Rudy Gay

Heat Notes: Durant, Whiteside, McRoberts, Johnson

The Heat are treating Kevin Durant like a long shot and concentrating their free agency efforts on keeping Hassan Whiteside, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Miami intends to make an offer to Durant, but Jackson says the team’s intentions were clear when president Pat Riley called Whiteside the priority this week.

Miami might have a better shot at signing an outside free agent next summer, Jackson writes, even if Whiteside returns at a max or near-max contract. Dwyane Wade can free up some money if he agrees to another one-year contract or a two-year deal with an opt out after one season. Even if Chris Bosh is able to keep playing and his $25.3MM counts against the Heat’s cap, the franchise could have about $26MM to use next summer, possibly closer to $32MM if it can find a taker for Josh McRoberts. That would be enough to re-sign Wade and add a player such as Zach Randolph, Rudy Gay, Danilo Gallinari, Taj Gibson, Andre Iguodala, Tony Allen or J.J. Redick.

There’s more out of Miami:

  • The Heat will gauge the trade market for McRoberts, but the front office recognizes his value in case Bosh can’t play, Jackson writes in the same story. Miami might prefer to keep Luol Deng, who filled in for Bosh this season, but the offers he will get in free agency might be more than Miami can afford. “When you watch players play with [McRoberts], who know how to play with him, they’re very effective,” Riley said. “… We’re still high on him. We’re praying all the time he stays healthy.”
  • Joe Johnson may not stay with the Heat if he wants a quick decision in free agency, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Winderman expects many variables to play out, including whether coach Erik Spoelstra wants to make Justise Winslow his starting small forward. If that happens, the Heat would prefer to add another shooter to the starting lineup, a role Bosh can fill if he’s healthy. The Heat may want to fill their salary cap with other players first and then offer Johnson its $2.9MM “room” mid-level exception. However, he could get a better offer from another team before that happens.
  • After passing on Devin Booker to draft Winslow last year, the Heat need to concentrate on finding shooters this summer, Winderman contends in a separate piece. Their 7-for-25 performance from 3-point range in Game 7 against the Raptors underlined the need for improvement, but Spoestra said the team won’t be searching for just one skill. “Teams are built differently; teams can win in different ways,” he said. “… The most important thing is finding the best fits around the players you currently have, and can players bring out the best in each other?”

George Karl Speaks Out On Kings’ Situation

NBA: Denver Nuggets at Indiana Pacers

Brian Spurlock / USA TODAY Sports Images

Former Sacramento coach George Karl discusses his firing, his relationship with DeMarcus Cousins and the turmoil inside the Kings organization in a wide-ranging interview with Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. It represents Karl’s most extensive comments since the team dismissed him April 14th.

