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Odds & Ends: Cousins, Thunder, Vesely, Morris

December 22nd, 2012 at 6:16pm CST by Ryan Raroque

In addtion to Steve Nash's Lakers debut tonight, another major talking point in the Pacific Division involves the Kings' suspension of DeMarcus Cousins. According to Jeff Zillgitt and Sam Amick of USA Today, a source close the team's plans says that the former Kentucky big man isn't untouchable. Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM feels that Sacramento and the Magic would benefit by exploring trade talks, as both have pieces that could help the other side (Twitter link). Chris Sheridan of Sheridan Hoops also weighed in, offering four different scenarios in which the Kings could deal the fourth-year player. With that aside, here are some of the other notable stories we're hearing from the NBA this evening:

Jim Eichenhoffer of Hornets.com tweets that Eric Gordon has been cleared for full contact practice.
Jenni Carlson of NewsOK believes that dealing James Harden to Houston has made the Thunder a better and more fluid team, pointing to the significant increase in assist numbers by Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.
Jan Vesely has yet to earn a consistent role during a turbulent start to his second-year campaign with the struggling Wizards, writes Michael Lee of the Washington Post. “It’s tough, especially when the team is losing,” Vesely said of his current role. “Everybody try to stay positive but sometimes it’s hard. I try to practice everyday, work on my game and stay ready for my chance to play.”
Darius Morris may not be ready for a starting job, but Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times writes about how the Lakers' sophomore guard has found a significant role in Mike D'Antoni's rotation (Sulia link).
Two years ago and just months removed from "The Decision", Jazz guard Mo Williams (then with Cleveland) and Heat superstar LeBron James may not have necessarily been on each other's holiday greetings list. Today, Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune notes how the two former teammates had nothing but glowing remarks to say about each other heading into tonight's matchup between Utah and Miami.

Odds & Ends: Mayo, Lakers, Howard, Hornets

December 16th, 2012 at 9:44pm CST by Zachary Links

While the defending champs can't kick themselves too much over personnel decisions, the Heat might have benefited if Pat Riley had listened to Dwyane Wade back in 2008, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Miami took Michael Beasley No. 2 overall, but Wade pushed for the team to draft guard O.J. Mayo. Other players passed up by Miami include Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook. Here's the latest from around the league..

The Lakers are on the hook for about $30MM in luxury tax payments this season, but that's almost nothing compared with what they may pay next season, writes Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times. If the Lakers re-sign Dwight Howard and keep most of the existing roster together, they'll be looking at a $103MM payroll. If the tax threshold climbs by 5% to $73.8MM, the Lakers would owe approximately $81.5MM in tax.
The Hornets signed Dominic McGuire today because coach Monty Williams has not been pleased with the play of his small forwards, tweets John Reid of the Times-Picayune. McGuire was released by the Raptors at the end of November to make room for Mickael Pietrus.
Bulls rookie Marquis Teague is starting to find his groove as he plays with the starting five, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. However, the guard will head back to the bench soon as Kirk Hinrich is getting ready to return to action.

Berger On Lakers, White, Thunder, Fisher

December 5th, 2012 at 5:25pm CST by Sean Highkin

Ken Berger of CBSSports.com has a new column dealing with several high-profile topics from around the NBA. Here are the highlights:

Berger writes that if the Lakers choose to trade Pau Gasol, they should look for wing defenders and bench depth.
The Rockets and Royce White appear to be making progress in working through the issues that have prevented the rookie from seeing playing time. Berger reports that White has begun seeing the therapist the team assigned to him to assist with his anxiety disorder.
Kevin Martin is having a fantastic season for the Thunder, who Berger believes have been vindicated for their decision to trade James Harden.
Thunder guard Russell Westbrook praised the Mavericks' signing of Derek Fisher, citing the veteran point guard's impact on the Oklahoma City locker room last season.

Western Notes: Spurs, Fisher, Gasol, Crawford

November 29th, 2012 at 10:06pm CST by Ryan Raroque

You can count NBA commissioner David Stern among those who are none-too-pleased about Spurs coach Gregg Popovich's decision to rest his stars against the Heat tonight. Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida relayed a statement by Stern which indicated that "substantial sanctions will be forthcoming" as a consequence for San Antonio (Sulia link). Earlier, Popovich told reporters: "It has nothing to do with the Miami Heat, or TV, or anything…You deal with the schedule as best you can and do the wisest thing for your particular team” (Jeff McDonald of Spurs Nation reports). On another note, here's what we're hearing out of the Western Conference tonight:

Later in his column, Ken Berger of CBS Sports credits a source that says Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni would like to have Nate McMillan as his top assistant for the 2013-14 season if he isn't given a head coaching job by then.
Jonathan Feigen of Ultimate Rockets writes that if injury-riddled Houston isn't able to get well anytime soon, then "different remedies will be in order." While it may not explicitly imply a roster move, Feigen acknowledges that without Chandler Parsons and Carlos Delfino, the team is short-handed on the wings.
With Brandon Roy and Chase Budinger out, as well as Andrei Kirilenko dealing with back spasms, Timberwolves forward Josh Howard finds himself thrust into the starting lineup yesterday against the Clippers. Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune notes that Howard still considers himself in training camp but remains confident about handling the opportunty for more playing time.
With the Thunder going 6-1 over their last seven games, Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK recognizes Russell Westbrook's passing ability as a major component of the team's recent success.
While head coach Rick Carlisle doesn't see the Derek Fisher signing as a "cure-all" to the Mavericks' challenges, he welcomes the 38-year-old veteran's experience and leadership abilities at the point guard position, writes Earl K. Sneed of NBA.com.
Mike Trudell of Lakers.com writes about the adjustments that Pau Gasol has had to make on both ends of the floor, particularly on defense, where the power forward position in the NBA can provide significantly different types of matchups for the Lakers depending on their opposition.
Clippers guard Jamal Crawford talks to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld about having a career year for a team expected to be a playoff contender.
Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com briefly sheds light on rookie Quincy Miller and his opportunity with the Iowa Energy of the NBDL.

