Rajon Rondo Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Bogut, Rondo, Blatche

March 9th, 2012 at 11:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

The talk of a 10-game night across the association has been about the health of two point guards whose absence could alter the plans of a pair of teams rumored to be among the most active nearing Thursday's trade deadline. Ricky Rubio of the Wolves tweeted that he'll receive an MRI on his left knee, which he hurt in his team's loss to the Lakers tonight. The team fears he has a torn ACL, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Meanwhile, Kyle Lowry of the Rockets was hospitalized with a fever and abdominal distress, HoopsWorld reports. Here's what's happening elsewhere:

Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel examines the trade candidacy of Bucks center Andrew Bogut. Bogut's agent David Bauman said there are several teams interested in talking to Bucks GM John Hammond about his client.
Rajon Rondo appears to be conflicted about how trades might affect the chemistry of the Celtics. Rajon Rondo, who saw best friend Kendrick Perkins dealt away at the deadline last year, told Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston he doesn't care about what a trade would do to the team's chemistry this year. Yet, to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com, Rondo said, "You can't get chemistry if you bring in new guys."
Jason Kidd came close to joining a team that had just won the title when he thought about joining the Spurs in 2003, so he sympathizes with Lamar Odom, who arrived via trade to join this year's defending champs, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. For the record, Mavs coach Rick Carlisle told the Galloway & Company radio show today that the uproar concerning Odom has come and gone.
Stephen Brotherston of HoopsWorld looks at the Grizzlies' early-season acquisition of Marreese Speights from the Sixers and wonders if that will wind up being the most effective deal of the year.
Both John Reid of the New Orleans Times Picayune and Jim Eichenhofer of Hornets.com tweeted to note the progress of Lance Thomas, who signed with New Orleans for the rest of the season last month after the team gave him two 10-day contracts.
The Wizards are willing to move anyone on the roster not named John Wall if another team will take Andray Blatche off their hands, tweets Michael Lee of The Washington Post.
Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group notes the Warriors' lease in Oakland is up in 2017, and checks in with the progress of potential sites for a new home in Oakland and San Francisco. Venturing a guess, Kawakami has the San Francisco site as the most likely destination at this point.
Alex Raskin of HoopsWorld proposes the Celtics as a potential destination for JaVale McGee, for whom the Wizards are reportly listening to offers.
The Knicks starting lineup is in flux, and Newsday's Anthony Rieber takes a look at the quick changes engineered by coach Mike D'Antoni.
Jeremy Evans' minimum salary contract expires at season's end, so time is running out for him to prove he can do more than win a dunk contest. Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune notes how his theatrics during All-Star weekend haven't earned him any extra minutes with the Jazz.
Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press passed along Pau Gasol's kind words about Kevin Love, two players who could be Wolves teammates if a rumored Gasol/Michael Beasley swap takes place, Richardson notes. "He's got a will and determination to go after every ball," Gasol said of Love. "Even though he's a little undersized and lost some weight, he's still a powerful player and playing at a high level. I'm definitely impressed with him."
With Richard Hamilton and Luol Deng ailing, it's been hard for Bulls GM Gar Forman to get a true handle on how effective his team really is, writes Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times. Forman must balance the team's current needs with its capability for long-term success, Hayes says.
Bill Simmons of Grantland.com came out with his annual trade value column today in two parts, ranking the top 50 player assets across the league. The Heat's LeBron James is No. 1, meaning he'd be the player who would command the most in any trade, though James isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
GM Sam Presti and the Thunder provide the small-market blueprint for Cavs GM Chris Grant, writes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.

Ganter On Howard, Smith, Rondo

March 9th, 2012 at 8:34pm CST by Chuck Myron

Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun conducted an in-house interview of fellow writer Mike Ganter, who held forth on a number of trade-related topics. (Video link) Here's what Ganter is hearing as the deadline draws near:

Ganter believes there's no way the Magic can get fair value for Dwight Howard, and predicts they'll hold on to the big man at the deadline.
Josh Smith tops the list of stars likely to be dealt. Smith has wanted out of Atlanta for a while, and is irked the Hawks didn't do more to promote his case to make the All-Star team this year.
What the Nuggets got in the Carmelo Anthony was a "once in a lifetime" haul, and teams shouldn't expect to approach that as they look to unload superstars.
The Celtics may break up their team, but don't expect Rajon Rondo to be going anywhere.

Berger On Gasol, Rondo, Jamison, Jackson, Okafor

March 9th, 2012 at 4:49pm CST by Luke Adams

Ken Berger of CBSSports.com has a few late-Friday afternoon updates on the trade market for us. Here are the highlights:

Berger echoes a number of other reporters who say that, while the Lakers and Rockets are discussing Pau Gasol, no agreement has been reached yet.
The Celtics had been fielding offers for Rajon Rondo in recent weeks, but have disengaged from those talks.
The Trail Blazers have "made it clear" they're accepting offers for Gerald Wallace.
Antawn Jamison's camp is intrigued by the possibility of Jamison going to the Lakers, but Los Angeles hasn't expressed any sort of serious interest in the veteran, says Berger. Even if they were interested, I can't see a way the two teams could match up, given Jamison's $15MM+ cap figure. Nonetheless, the Cavaliers are aggressively seeking future assets for Jamison.
One executive predicts that "no one's touching" Stephen Jackson unless he's bought out by the Bucks.
In addition to pursuing offers for Chris Kaman, the Hornets are also shopping Emeka Okafor.
The Timberwolves are gauging interest in Wayne Ellington and Anthony Tolliver.

