NetsDaily.
The Celtics recalled Jordan Mickey and James Young from the D-League, the team announced. They received some extra practice reps while with the farm team after the C’s assigned them Tuesday. Keep tabs on all this year’s D-League assignments and recalls with our tracker, which we’ll be updating throughout the season.

Atlantic Notes: Prokhorov, Sixers, Friisdahl

October 30th, 2015 at 6:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov is close to acquiring majority control of the Nassau Coliseum, sources have informed Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The plan is for Brooklyn’s future D-League team to eventually be situated at the refurbished arena, Mazzeo notes. The Nets hope their future D-League team begins play in time for the 2016/17 campaign, but for now they are one of the 11 NBA teams without an affiliate to call their own this season.

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

It’s difficult to know for sure, given GM Sam Hinkie‘s unpredictability, but the pairing of No. 3 overall pick Jahlil Okafor with Nerlens Noel appears to give the Sixers a glimpse at what their team will look like in the future, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, the Raptors‘ parent company, went in a different direction with their hire of Michael Friisdahl as the new president and CEO, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca writes. “Quite frankly they [MLSE] looked at it in totality and said what we need is an overall executive to lead the whole organization,” said Friisdahl. “And then we’re going to rely on the very strong leadership in each of the sports organizations and have them focus on that. You will not see me heavily involved in any kind of sports decisions, which is fairly obvious from my background.”
Knicks coach Derek Fisher, speaking about the draft day trade of Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Hawks in return for the draft rights to Jerian Grant, said that Grant has more skills as a guard than Hardaway, which is why the deal was made, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv tweets.
Point guard Scottie Wilbekin, who was waived by the Sixers on Monday, has signed a two-year, $780K deal with the Turkish club Darussafaka, international journalist David Pick reports (Twitter links). The contract does include an NBA out clause, Pick adds.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Atlantic Notes: Isiah, King, Sixers, Raptors

October 21st, 2015 at 12:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Knicks owner James Dolan doesn’t hide his affection for Isiah Thomas, but he can’t envision a scenario in which he ever hires him for the Knicks again, telling Bryant Gumbel of HBO’s Real Sports that he doesn’t think fans in New York would give him a fair chance, as Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News relays (Twitter link). Thomas, to whom Gumbel also spoke, ruled out coaching the Knicks again, but didn’t say he wouldn’t seek a front office position with the team, Bondy notes. See more from around the Atlantic Division:

Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov complimented the job performance of GM Billy King in an interview with NetsDaily, but he wouldn’t address the matter of whether he’ll give King an extension. King is in the final year of his deal and conflicting reports emerged in May about whether he and the team were close to an extension.
Brett Brown has said the Sixers plan to keep only three point guards for opening night, but with top options Tony Wroten and Kendall Marshall injured and T.J. McConnell closing in on a regular season spot, Brown suggests the team could keep more because of their ability to slide to shooting guard, observes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “You know you look at [Scottie] Wilbekin … and say he’s a two-guard,” Brown said. “He can shoot, and that’s true. I can look at Isaiah [Canaan] and say he’s not always a point guard. Let him go be, pick him, Lou Williams. He’s a barrel-chested scorer.”
The Raptors had mixed results with two point guards on the floor at the same time last season, but with Cory Joseph having replaced Williams and Greivis Vasquez, coach Dwane Casey is more optimistic about such lineups, as Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca examines. “The problem last year going small wasn’t Kyle [Lowry], it was the other small guys with him,” Casey said. “Now we have speed and quickness with Kyle, we have toughness with Kyle defensively so you don’t get burned as much defensively when you do go small.”

Atlantic Notes: Ross, Nets, Turner, Sixers

September 30th, 2015 at 5:19pm CST by Eddie Scarito

2014/15 Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams departed via free agency to the Lakers this offseason, and the Raptors will look to Terrence Ross to help replace his production off the bench, writes Eric Koreen of the National Post. “The first guy that comes to mind is Terrence Ross,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey said of the swingman. “Not only just a scorer, but he’s got to come in and defend. He had an off year last year defending. He knows it. We know it.”

Casey was pleasantly surprised by how vocal a player Bismack Biyombo is on the court, Koreen adds. “I knew [he was a good communicator] just talking to the coaches from Charlotte. I knew that about him,” Casey said. “I didn’t know before they told me. I wouldn’t have guessed it. Great communicator. He’s probably going to be the captain of our defense as far as a guy who can go vertical, block shots, communicate. … Now we’ve got to get everybody else, even the guards to join in on the party, especially in transition.” Biyombo signed a two year, $6MM deal with Charlotte during the summer.

