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Eastern Notes: Harrington, Hudson, Robinson

May 15th, 2013 at 6:30pm CST by Michael Pina

A few notes from around the Eastern Conference:

Alex Kennedy reports on Hoopsworld.com that the Magic are expected to allow Al Harrington to work out for other teams next month in the hopes of attracting some trade interest for the veteran forward.
A pair of veterans playing on minimum-salary contracts, Nate Robinson and Chris Andersen, top Rob Mahoney's list at SI.com on players who have boosted their free agent stocks in the postseason.
Former Cavaliers and Celtics guard Lester Hudson was among the standouts at this week's D-League camp in Chicago, with one NBA scout telling Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio that Hudson will be in the league next year (Twitter link).

Eastern Notes: Heat, Robinson, Bobcats, Pistons

May 3rd, 2013 at 12:57pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets' win in Chicago last night ensured that we'll get at least one Game Seven in the first round of this year's playoffs, but if we're lucky, we could do a lot better than that. With four Game Sixes on tap for tonight, including two more Eastern Conference series, there's a chance this year's first round could break the NBA record for most Game Sevens in a single playoff round. According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter), there has never been more than three in a round. As we look forward to tonight's packed slate, let's check out some notes from around the East….

In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel notes that Patrick Beverley is in a good spot in Houston and that the Heat won a title without him, a win-win situation for both sides. However, Winderman adds that a defensive third-string point guard like Beverley could have come in handy for Miami, and "it's not as if there wasn't roster space to try to make it work." The Heat signed Beverley to a guaranteed two-year deal in 2010, but cut him shortly thereafter.
Nate Robinson figures to land more than a veteran's minimum contract in free agency this summer, but don't bank on him receiving a huge raise, writes Tom Ziller of SBNation.com.
With at least five candidates already in the mix for the Bobcats' head coaching opening, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer anticipates a search as wide-ranging as last year's. Charlotte's hunt for a coach last May involved so many names that I dedicated a post at the time to keeping them all straight.
Vince Goodwill of the Detroit News breaks down nine potential candidates for the Pistons' head coaching opening, in slideshow form. GM Joe Dumars and owner Tom Gores will be advised by Phil Jackson in the Pistons' search, as the team announced yesterday.

Blazers Notes: Lillard, Robinson, Babbitt

April 30th, 2013 at 7:58pm CST by Alex Lee

Here is the latest out of Portland, where the Blazers missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season:

The Blazers released a statement that they will be making an announcement tomorrow at the Rose Garden. As Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge suggests, all signs point toward point guard Damian Lillard being announced as the NBA's Rookie of the Year on Wednesday. A couple of notes on Lillard courtesy of Golliver; the rookie led the NBA in minutes and won all six Rookie of the Month awards in the Western Conference. No surprise here.
In a separate post, Golliver wonders whether the Blazers will have interest in Bulls guard Nate Robinson, who will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. Robinson went to school in Washington and is a Seattle native.
Oregon Live asks Blazers fans whether the team should retain free agent to be Luke Babbitt in their "You be the GM" series. The Blazers declined Babbitt's fourth year option in October. If Babbitt walks, the Blazers will likely look to replace his outside shooting ability in free agency or the draft.

Odds & Ends: Sims, Babby, Aminu, Robinson

April 2nd, 2013 at 12:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Mavericks/Lakers game tonight will have a serious impact on the race for the eighth playoff spot in the Western Conference, it's not the only noteworthy game on the schedule. The Knicks and Heat have comfortably clinched playoff spots, but New York is still vying for the second seed in the East, while the Heat are looking for a split of the season series with the Knicks. As we wait for those teams to tip off in Miami, let's round up a few odds and ends from around the NBA:

Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside passes along word that Henry Sims will leave the D-League's Erie BayHawks to play in the Philippines. The Hornets signed Sims to a 10-day contract a month ago, but decided not to re-sign him when the deal expired.
Suns president Lon Babby is in the final year of his contract, and Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic wonders whether he'll be back in Phoenix next season, since Babby's future with the team may be linked to the futures of head coach Lindsey Hunter and GM Lance Blanks.
Grantland's Zach Lowe unveils his "I can't believe he's this relevant" All-Stars, which includes a number of players who will hit free agency this summer, including Luke Walton, Marco Belinelli, and Kenyon Martin.
With Al-Farouq Aminu headed for unrestricted free agency in July, John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune asks Hornets fans whether the team ought to re-sign him to a new contract for 2013/14.
Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald makes the case for why it may make sense for the Bulls to re-sign Nate Robinson this summer.
In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel discusses whether the Heat will have the flexibility to bring back Chris Andersen next season.