  • Karl says executive/GM Vlade Divac has a huge task ahead in trying to rebuild a team that hoped to be a playoff contender this season, but sputtered to a 33-49 record and finished tied for 10th in the West. Divac’s most pressing offseason decision will be whether to keep or trade Cousins. “The roster needs to be tinkered with,” Karl said. “[Divac] is going to be in for an NBA free agency unlike anything we have ever seen. If the decision is made to keep Cuz, you have to put the right players around him. But it can’t be about Cousins. You have to make basketball decisions.” Karl believes the Kings have too many guards and that Rudy Gay, Ben McLemore and Marco Belinelli are too similar to function on the same roster.
  • Karl said his relationship with Cousins was doomed from the beginning because Cousins’ agents, Dan Fegan and Jarinn Tasi Akana, lobbied hard to prevent Karl’s hiring. Former Sacrmento GM Pete D’Alessandro signed off on the move, but he was demoted weeks later and replaced by Divac. D’Alessandro left for a job with the Nuggets just before the draft, taking valuable information on the Kings’ strategy with him and leaving Divac with an inexperienced staff. Meanwhile, Karl was failing to set down new borders with Cousins and didn’t respond forcefully to early incidents of disrespect. “I never felt I got into a good place with Cuz,” Karl said, “and some of that was my stupidity when I said that no player is untradeable. I still believe that. But I should have been smart enough not to say it, and I in no way, at any time, thought DeMarcus was going to get traded.”
  • The situation escalated when Divac orchestrated a public handshake between Cousins and Karl on NBATV at last year’s Las Vegas Summer League. Cousins reluctantly shook Karl’s hand, then embarrassed his coach by quickly turning away. “Vlade thought he was helping me,” Karl said, “but that looked really bad.”
  • Their relationship became more poisoned when Cousins unleashed a profanity-filled tirade at Karl following a November 8th loss. Karl wanted to impose a two-game suspension, but Divac opted for an undisclosed fine. “When they supported Cousins instead of me, I felt, ‘OK, I’m in the compromise position. Cuz has the power,’’’ Karl said. “They sent that message many times, too many times sent it to the players. And the players wanted someone to stand up to Cuz, and they wanted it to be their coach. But at that point, I realized that you either compromise or you blow it up, and my job was to make us a better basketball team and get to the end of the year.”
  • Karl believes Sacramento’s front office expected too much too soon after an aggressive summer of trying to rebuild the team. He hopes a better atmosphere greets whomever the Kings select as their next head coach. “Whether or not they trade Cuz,” Karl said, “they have to empower their coach. They have to let him coach. It takes a few years to build a program. It becomes a culture, an energy force. [Owner] Vivek [Ranadive] wanted magic to happen, but in the NBA magic happens once in a while, and usually is associated with Larry Bird, Magic Johnson or Michael Jordan.”

Western Notes: Williams, Kings, Green, Barea

Combo guard Elliot Williams, who played five games for the Grizzlies in January, has an offer to continue playing for Panathinaikos in Greece, as Lefteris Moutis of Eurohoops.net details. The Greek team, which signed him in February to a three-month contract, is offering a two-year contract at $2MM per season, but the deal is being held up over negotiations on an out clause for the NBA, Moutis writes. The Greek team wants a commitment from Williams that he will stay there for both years of the contract, as Moutis explains. Williams averaged 1.6 points and 0.8 assists per game while with Memphis on a 10-day deal.

There’s more from the Western Conference:

  • The Kings‘ offseason shakeup turned them into playoff contenders early on, but it let them down as the season progressed, writes James Ham of CSNBayArea. The Kings will still finish with their best record since the 2007/08 season, but at 32-48 they were tied for seventh in Hoops Rumors’ reverse standings entering Sunday. “I think you can go in there and get a bunch of players,” said small forward Rudy Gay. “But I think at the end of the day you have to mesh personalities, you have to mesh talent, you have to do all of that. It’s not just getting a bunch of people on a team — it’s not that easy.”
  • Clippers combo forward Jeff Green earned a $100K bonus today when L.A. defeated Dallas for its 52nd win of the season, tweets Bobby Marks of The Vertical. He will receive another bonus of $250K if the team wins its final two games. Both bonuses were stipulated in the contract Green originally signed with the Celtics and will count against the luxury tax for the Clippers.
  • Mavericks point guard J.J. Barea credited coach Rick Carlisle with making him a better player in Dallas than he was in Minnesota during an interview with ESPN Radio 103.3 KESN-FM (hat tip to The Dallas Morning News). Barea, the reigning Western Conference Player of the Week, signed a four-year, $16MM deal with the Mavs last summer. “There’s nobody who uses me better than [Carlisle],” Barea said. “He knows when to put me in and when to not put me in. I have a great relationship with Dirk [Nowitzki] out there so that always helps me.”

And-Ones: Johnson, Celtics, Pelicans, Lee

The Cavaliers think would-be post-buyout target Joe Johnson wants to stay in Brooklyn and that he’ll seek to sign an extension with the Nets, a source told Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. People around Johnson say he won’t take a buyout, tweets Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.