Here’s more from out of the Atlantic Division:

Mikhail Prokhorov once again stated that he has no intention of selling controlling interest in the Nets franchise, Rod Boone of Newsday tweets. The Russian is reportedly working toward a deal that would give him 100% ownership of both the team and the Barclays Center.
The Nets are currently under the luxury tax threshold, but Prokhorov said he would have no problem going “far above the line once again, but it would have to be for the right opportunity”, Tim Bontemps of The New York Post tweets.
The Raptors are hoping that their offseason additions will make for a more cohesive roster and usher in a new on-court identity for the franchise, Koreen writes in a separate piece.
Celtics swingman Evan Turner has an extremely tradeable contract, with him set to earn $3,425,510 in 2015/16, the final year of his deal, but he would prefer to remain in Boston, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com relays. “I like Boston, I like the town and the city; the restaurants are pretty good too,” Turner said. “I like Boston; I genuinely would like to stay here. I’ve been places where I hated it.” Turner didn’t specify which city’s charms it was that he didn’t appreciate, but for reference, he has previously played in Philadelphia and Indiana.
Italian coach Andrea Mazzon is joining the Sixers‘ D-League affiliate in an unspecified, but important role, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando reports.
Sixers GM Sam Hinkie said that the team tried to make a bigger splash in free agency this summer than it did, but many of the better players didn’t change teams, Tom Moore of Calkins Media relays (Twitter links). However, the GM is happy with the organization’s progress, saying that it feels like “night and day” from when training camp began two seasons ago, Moore adds.

Latest On Mikhail Prokhorov, Nets Ownership

September 3rd, 2015 at 3:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

Mikhail Prokhorov is working toward a deal that would give him 100% ownership of both the Nets and the Barclays Center, report Josh Kosman and Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. Kosman and Bontemps hear the deal is nearing completion, but sources caution Mitch Abramson of the New York Daily News that while both sides are motivated to reach an agreement and are likely to do so, they’re a long way from getting it done. One report from earlier this year indicated that full control of both the arena and the team would make it easier for Prokhorov to turn around and sell them, though another cast doubt on that. Either way, Prokhorov isn’t looking to sell his controlling stake in the team anytime soon, Abramson hears.

The would-be arrangement would entail Prokhorov’s company, which already owns 80% of the Nets and 45% of the arena, forgiving the approximately $31MM debt that former majority owner Bruce Ratner’s Forest City Enterprises owes them, as Kosman and Bontemps explain. Beyond that, the cost to Prokhorov wouldn’t amount to much, the Post scribes add. Ratner is reportedly facing a deadline of Tuesday to resolve that debt, though a deal is unlikely before then, sources tell Abramson.

Prokhorov and the Guggenheim Partners apparently had talks a year ago about a merging of ownership, months after a report indicated that Prokhorov was listening to offers for the Nets. Those Guggenheim talks were said to have hit a snag, though rumors that Prokhorov had interest in selling the Nets have persisted. Prokhorov has downplayed such talk.

Do you think Prokhorov will sell off control of the Nets anytime soon? Leave a comment to tell us.

And-Ones: Bucks, Oden, McRoberts, Nets

August 12th, 2015 at 1:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

A new arena for the Bucks moved one step closer to reality today, when Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed a bill that calls for $250MM of public financing, write Mary Spicuzza And Jason Stein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Walker has long backed the arena project and said when the bill emerged from the state legislature late last month that he’d sign it. The team must still arrange for a land sale with Milwaukee County and receive approval for construction from the Milwaukee Common Council, Spicuzza and Stein note, but Bucks executives have said that can take place between now and the fall. Groundbreaking must take place soon for the team to stay on schedule to meet a league-imposed deadline, lest the league seize the franchise from its owners and move it elsewhere, but today’s news indicates that the Bucks remain on track to stay in Milwaukee. Here’s more from around the league:

Former No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden will take part in a weeklong workout later this month for Jiangsu Kentier of the Chinese Basketball Association, the Altius Culture agency tweets. It’ll constitute an audition for the team, the agency indicates. He reportedly drew eyes from the Mavs, Hornets and Grizzlies early in the summer.
Josh McRoberts had a frustrating, injury-riddled year for the Heat last season after his breakout campaign for Charlotte in 2013/14, and the subtraction of his nearly $5.544MM salary would go a long way toward preventing the Heat from paying repeater tax penalties this season. Still, he’s eager to return to playing in Miami, as he tells Kyle Neddenriep of his hometown Indianapolis Star. “I feel confident and comfortable going back there,” McRoberts said. “I kind of saw how things were last year. I’m excited to be back and part of the team because when you’re hurt, you are kind of isolated on your own. You’re not practicing and playing in games with them every day. I’ve worked with the coaches throughout the summer different times and feel good about the direction we’re headed.”
Nets majority owner Mikhail Prokhorov agreed to push back today’s deadline for minority owner Bruce Ratner to pay back his company’s debts to Prokhorov’s company, reports Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg.com (Twitter links). Ratner’s group now has until September 8th to pay or let their 20% share become 8%, with Prokhorov’s group taking over the other 12%.