Stein’s Latest: Howard, Turkoglu, Pacers, Kaman

March 9th, 2012 at 2:13pm CST by Luke Adams

This week's installment of Marc Stein's Weekend Dime is up at ESPN.com, so let's dive in and check out Stein's latest rumors….

Amidst talk of a quiet trade deadline, Stein says similar pessimism has preceded flurries of deals in the past. However, there's a league-wide expectation that Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol, and Rajon Rondo will stay put.
The Magic continue to pursue non-Howard deals, bringing up Hedo Turkoglu's name frequently. One front office source tells Stein that a team would have to received at least two future first-round picks to take on Turkoglu's contract.
Meanwhile, a Western Conference exec says he doesn't expect Orlando to even consider shopping Howard until deadline day. While that may seem a little too last-minute, the Magic are already aware of most of their trade options, meaning a deal could be worked out quickly, a source tells Stein.
Teams around the league seem to be valuing first-round picks more than ever, particularly 2012 selections, since this year's draft class is expected to be a deep one. A club with cap space like the Pacers could acquire players without sending out any salaries, but Indiana is extremely reluctant to part with its future first-rounders in any such deal.
It still appears that David Stern and the NBA-owned Hornets have no interest in buying out Chris Kaman's contract if the big man isn't traded. If Kaman was bought out and signed with a team like the Heat, he could impact the NBA Finals and further deplete the Chris Paul haul for the Hornets, neither of which would look great for the league.
There has been speculation that the Mavericks could be interested in Kaman in a deal involving Lamar Odom, but Stein says not to expect such a move, noting that Mark Cuban is committed to riding out the season with Odom.
As I speculated earlier, the Wizards are considering moving JaVale McGee on the condition that Andray Blatche is included in the deal as well. While both players have a ton of upside, the pair wouldn't exactly improve any team's chemistry.

Ford On Rondo, Smith, Kaman, Wallace, Nash

March 8th, 2012 at 12:20pm CST by Luke Adams

While a number of NBA executives are anticipating a quiet trade deadline, the conversations ESPN.com's Chad Ford has had still lead him to believe that significant deals will be made. In an Insider-only piece, Ford listed ten impact players who could be moved, from the most likely (Rajon Rondo) to the least likely (Steve Nash). Here are the highlights from Ford's column:

Even though the Celtics insist they won't trade Rondo, that isn't consistent with what rival GMs are saying after talking to GM Danny Ainge. Ford thinks Ainge would move Rondo if he could get two solid pieces in return.
The Hawks have been exploring potential Josh Smith deals "for years" and would be interested in an offer that nets them a legit point guard and a decent forward.
Chris Kaman has drawn "a lot of interest" from the Warriors, Rockets, and Heat.
The Blazers appear more open to trading Gerald Wallace now than they were at the start of the season. Ford thinks the Magic could make a big push for the 29-year-old forward.
If the Magic hang onto Dwight Howard, the Nets will stay the course with Deron Williams, but a Howard trade anywhere besides New Jersey could force the Nets to explore trade options for Williams.
Ford says it doesn't make much sense for the Suns and Steve Nash not to consider a trade, since Phoenix could end up losing Nash for nothing at season's end anyway.
Monta Ellis, Pau Gasol, and Eric Gordon also cracked Ford's list.

Odds & Ends: Rondo, Lewis, Heat, Varejao

March 7th, 2012 at 4:41pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics look to catch the 76ers in the Atlantic standings, and the Bobcats aim for their first winning streak of the season in tonight's slate of games. But before the evening action gets underway, let's round up the latest odds and ends from around the NBA:

One general manager tells Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that there's no way Celtics GM Danny Ainge will get equal value in a trade for Rajon Rondo: "There’s a perception that if Doc Rivers, who’s such a player’s coach, has had a hard time with him, my coach is going to have a worse time with him."
Because he reached certain incentives, Wizards forward Rashard Lewis is now owed a guaranteed $13.7MM (of $22.7MM) next season, tweets Michael Lee of the Washington Post.
Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel discusses Anthony Carter, Chris Andersen, and other potential targets for the Heat in today's mailbag.
In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, John Hollinger presents some under-the-radar trade candidates that he'd target, including Robin Lopez, Austin Daye, and Jordan Farmar.
The lack of production the Cavaliers have received in Anderson Varejao's place while he's been injured shows why the team has been unwilling to trade him, writes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.
In addition to sharing some Jamal Crawford rumors, Chad Ford of ESPN.com addressed a number of other trade topics in his latest chat.
The Nets have no interest in a reunion with John Calipari, as had been suggested, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com.
Jerome Jordan will rejoin the Knicks after last week's D-League assignment, tweets Duane Rankin of the Erie Times-News.