There’s more from around the basketball world as the trade deadline approaches:
  • The Celtics are willing to trade the unprotected 2016 first-round pick they have coming their way from the Nets if it would shake Blake Griffin loose from the Clippers, sources tell Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. However, Boston wouldn’t deal the pick for either Kevin Love or Al Horford, Bulpett hears.
  • The Pelicans shopped Eric Gordon and Omer Asik, but they haven’t found much interest, sources tell John Reid of The Times Picayune. New Orleans reportedly offered Gordon and Alonzo Gee to the Kings for Rudy Gay earlier this season, and the Pelicans apparently had talks with the Cavs that involved Asik after making him available in December.
  • The Grizzlies shipped $542,714 cash to the Hornets as part of the Courtney Lee tradeEric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reveals.
  • Jameer Nelson is running out of alternatives to season-ending surgery on a severely sprained left wrist, but he’ll continue to try to play for the time being after receiving an injection meant to ease the pain he’s feeling, as Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post details. He missed the Nuggets‘ last six games before the All-Star break.
  • The Bulls were interested in Trevor Ariza and Corey Brewer earlier this season, but the Rockets rebuffed their entreaties, reports Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com (Twitter link).
  • The Pistons would love to make one more move before the trade deadline, GM Jeff Bower said today in an appearance on WDFN-AM radio, notes Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter link). The team is reportedly scanning the market for veteran guards, but Bower said the Pistons are looking at the options available at every position and added that coach/executive Stan Van Gundy has confidence in Steve Blake as the team’s backup point guard, Beard also relays (on Twitter).
  • The Grizzlies recalled James Ennis from the team’s D-League affiliate in Iowa, the team announced today. Ennis has appeared in 15 games with the Energy, averaging 16.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per night. He has played in 10 games for Memphis, averaging 1.3 points in 3.6 minutes.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Cavs Interested In McLemore, Ariza, Joe Johnson

The Cavaliers are one of multiple Eastern Conference teams with strong interest in Ben McLemore, league sources tell Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Cleveland would quickly snap up Joe Johnson if he works a buyout with the Nets, Haynes also hears from league sources, though it doesn’t look like he’s one of the Cavs’ trade targets. Trevor Ariza is also on Cleveland’s radar, Haynes adds, as are Kyle Korver and Jared Dudley, as previous reports indicated, but it’s highly unlikely Cleveland ends up with one of those three, according to Haynes, who paints McLemore as the more obtainable target.

The Kings have so far resisted offers for the shooting guard, Haynes writes, but it’s widely known around the league that agents are pushing to get their players out of Sacramento amid organizational turmoil there, Haynes also reports. Trade candidate Rudy Gay wouldn’t mind a deal that ships him out of town, but the Kings haven’t found any offers for him that pass muster, Haynes hears.

Cleveland isn’t connected to Gay, but it’s a matter of when, not if, the Cavs will make a move of some sort, according to Haynes. The Cavs have been seeking a three-and-D wing player and have been linked to multiple names, including Omer Asik, who’s a center, and Tyreke Evans, who has an injury that threatens to wipe out the rest of his season. They’ve reportedly explored trading Timofey Mozgov, having met with rejection on that front from the Kings and also engaging in talks with the Pelicans that didn’t bear fruit.

Johnson said recently that he wouldn’t dismiss the idea of a buyout from his contract with the Nets, which expires at season’s end, and the Heat, like the Cavs, reportedly want to make a run at him if he shakes free from Brooklyn. One source close to Johnson told Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders that Johnson is “miserable” with the Nets and would welcome a change. His nearly $24.895MM would make a trade difficult, so a buyout appears a more feasible route.

Kings Notes: Karl, Jackson, Divac, Ranadive

George Karl‘s agent, Warren LeGarie, is upset with Kings television analyst Bobby Jackson for some negative comments he made on air regarding the embattled coach, Bill Oram of The Orange County Register relays. Jackson pointedly suggested that it was time for the organization to fire Karl, something LeGarie is worried will influence the team’s volatile front office, Oram adds. “It’s my opinion that he [Jackson] should be fired or suspended,” LeGarie, told Oram. “[There’s] no place for that in a legitimate organization.”