Nets Rumors: Sale, Hollis-Jefferson, Brown, Vaulet

July 19th, 2015 at 12:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

An August 12th deadline may speed the resolution of ownership of the Nets and Barclays Center, according to NetsDaily. Bruce Ratner’s parent company, Forest Center Enterprises, revealed last week that Ratner must repay his debts to MP Entities by that date or his ownership interests in the team “will be diluted from 20% to approximately 8%.” The other 92% would be owned by Mikhail Prokhorov. The website expects FCE to retain its 20% interest by paying the tens of millions it owes to Prokhorov, saying what would be lost is more valuable than the amount still owed. Negotiations for Ratner’s complete stake in the team have either started or will begin soon. The Nets’ cost-cutting moves have made the team a more attractive purchase, as the website speculates that the franchise could turn a profit next season.

There’s more news out of Brooklyn:

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson could be the type of strong personality the Nets need, writes Tim Bontemps of The New York Post. He speculates the “effervescent” Hollis-Jefferson will be a welcome addition to a team sometimes accused of lacking emotion and passion. “He doesn’t hold anything back,” said Brandon Ashley, Hollis-Jefferson’s teammate at Arizona. “Sometimes that’s a good thing and sometimes that’s not the best [thing], but you always know what to expect from him.” Hollis-Jefferson was drafted 23rd overall by the Blazers last month, and his rights came to Brooklyn in a deal for Mason Plumlee.
Markel Brown, who was inserted into the starting lineup as a rookie this season, is happy to have Hollis-Jefferson on board, Bontemps writes in a separate story. Brown was made a starter as the Nets tried to improve their defense and athleticism, and he views Hollis-Jefferson as a similar player. “I see us locking down a lot of players in the future, and I see a lot of promise for both of us on the defensive end,” Brown said. “It’s just about going out there and contributing on offense for both of us.” Brown’s salary of $845,059 is only partially guaranteed for next season. He received $150K by staying on the roster through July 15th, and that figure increases to $200K September 1st. Brown’s contract will become fully guaranteed if he is not waived by September 29th, as the schedule of salary guarantee dates shows.
The Nets are coordinating Juan Pablo Vaulet‘s recovery from tibia surgery with his Argentinian team, according to NetsDaily. The Nets reportedly think Vaulet has a bright NBA future and are hoping to add him to the team next season. He was a drafted by the Hornets in the second round last month, and his rights were dealt to Brooklyn.

Atlantic Notes: Pressey, Prokhorov, Williams

July 15th, 2015 at 2:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

Phil Pressey, whom the Celtics waived today, is already drawing interest from other teams, according to agent Aaron Mintz, as Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe reports, though he’d have to clear waivers before he could sign. In any case, Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge had no shortage of praise for the point guard, as Himmelsbach relays.

“Phil may be my favorite player I’ve ever been around in the NBA, as a player, a coach or as an executive,” Ainge said. “It was a very difficult morning for me today. He’s a player I’d want on my team all the time. Unfortunately, we just have an abundance of small guards already. It’s unfortunate. He’s helped us a lot in the last two years, and he’s a classy and hardworking player.”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic Division:

An announcement could come within the next two weeks that Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov has bought Bruce Ratner’s 20% stake in the Nets, a move that would give Prokhorov 100% of the team, Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher says (video link). The possibility still exists that Prokhorov will move in the other direction and sell off his majority interest, but the indications are strong that he’ll indeed buy the remaining shares of the team, Bucher says. Such a deal would also see Prokhorov’s interest in the Barclays Center rise from 45% to 100%, according to Bucher. Still, the move may well have more to do with debt that Ratner’s company owes Prokhorov and his partners than Prokhorov’s desire to own all of the team and the arena, since according to NetsDaily, Ratner faces a deadline to resolve that debt.
The precise amount of money the Nets will have on their cap each of the next five years as a result of the buyout and stretch of Deron Williams‘ contract is $5,474,787, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (All Twitter links). That means he gave up exactly $16MM in the buyout. His new contract with the Mavericks is worth $5.4MM this year and $5.6MM next season, according to Pincus, so assuming he remains on that contract through the end of 2015/16, and assuming he and the Nets didn’t waive set off rights, Brooklyn’s obligation for 2015/16 will be further reduced to about $3.197MM.
Shooting guard Daniel Hackett, who worked out for the Knicks, has a verbal agreement to sign with Olympiacos of Greece, sources tell Sportando Emiliano Carchia. New York was willing to sign Hackett for training camp, Carchia adds, but it looks like he’ll stay overseas.
Fenerbahce Ulker said the contract that former Celtics forward Gigi Datome signed with them covered two years, but it includes a player option for a third, according to Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald.