Odds & Ends: Rondo, Rockets, Blazers, Mavericks

March 4th, 2012 at 6:15pm CST by Ryan Raroque

After an overtime thriller between New York and Boston and the Heat being held to its second-lowest point total all season against the Lakers, here are some of the topics floating around the league.

Rajon Rondo's stellar game against the Knicks was a display of his value to the Celtics and as a trade asset, writes Ian Thomsen of Sports Illustrated.
Ric Bucher claims that the Rockets will have a different roster by March 16. (Twitter link)
In addition to Nate McMillan's concern about lack of communication on the court, Mike Tokito of The Oregonian writes that Raymond Felton will soon return to the starting lineup for the Trail Blazers.
Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas reports that the Mavericks have called up forward/center Sean Williams from the D-League after placing Brandan Wright on the injured list. Wright sustained a concussion against the Hornets on Friday.
A day after Lamar Odom's solid performance off the bench helped the Mavericks beat the Jazz, Eddie Sefko of DallasNews.com believes that the onus is on Lamar to remain consistent for the rest of the season.

Cavs Notes: Free Agency, Irving

March 3rd, 2012 at 10:59pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes surrounding the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday:

Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer says in a mailbag that it's too early to begin worrying about Kyrie Irving leaving the Cavaliers, saying that if the team surrounds him with the right pieces, there's a good chance he'll stay.
Reed also believes that Ramon Sessions will be traded before the deadline, but that the Celtics' Rajon Rondo will not.
Reed does not see the Cavs being in the mix for Wilson Chandler this summer if he hits restricted free agency.
In another article, Reed examines the Cavs' upcoming cap flexibility, suggesting that Dan Gilbert may take a more conservative approach to free agency than in 2005, the last time the team had significant cap space.
Reed also notes (via Twitter) tha Irving is close to making a decision as to whether or not to play for the Australian national team at the Summer Olympics in London.

Amick On Dwight, Celtics, Crawford

March 3rd, 2012 at 7:57pm CST by Sean Highkin

SI.com's Sam Amick has a roundup of the latest crop of NBA trade rumors, touching on a variety of topics. Here are the highlights:

There is a distinct possibility that the Magic will opt not to trade Dwight Howard, either because they don't like the offers out there or because they believe they can convince the superstar center to stay.
Nets GM Billy King believes it will be easier to land Howard through trade than via free agency, because of the difference in money the team will be able to offer.
The Warriors are still said to be interested in trading for Howard, even as a rental, and convincing him to stick around.
Ray Allen is more likely to be moved by March 15 than Rajon Rondo, but a deal with the Clippers is unlikely. The Celtics are asking for young talent and picks, which is more than most teams are likely to want to give up for the 36-year-old Allen.
Amick suggests Jamal Crawford as a trade possibility for the Clippers or any other team looking for help at the shooting guard position. He believes Crawford may be available because of the Blazers' struggles and his dissatisfaction with Nate McMillan playing him at point guard.
The Lakers continue to monitor Michael Beasley and Ramon Sessions, and the future of Pau Gasol is still uncertain.
It is possible that Wilson Chandler will spend the rest of the season overseas rather than re-sign with the Nuggets, and instead test free agency this summer.
The market is still slow for Gilbert Arenas, who is working out in Orlando in hopes that a team will sign him.

Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Turner, Dolan

March 2nd, 2012 at 5:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Sixers continue to control the Atlantic Division, and Jeremy Lin is still amazing Knicks fans, but most of the talk around the division this week has centered around the Celtics and what they'll do with Rajon Rondo their aging "big three." Here's more on them as well as the other playoff contenders on the Eastern seaboard.

The Hawks have had exploratory talks with the Celtics about Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Hawks are reluctant to move Josh Smith for an expiring deal, so that precludes swapping him for Allen or Garnett. The Celtics wouldn't want to flip either of them for the likes of Marvin Williams, and unless they get quality players with favorable contracts in return, they're inclined to hang on to them for the rest of the season. (All Twitter links)
Wojnarowski also appeared on the Dennis & Callahan show on WEEI radio today, and told the hosts he doesn't see the Celtics trading Rondo. He said the team has been reaching out to other teams to assess his value on the trade market, but not actively shopping him. The Celtics view his contract, which has approximately $35.86MM spread over three years after this season, as favorable, and would only trade him for a major star.
There's no truth to the idea that agent David Falk is pressuring Sixers coach Doug Collins to give client Evan Turner, the second pick in the 2010 draft, more playing time, writes John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Turner has averaged 23.7 MPG in 35 games this year, all of them off the bench.
The emergence of Jeremy Lin and hot second-unit play for the Knicks vindicate James Dolan for pushing hard to trade for Carmelo Anthony last year, observes Moke Hamilton on Sheridan Hoops.