LeGarie noted that Jackson is close to Sacramento executives Vlade Divac and Peja Stojakovic, Oram notes. “It’s way more transparent when you know the cast of characters involved and way more obvious then,” LeGarie said. “Except to the fans who take what they say as gospel.” The agent also noted in regards to broadcasters that,”They condition their audience, which ultimately influences the management.”

Here’s more from Sacramento:

  • Karl noted that his recent talk with Divac, which he initially believed would result in him being fired, was similar to their usual conversations, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee writes. “I don’t think it’s anything different,” Karl said. “Just the situation, frustration – everybody’s frustrated when you lose. I’m not going to go into the private conversations that we had. Talked about the team, talked about the trade deadline situation. We talked about going forward in a positive way, in a committed, connected way.
  • The franchise needs Divac to be a stabilizing influence amid all the current turmoil, something he has yet to effectively accomplish as an executive, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com opines.
  • If the Kings decide to deal swingman Rudy Gay prior to the trade deadline, the team needs to receive players signed beyond this season and not short-term rentals in return, Bobby Marks of The Vertical at Yahoo Sports writes in his deadline primer for the franchise. With Sacramento not known as a destination for free agents, it would be difficult for the team to replace Gay’s production, making it paramount that the Kings receive players they can utilize beyond the current campaign, Marks notes.
  • The Kings’ troubles start at the top with majority owner Vivek Ranadive and the muddled messages he sends to the team and its fans with his often flighty nature, Marcos Breton of The Sacramento Bee writes. The scribe also notes that Ranadive has been the one constant throughout all the coaching changes and failed personnel moves, which have the organization looked upon as a laughingstock around the league.

Western Notes: Garnett, Gay, Kilpatrick

Kevin Garnett gave reporters a pointed endorsement of interim coach Sam Mitchell, as well expressed his approval of the direction that the Timberwolves are headed as a franchise, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune relays. “I feel real good about the progression of this team since Day 1 and I think it needs to be said and needs to be understood that I’m endorsing Sam Mitchell and our coaching staff and this organization,” Garnett said. “More importantly, I’m excited about our future. I’m excited about our young players. I feel like we’re getting better. These last 10, 15 games, we’ve gotten better. You see it and I think that needs to be said. I think you all need to understand we’re supportive around here.”

The veteran had raised some eyebrows with his previous silence regarding Mitchell, Zgoda notes. “Just because I haven’t done a lot of interviews and voiced my opinion on a lot of things,” Garnett continued, “I want you guys to understand that not only do I endorse Sam Mitchell, but the other players do, too. We believe not only in him, but the system and what we’re trying to do here. I think everybody needs to understand that. The transformation and what we’re trying to do here is build something for the future and these are the first steps of that. I don’t really come to you guys a lot and say two weeks, but I just want you guys to know that needs to be heard and said.

Here’s the latest from out West:

  • The Clippers are looking for a small forward and have interest in Rudy Gay, but their interest isn’t strong enough to obtain him, ESPN’s Chris Broussard says in a video report. Gay has been linked to the Clippers previously, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee wrote in January, but it wasn’t clear just how they viewed him. Dana Gauruder of Hoops Rumors profiled the trade candidacy of the Kings combo forward Monday.
  • Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook don’t have any trouble seeing eye-to-eye, sources tell Zach Lowe of ESPN.com as part of a larger piece on the Thunder. The team has been scanning the market for wing players but hasn’t made any serious pursuits, several league sources said to Lowe, who also hears that new coach Billy Donovan has been better at holding the team’s stars accountable during film sessions than predecessor Scott Brooks was.
  • The Nuggets don’t intend to sign Sean Kilpatrick for the remainder of the season, Nate Timmons of BSNDenver.com tweets. Kilpatrick’s second 10-day pact expired on Monday.

Trade Candidate: Rudy Gay

Kyle Terada / USA Today Sports Images

Kyle Terada / USA Today Sports Images

Rudy Gay has played in the NBA since the 2006/07 season and posted steady numbers throughout his career. He still tends to leave his coaches and home fans exasperated, wondering why his multi-dimensional skills fail to translate into greater production. So it’s not surprising that Gay is apparently on the trading block for the third time in four years.