Carlos Boozer Offer On Table For Raptors?

February 16th, 2013 at 12:56pm CST by Luke Adams

SATURDAY, 11:56am: Doug Smith of the Toronto Star reports that the Raptors have "no interest" in trading for Boozer or his contract.

FRIDAY, 12:05pm: Although the Raptors and Bulls discussed a potential swap involving Carlos Boozer and Andrea Bargnani earlier this season, reports have indicated that talks aren't currently active. However, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, there's an offer on the table from the Bulls that the Raptors could revisit if they choose.

Johnson reports that the Raptors were told that a deal of Boozer and Nate Robinson for Bargnani and John Lucas III is available whenever they want it. While a Boozer/Bargnani swap wouldn't be permitted under the league's trade rules, the addition of Robinson's minimum salary and Lucas' $1.5MM salary would make it work.

The duo of Boozer and Robinson has significantly outperformed Bargnani and Lucas on the floor this season, but such a deal would appeal to the Bulls based on its financial implications — the hypothetical trade would allow Chicago to slip below the luxury tax threshold this season. Additionally, although Boozer and Bargnani are both under contract through 2015, Bargnani is owed $22.25MM over the next two seasons, while Boozer will make $32.1MM.

If the Raptors were to accept the Bulls' offer, it would likely make Toronto a taxpayer this season and next, significantly reducing the team's ability to make other moves.

Bulls Exploring Boozer Trade For Bargnani

February 8th, 2013 at 7:58am CST by Daniel Seco

FRIDAY, 7:58am: The discussions between the Raptors and Bulls happened over a week ago, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, who says talks were initiated by the Bulls. Talks aren't currently active, but could be revisited by the Raps and could also expand to include Nate Robinson and John Lucas III.

Both Johnson and Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times suggest a deal is unlikely, since Toronto would be reluctant to take on Boozer's contract. According to Johnson, the Bulls are also not likely to amnesty Boozer this summer, assuming they hang on to him through February 21st.

THURSDAY, 5:09pm: The Bulls are looking into a potential trade with the Raptors that would send big man Carlos Boozer to Toronto in exchange for Andrea Bargnani, writes Marc Stein of ESPN.com. More pieces will need to be added to any prospective deal as Boozer makes $5MM more than Bargnani this season.

While the Bulls could seemingly save money with the deal, the Raptors do not have an expiring contract to send to Chicago, thus making financial flexibility less likely for the Bulls. Conversely, the addition of Boozer to the Toronto roster would likely put the Raptors well into the luxury tax for next season. If traded, neither player would be eligible to be amnestied by their new team as an amnesty candidate must be on his pre-lockout team under a pre-lockout contract.

Boozer, 31, would provide the Raptors with a strong post presence as he's averaged 15.7 PPG and 9.6 RPG in 45 appearances. Toronto originally had interest in acquiring Pau Gasol from the Lakers until the Spaniard injured his foot earlier this week.

Bargnani, 27, offers the Bulls perimeter shooting that the team believes it so desperately lacks. The former overall number one pick has averaged 15.9 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 22 games this season.

Odds & Ends: Hudson, Garnett, Heat, Bulls

February 1st, 2013 at 12:11pm CST by Luke Adams

Ex-NBA veteran Troy Hudson has officially ended his playing career, Sioux Falls Skyforce president Mike Heineman announced on Thursday (link via Terry Vandrovec of the Argus Leader). While Hudson hasn't appeared in the NBA since the 2007/08 season, he started this year with the D-League's Skyforce. In 517 career NBA games for five teams, the 6'1" guard averaged 9.0 PPG and 3.4 APG.

