Ramon Sessions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Notes: Sessions, Rose, Irving, Pistons

February 8th, 2012 at 7:37pm CST by Michael Pina

Rookie sensation Kyrie Irving sustained a concussion against Miami on Tuesday, according to Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He is not playing tonight, and there's no timeline for his return. With averages of 18.0 PPG and 5.1 APG, Cleveland's point guard was seen by many as the front runner for Rookie of the Year before suffering this injury.

Here are some more stories from around the Central Division:

Before tonight's game against the Nets, Detroit head coach Lawrence Frank had nothing but good things to say about guard Walker D. Russell, according to MLive.com's David Mayo. "I think his mindset is that he doesn't want this to be for just one year," he said. "So now he just has to put forth the effort and the film work and the study to stay.” Russell's contract was guaranteed yesterday afternoon.
The Cleveland Cavaliers reportedly want a first round pick for Ramon Sessions, according to The News-Herald's Bob Finnan. With Irving out from his concussion, and there being no timetable for his return, it's likely that instead of moving him, the Cavs hang on to Sessions for the time being.
After falling to the Miami Heat in last year's Eastern Conference Finals, Derrick Rose sought the advice of former Pistons point guard Isiah Thomas, according to Melissa Isaacson of ESPNChicago.com. Rose has played through pain this season, with notable injuries to his toe and back. The two spoke about what it takes to be the premier player on your team from the point guard position.

Trade Machine: Sessions To Knicks

February 4th, 2012 at 10:49pm CST by Jesse Blanchard

The New York Knicks, losers of 11 of their past 14 games, need a point guard. The Cavaliers, having an excellent backup point guard in Ramon Sessions, need as many young pieces around their star rookie point guard Kyrie Irving as possible.

Despite the Knicks previous reluctance to part with last year's prized second round pick Landry Fields, a trade package centered around Fields and Sessions would appear to make sense for both teams.

The Knicks offense has sputtered out of the gate this season, averaging 94.7 ppg–good for 14th in the NBA. They are currently 24th in the league with 18.9 assists per game. Those two aspects of the game had previously been staples of a Mike D'Antoni offense.

Sessions, currently averaging 9.2 points and 4.8 assists per game in just slightly over 20 minutes, would provide the Knicks with the pick and roll ball handler the Knicks sorely lack, allowing D'Antoni to open up his system and properly utilize Amare Stoudemire.

Fields, a surprising second round find, would provide, at worst, quality depth on the wings for a team that leans heavily on Antawn Jamison, Alonzo Gee, Anthony Parker, and Daniel Gibson.

While the Knicks have Baron Davis waiting in the wings, relying on a player with his history of injuries and conditioning troubles in the condensed lockout season could be a recipe for disaster. Not that playing Anthony in a point forward role hasn't been so far this season.

Even though Sessions likely would not be the long term answer, the Knicks have a lot of decisions to make this offseason, and it would be best to evaluate D'Antoni and his system in its natural habitat, with a point guard that can execute his offense.

Lakers Hesitant On Sessions

February 3rd, 2012 at 7:48pm CST by Alex Lee

The Lakers are one of many teams interested in trade candidate Ramon Sessions. According to Marc Stein, the Cavaliers would be looking for at least one of the Lakers two first-round picks in 2012.

Stein says Los Angeles is balking at including either of their first-rounders, or their $8.9MM trade exception, until they have a clearer understanding of Dwight Howard's situation in Orlando. The Lakers interest in Howard is well documented, and they clearly don't want to jeopardize any of their trade assets in a deal for Sessions if there is a chance they can land Howard.

The Lakers received one of their 2012 first-round picks and the $8.9MM trade exception when they dealt Lamar Odom to Dallas in the offseason.

Trade Candidate: Ramon Sessions

February 2nd, 2012 at 2:23pm CST by Luke Adams

Following a 2010/11 campaign that saw him set career highs in FG% (.466) and PPG (13.3), among other categories, Ramon Sessions finds himself back in a familiar situation this season. Two years removed from playing behind lottery pick Jonny Flynn in Minnesota, Sessions has been relegated to backup point guard duty behind first overall pick Kyrie Irving in Cleveland.

With Irving clearly the point guard of the future for the Cavaliers, and Sessions playing in what could be the final year of his contract (he holds a $4.55MM player option for next season), it was only a matter of time before the 25-year-old's name surfaced in trade rumors. The Lakers and Knicks have been linked to Sessions so far, with reports suggesting the Cavs are fielding plenty of other calls about the point guard's availability.

The Cavs haven't indicated they want to move Sessions, and there's no guarantee they'll become sellers if they're in contention for the playoffs. But let's assume they're listening to offers. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported that Cleveland is interested in stockpiling draft picks in any deals, and I assume cap room is a concern as well. If that's the case, the Lakers make more sense as a trade partner than the Knicks. Without sending any salary back to Cleveland, Los Angeles could easily absorb Sessions' $4.26MM salary using part of the $8.9MM trade exception it acquired in the Lamar Odom deal. Other teams that could use a trade exception on Sessions include the Jazz, Nuggets, Magic, and Mavericks, but none of those clubs have as great a need as the Lakers.

The Lakers currently hold two first-round picks in this year's draft, having acquired the Mavericks' first-rounder in the Odom trade. I think it's unlikely they'd want to move either pick for Sessions, given the strength of this year's draft class. Perhaps holding two first-rounders this year would make them more willing to give up a future selection, though that could limit their trade flexibility going forward.