Scan the basic numbers and Gay ranks as one of the league’s top small forwards. Virtually any team would be satisfied with a player who averages 18.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 35.8 minutes — his career numbers.

Gay averaged a career-high 21.1 points and 3.7 assists last season, as he took a larger offensive role for a Kings team that struggled to find a consistent point guard. The acquisition of Rajon Rondo, the league’s assists leader, has led to a dip in Gay’s numbers (18.0 points, 1.7 assists) but he’s pulling down more rebounds (6.9 compared to 5.9 a year ago) as he switches back and forth between the forward spots.

In terms of ESPN’s Player Efficiency Rating, Gay is having another solid season. He ranks 10th among small forwards at 16.69. That’s down from his career best 19.46 PER last season and the 18.40 he posted in 2013-14 but still well above the league average of 15.0.

Basketball Reference’s Offensive and Defensive Box Plus/Minus ratings provide a different perspective on Gay’s effectiveness. His OBPM is 0.3, while his DBPM is 0.0 — the epitome of average. Gay earned a career-best 2.8 OBPM last season but that figure was twice as high as any of his other seasons. For his career, Gay averages a 0.5 OBPM and a 0.1 DBPM, evidence for his critics that he’s not as good as his basic numbers would suggest.

Gay doesn’t provide much of a 3-point threat, averaging one make per game while shooting 34.3% from long range. He also has a tendency to miss games with nagging injuries — he hasn’t played more than 75 games since the 2009/10 season.

As Kings beat writer Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee recently pointed out, much has changed since the Kings made him virtually untouchable in trade talks last season. He has struggled to fit into coach George Karl‘s system, Jones noted, while the team has concerns about its depth at the two-guard spot.

Any team acquiring Gay would have to view him as its starter through next season, if not 2017/18 as well, because of his contract status. He signed a three-year extension in November 2014 and is making $12.4MM this season. He’s guaranteed approximately $13.33MM next season and holds a player option for $14.26MM for the following season.

Sacramento is seeking a quality young player, or a rotation player with at least one year left on his contract, in any trade involving Gay, according to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein.

In January, Gay was linked in trade rumors to two other Western Conference teams, the Pelicans and Kings. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported that Sacramento refused New Orleans’ offer of shooting guard Eric Gordon and small forward Alonzo Gee.

Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops reported earlier that the Kings wanted to trade Gay for power forward Ryan Anderson, an unrestricted free agent after this season, but the Pelicans wouldn’t bite. The offer involving Gordon, who is also an unrestricted free agent after the season, came prior to the finger fracture he suffered that will keep him out of action for four to six weeks.

While an intriguing possibility for the Pelicans, who are trying to climb back into the playoff race, the potential acquisition of Gay would negatively impact the team’s cap space, as Justin Verrier of ESPN.com recently wrote. It remains to be seen whether the Pelicans will be buyers or sellers in this market, given their current record, and taking Gay’s contract would be a significant commitment.

Grizzlies beat writer Ronald Tillery of The Memphis Commerical Appeal recently suggested that the club could improve its current roster and future outlook by reacquiring the player it traded away to the Raptors midway through the 2013/14 season. Tillery opined that Gay would bring scoring, versatility and tough defense to the perennial playoff team. Pure speculation on my part but that proposal would probably have to include one or both of their impending free agent wings, Jeff Green (making $9.45MM in his walk year) and Courtney Lee (5.675MM).

Gay has also been linked in the past to the Bulls and Clippers and, given their current injury issues, it’s not a big stretch to see a match with either of those teams. The Clippers have a hole at small forward and Gay could also play the power forward spot with Blake Griffin on the mend from a broken hand.

The Bulls’ frontcourt depth has taken some hits with the season-ending loss of Joakim Noah, along with Nikola Mirotic‘s appendectomy that will keep him out through the All-Star break. Pairing up Gay with Jimmy Butler would give the Bulls one of the strongest 1-2 punches at the wing spots in the league.