Here are a few more Friday odds and ends from around the league:

Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game clarifies (via Sulia) that his report earlier this week on Kevin Garnett simply meant to convey that trade interest in Garnett may not be as strong as expected, since rival general managers aren't convinced he'll play out his contract. Bucher also notes that while those GMs don't expect KG to finish his contract, that doesn't mean they expect him to retire this summer.
In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel discusses the Heat's trade options and the team's signing of Jarvis Varnado to a rest-of-season contract.
Sam Smith of Bulls.com has his own mailbag up, which includes his thoughts on the Bulls' potential interest in Greg Oden and the possibility of the team re-signing Nate Robinson this summer.
Yannis Koutroupis of HoopsWorld takes a look at which players may be on the move next.

Nate Robinson’s Contract Guaranteed For Season

January 2nd, 2013 at 8:30am CST by Luke Adams

Tuesday was just another day for most NBA players, but for Nate Robinson, remaining on the Bulls' roster through the day ensured that he'll receive a full-season salary. The guarantee date on Robinson's contract, January 1st, came about a week earlier than the league-wide guarantee date, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes.

Had the Bulls elected to waive Robinson before his contract became guaranteed, they would have paid him a prorated minimum-salary for his service so far, saving a few hundred thousand dollars. Instead, the veteran point guard will earn a salary of $1,146,337 for 2012/13, regardless of whether he remains on the team's roster until season's end. His minimum salary counts for $854,389 against Chicago's cap.

Robinson has been productive for the Bulls in his first 29 games, averaging 11.0 PPG and recording a 16.6 PER. However, there was still some uncertainty about whether he'd be retained for the season, given Chicago's cap situation. With less than $1MM of wiggle room before they reach their hard cap, the Bulls could have gained a little more flexibility by releasing Robinson.

As is, the Bulls still have the ability to add a player on a rest-of-season contract, or hand out multiple 10-day deals. However, the club won't be able to add any significant salary via trade.

Odds & Ends: Robinson, Raptors, Batum

January 1st, 2013 at 4:56pm CST by Luke Adams

As we turn the calendar to 2013, two Eastern Conference contenders are prepared to welcome back players who missed the 2012 portion of the '12/13 season: Amare Stoudemire is expected to play his first game of the season tonight, while Avery Bradley is prepared to make his season debut on Wednesday. While the Knicks and Celtics prepare to welcome those guys back to their respective lineups, let's round up a few more notes from around the NBA….

All signs point to Nate Robinson's contract being guaranteed for the rest of the season by the Bulls, according to Dave van Dyck and K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. The deadline for the Bulls to waive Robinson and avoid guaranteeing his deal is today, so as of tomorrow, the point guard will be in line for a full-season salary.
Eric Koreen of the National Post examines a number of question marks facing the Raptors as 2013 begins, including the futures of GM Bryan Colangelo and big man Andrea Bargnani.
Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts tells Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today that it's not fair to expect Nicolas Batum to drastically improve his game overnight just because he signed a lucrative new contract. However, as Zillgitt writes, Batum has been living up to the deal so far.

Central Notes: Henson, Robinson, Pistons, George

December 21st, 2012 at 9:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

With the Bucks hanging on for an overtime win against the Celtics, it was a successful night for the Central Division. The only team to endure a loss this evening was the Cavs, and that came at the hands of the division rival Pacers. Here's the scoop from off the court in the Central.

Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel checks in with Bucks rookie John Henson, whose lack of consistent playing time belies the team's enthusiasm about the chance to draft him with the 14th overall pick. "I think everybody was surprised he was there," assistant coach Jim Boylan said. "Everybody had him in the top 10 somewhere. But in the draft that happens all the time."
Nate Robinson's minimum-salary contract is only partially guaranteed for $400K so that it's easier for the Bulls to include him in trades, a source tells K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. It becomes fully guaranteed on or before New Year's Day. The Bulls aren't likely to trade him by then, and the team probably won't cut him either, according to Johnson.
MLive's David Mayo answers reader questions about the Pistons, and delves into why the team hasn't sent rookie Slava Kravtsov to the D-League, despite Kravtsov failing to have played a minute this season until tonight's blowout win over the Wizards. Mayo theorizes that having to share their affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, with the Pacers and two other clubs might keep Kravtsov from getting enough minutes. Mayo also says the Pistons, like most teams, prefer having their players practice with the big club rather than rack up minutes in the D-League.
Ben Golliver of SI.com breaks down Paul George's hot streak, concluding that George, due for an extension on his rookie deal this summer, could become a pricey commodity.