Nets Notes: Jack, Plumlee, Prokhorov, D-Will

May 26th, 2015 at 10:46am CST by Chuck Myron

It’s widely assumed that the Nets will look into trading Joe Johnson and Jarrett Jack as cost-cutting alternatives to using the stretch provision to waive Deron Williams, write Marc Stein and Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com. Trade talk has swirled around Johnson off and on since December, while the Nets likely would have dealt Jack to the Wizards if they’d closed a deal on a proposal to send Brook Lopez to the Thunder, as TNT’s David Aldridge reported in the wake of the deadline. Johnson has a whopper of an expiring contract that calls for a salary of nearly $24.895MM in 2015/16, while Jack is due $6.3MM next season with a partial guarantee of just $500K on the same amount in 2016/17. Stein and Mazzeo have more on the Nets, and while the full piece is a must-read for Brooklyn diehards, we’ll pass along a few highlights here:

Some executives from opposing teams figure the Nets will explore the trade market for Mason Plumlee, too, Stein and Mazzeo hear. The Nets were reportedly unwilling to give up Plumlee in a proposal that would have sent Williams to the Kings in December, though GM Billy King said this month that the Nets looked into the idea of trading every player on the roster at some point this past season. Plumlee’s role on the team decreased after the acquisition of Thaddeus Young and the resurgence of Lopez.
People around the league continue to doubt the idea that Mikhail Prokhorov doesn’t want to sell a majority stake in the Nets, according to Stein and Mazzeo. Josh Kosman and Claire Atkinson of the New York Post reported in March that Prokhorov had ended efforts to do so while Prokhorov said the next month that he had never tried. Stein and Mazzeo cite “persistent rumbles” around the league that the reason Prokhorov isn’t actively trying to sell the team is that he would also have to sell his share of the Barclays Center as part of the deal, a detail that Daniel Kaplan and John Lombardo of SportsBusiness Journal reported in February. However, a sports banker who spoke with Kosman and Atkinson disputed that there was any such mandate that Prokhorov would have had to bundle the team and the arena.
Stein and Mazzeo figure the Nets will indeed consider waiving and stretching Williams, yet they believe Brooklyn will ultimately decide against doing so.

Billy King On Lopez, Young, Trades, Teletovic

May 6th, 2015 at 11:00am CST by Chuck Myron

The Nets pulled together for a late season run to the playoffs and pushed the top-seeded Hawks in the opening round, but this wasn’t a successful season, GM Billy King said today to reporters, including Newsday’s Roderick Boone, at his end-of-season press conference (Twitter link). The GM didn’t address rumors that he’s close to an extension, but he had many more revelatory comments, as we’ll run down here. All links go to Twitter, unless otherwise noted:

The team’s long-term plan is to build around Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young, King said, according to Andy Vasquez of The Record. Lopez and Young haven’t made decisions about their respective player options yet, but King said the Nets want them back regardless of whether they opt in or not, notes Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.
King said the Nets explored trading every player on the roster at some point during the season, Boone notes, and King wouldn’t rule out trades when he added that the team would continue to look into all possibilities with Lopez, Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, observes Devin Kharpertian of The Brooklyn Game.
Brooklyn, slated to pick 29th and 41st overall in June, will continue an annual tradition of trying to trade up, King said, as Kharpertian relays, but the GM insisted he’ll value draft assets more highly than in the past. “I don’t expect us to be trading any of [our future draft picks],” King said, according to Kharpertian. “We’ve done that.”
The Nets will extend the more than $4.21MM qualifying offer required to match competing NBA offers for Mirza Teletovic in free agency this summer, King confirmed, nonetheless adding that the market will dictate the forward’s next deal, as Bontemps notes.
The team would like a new deal with Alan Anderson, King said, according to Lenn Robbins of Nets.com, but the GM also said that the swingman may need a procedure on his ankle to deal with bone spurs, Bontemps observes.
The goal is to avoid the luxury tax next season, and the repeat-offender penalties that would come with it, but the Nets will stay above the tax line if it’s the right thing to do, according to King, as Kharpertian relays. That’s similar to what owner Mikhail Prokhorov said last month (non-Twitter link), but it conflicts with what Bontemps has heard (non-Twitter link) from sources who’ve said the team has no interest in remaining a taxpayer.
King said the Nets can’t keep turning the roster over from year to year and added that internal improvement is necessary, Boone notes. King pointed to rookies Bojan Bogdanovic, Markel Brown and Cory Jefferson as players who can be parts of the rotation going forward, according to Bontemps.