There are some strong arguments for the Kings to retain Gay. They have moved into the playoff picture and may not want to interrupt their chemistry with a big trade. They would also need a wing player or two to justify the trade, since Gay’s backup Omri Casspi has defensive limitations and, as previously pointed out, the Kings could use an upgrade at shooting guard.

As James Ham of CSNBayArea.com recently reported, Gay also has a strong relationship with DeMarcus Cousins and Rondo. He was one of the principal players in recruiting Rondo as a free agent last summer.

Add all the factors together and there’s undoubtedly more trade rumors involving Gay to come this month. It’s unclear, though, whether the Kings will actually shake up their starting lineup and take that big step.

Do you think the Kings will trade Gay before this month’s deadline? Leave a comment to weigh in.

Western Notes: Gay, Martin, Motiejunas

The Kings are holding out for a “quality young player” or someone whose contract runs beyond this season in return for Rudy Gay as they entertain offers for the combo forward, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com. James Ham of CSNBayArea.com relayed earlier this evening that there is significant interest around the league regarding multiple players on Sacramento’s roster, including Gay and Marco Belinelli. While we await more trade rumblings, here are the latest happenings from out West:

  • The Timberwolves are demanding more in a Kevin Martin trade than a simple offloading of salary, Stein notes in the same piece. The Bucks, Mavericks, Bulls, Grizzlies and Kings have all reportedly expressed interest in Martin to some degree, as Hoops Rumors’ Chuck Myron noted when he examined the shooting guard’s trade candidacy.
  • Rockets power forward Donatas Motiejunas is slated to join the team’s D-League affiliate this weekend to continue rehabbing his injured back, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle writes. As a fourth-year player, both Motiejunas and the NBPA needed to give their permission for the big man to head to Rio Grande Valley, Feigen notes, something Motiejunas was more than willing to do. “I’m excited,” Motiejunas said about joining the Vipers. “I know that I need to go there. I know that’s what I want. For catching a rhythm, that’s the thing that I will like to go, catch my rhythm back, catch my game flow, get back into shape. I’m happy with it and just to go play, get my confidence back, is a really good decision by me and my agent to go there. I asked them to send me. I know it’s going to be much harder for me if I don’t go there and not get reps. Then I have to work into the rotation somehow and maintain my condition. I really think it’s the best solution for me to go to the D-League, check on my body, get high minutes, get in a rhythm, get in a game shape and be ready to play.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Teams Showing Interest In Kings’ Gay, Belinelli

There is significant interest around the league regarding multiple players on the Kings’ roster, including Rudy Gay and Marco Belinelli, James Ham of CSNBayArea.com relays. Sacramento hasn’t indicated that it is willing to become a seller sitting at 20-26 on the season, Ham adds. With the franchise just a half game out of the final playoff slot in the West, the team would prefer to be buyers at the trade deadline if the right offer were to materialize, Ham notes.

Gay, 29, is owed $13,333,333 next season and possesses a player option for 2017/18 worth $14,263,566. The swingman is enjoying a solid-enough season, though his scoring average is down to 18.0 points per contest after notching 21.1 points per outing in 2014/15. The Pelicans had reportedly offered Sacramento Eric Gordon and Alonzo Gee in exchange for Gay previously, which was obviously declined. New Orleans also reportedly turned down an offer of Gay for Ryan Anderson. Gay has been linked to the Bulls and the Clippers in the past, according to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. The former No. 8 overall pick out of UConn owns career averages of 18.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists to accompany a slash line of .452/.343/.764.

Belinelli, 29, signed a three-year, $19MM deal with the Kings in July, but he has shot the ball poorly, only connecting on 38.4% of his shots overall. Despite his rough start in Sacramento, Belinelli is a known commodity around the league, Ham notes. His track record of success has teams willing to overlook his slow start, but according to Ham’s source, the team hasn’t been offered much of substance in return for the veteran. Belinelli has made 46 appearances on the year, including one start, and is averaging 10.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 25.3 minutes per night.