Given the injuries and general lack of production at their point guard spot this year, the Lakers will likely explore a wide range of trade options before March 15th. They could choose to use their trade exception and draft picks on a larger deal, but acquiring Sessions would make a lot of sense. I could see both sides eventually agreeing to a trade that sends Sessions from Cleveland to L.A. in exchange for a protected first-rounder.

Knicks May Target Ramon Sessions

February 1st, 2012 at 5:49pm CST by Ryan Raroque

With the New York Knicks struggling to find consistent play from the point guard position and the uncertainty of Baron Davis' health, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes that the team could look to explore a trade for Ramon Sessions of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Although he is shooting 35% from the field and 33% from 3 PT range, Sessions has been averaging 9.0 PPG and 4.6 APG in 22 minutes off of the bench. When asked specifically about the team's interest in the Cavs guard, head Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni appeared open to the idea: "I’m sure it would be thoroughly discussed and looked at. Whatever will make our team better we’ll do it."

The fifth-year guard has the ability to opt out of his contract and become a free agent at the end of this season. Sessions, who is currently the backup point guard to rookie Kyrie Irving, had shown previous interest in joining the Knicks as a free agent before landing with the Timberwolves in 2009.

Odds & Ends: Sessions, Kings, Mavs, Hornets

January 31st, 2012 at 10:06pm CST by Luke Adams

On January 31st, 1979, the Cleveland Cavaliers sent Terry Furlow to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Butch Lee and a 1983 first-round pick. Both Furlow and Lee played their last NBA minutes in 1980, but that '83 draft pick ended up in the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, who used it to select Derek Harper. Harper went on to score over 16,000 points in his 16-year NBA career — nearly five times the combined career totals for Furlow and Lee.

As for January 31st, 2012, here are a few items from around the Association:

Ramon Sessions isn't surprised to hear his name involved in trade rumors, writes Tom Reed of The Plain Dealer. The Lakers have inquired about the point guard's availability and the Cavaliers are receiving interest from other clubs as well.
Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter links) spoke with Kings co-owner Gavin Maloof who spoke highly of the jobs that GM Petrie and coach Keith Smart are doing. Last night, it was reported that the club could be looking to replace Petrie, who has been with the Kings since 1994.
After J.J. Barea departed in the offseason, the Mavericks managed to replace him admirably and cheaply, as Jeff Caplan writes at ESPNDallas.com.
There shouldn't be any sense of security for Hornets players, with a major roster overhaul coming this offseason, or sooner, says John DeShazier of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider link) checks in on the stocks of a few college players. While Anthony Davis still has a stranglehold on the top spot on Ford's draft board, the rest of the top five is in flux.
Heat fans may have a love affair with Michael Beasley, but there probably would never have been a Big Three in Miami if Beasley had put it together during his time with the Heat, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
A few members of ESPN.com's TrueHoop network discussed Dwight Howard and other potential trade candidates.

Kennedy On West, Sessions, Chandler

January 31st, 2012 at 5:48pm CST by Zachary Links

While it's early in this lockout-shortened season, things seem to be clicking for the Pacers thus far, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. Indiana holds impressive road wins against the likes of the Bulls, Lakers, and Celtics and have yet to drop back-to-back games. What's been the key to their success? If you ask Darren Collison, the answer is David West. Here's more from Kennedy on the forward and other news from around the league..

When asked if he can see himself finishing his career with the Pacers, West didn't hesitate to answer in the affirmative. “This was the best opportunity for me. It gave me the chance to have a good time playing this game again and not have to deal with some of the outside issues that we were dealing with in New Orleans," the 31-year-old said. West signed a two-year pact worth $20MM with the club over the offseason.
The Cavaliers have been fielding plenty of calls for Ramon Sessions in recent weeks, sources close to the situation tell Kennedy. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported yesterday that the Lakers have inquired about Sessions’ availability. Sessions’ agent, Jared Karnes, is set to speak with Cleveland GM Chris Grant this week to discuss his client’s future. The Cavs won’t trade Sessions unless the right offer comes along and multiple sources insist that no deal is imminent.
As we learned yesterday, the Raptors plan on making a run at Wilson Chandler when he returns to the NBA from China. The Nuggets, who have the rights to the 24-year-old as a restricted free agent, will also have to jostle with several contenders who hope to sign him to a one-year deal, according to Kennedy. However, not many teams have money to spend in March, which is why Chandler's best bet might be waiting until July to sign a long-term deal.

Lakers Discussing Ramon Sessions With Cavs

January 30th, 2012 at 2:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have talked to the Cavaliers about the possibility of acquiring Ramon Sessions, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.

Currently without Steve Blake, the Lakers attempted to bolster their point guard spot prior to the season, but a potential agreement for Chris Paul was vetoed by commissioner David Stern. Los Angeles acquired an $8.9MM traded player exception when they dealt Lamar Odom to the Mavericks, and could put a portion of that trade exception toward Sessions, who will earn about $4.2MM this season.

Sessions, 25, has seen a reduction in his minutes in Cleveland this year, as he plays behind top pick Kyrie Irving. In about 22 minutes per game, the fifth-year guard has averaged 9.1 points and 4.3 assists, with a field goal percentage (.340) far below his career rate.

Wojnarowski adds that the Lakers also recently worked out free agent Morris Peterson.