James Harden Links: Martin, Thunder, Rockets

November 28th, 2012 at 12:58pm CST by Luke Adams

One of the most intriguing games on tonight's NBA schedule sees James Harden and the Rockets, coming off a Tuesday win over the Raptors, heading to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder. It was just a month ago that the two teams finalized the shocking trade that sent Harden to Houston, so plenty is being written today about that deal and the Sixth Man of the Year's return to OKC. Here are a few stories of note:

Harden downplayed tonight's contest, calling it "just another game," as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. However, Daequan Cook, who changed teams along with Harden in last month's deal, thinks the Rockets' star cares more than he lets on: "I know this game means a lot to him. He’s going to want to play his best basketball. This game means so much right now to him. You’re going to see a different mindset with him."
Kevin Martin has been a servicable replacement for Harden in Oklahoma City, but it's not clear how the team plans to replace that production when Martin's contract expires next summer, says ESPN.com's John Hollinger (Insider link). Hollinger's also wonders how the Thunder would have proceeded if Harden had accepted their $54MM extension offer, since even that non-maximum salary would have put the team well into luxury-tax territory next year.
ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst looks at how the Thunder have adjusted to losing Harden, with Kevin Durant noting that the club's "chemistry is getting better each day."
While the Thunder have played well without Harden, the team misses his pick-and-roll ability, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
Both ESPN.com and The Oklahoman surveyed several writers on burning questions relating to the Harden trade, including whether dealing him was the right move and whether Russell Westbrook or Harden will be the better player in the long-term.

Northwest Rumors: Budinger, Martin, Westbrook

November 2nd, 2012 at 11:59am CST by Luke Adams

A rematch of last year's Western Conference Finals was the only game on the NBA's slate Thursday night, but it certainly delivered. After hitting a game-tying three with 28 seconds left, Tony Parker hit a buzzer-beater to give the Spurs an 86-84 win over the defending Northwest Division champions. We've got a few Thunder-related links to pass along this morning as they regroup from last night's loss, along with a couple more Northwest notes:

Despite not playing his first regular-season game with the Timberwolves yet, Chase Budinger tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities he can already picture himself sticking around Minnesota for a while: "I can definitely see myself here (long-term). It's a great city. You can already see how good the fans are here…. I'm excited for the season."
Wolfson also tweets that Kenyon Martin's camp has checked in a few times with the Timberwolves, but the T-Wolves have said Kevin Love's recovery is going well and they don't have a need at power forward. Since K-Mart is reportedly seeking the mini mid-level, I'm not sure the Wolves are necessarily a match anyway.
Noting that it felt "surreal" to be dealt to a championship contender like the Thunder, another K-Mart, Kevin Martin, tells Yannis Koutroupis of HoopsWorld that he wasn't surprised by the trade. "With next summer being an unrestricted free agent and them in rebuilding mode," Martin said. "I knew it was going to come at some point."
One "well-placed" NBA executive tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he would've preferred to trade Russell Westbrook than James Harden, if he were running the Thunder (Twitter link).
Kevin Durant spoke to reporters last night about the Harden trade, and HoopsWorld TV has the video.

Nine Assured Of Team USA Spot; Odom Withdraws

July 3rd, 2012 at 11:41am CST by Chuck Myron

TUESDAY, 11:41am: Blake Griffin is expected to take Chris Bosh's spot on the U.S. roster, tweets Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com. As Goodman adds in a second tweet, that would leave five players competing for the final two spots.

Odds & Ends: Raptors, Bobcats, Wroten

June 2nd, 2012 at 10:34pm CST by Ryan Raroque

With the eighth, 37th, and 56th selections in this upcoming NBA Draft, the Raptors could potentially draft three rookies in addition to bringing last year's draft pick, Jonas Valanciunas, into the fold for next season. Stephen Brotherston of HoopsWorld spoke with GM Bryan Colangelo, who is looking to explore multiple scenarios with his second round picks. Colangelo admits that bringing in three rookies may not be the best scenario, and that he will consider packaging picks in order to move up the draft board or possibly make a second round selection with the intention of developing that prospect in Europe for a few years. Here's more of what we're hearing from around the league this evening, including an update of the Bobcats head coaching search.

Odds & Ends: Celtics, Heat, Thunder, Spurs, Lakers

May 20th, 2012 at 12:15pm CST by Daniel Seco

Let's go coast to coast to catch up on the latest news and headlines before King James and the Heat look to make it a series against Indiana…

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers has been using whatever time off his team is afforded to allow them to rest and get healthier, reports the Associated Press (via the Boston Herald).
ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst says Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra needs to make adjustments to his strategy if Miami wants to have any chance of winning against the Pacers.
Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have matured and proven that they can co-exist in Oklahoma City, writes Sam Amick of SI.com.
Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski believes the Thunder look like a team with legitimate title aspirations thanks to strong play by Durant and Westbrook.
The Spurs relied on heavily-efficient play to overcome a 24-point deficit to the Clippers on Saturday, writes Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com.
Tom Ziller of SB Nation says the Lakers should trade Andrew Bynum so that the 24-year-old center's talents don't go to waste in Los Angeles.
Gregg Popovich's decision to sit Tim Duncan during the 2000 NBA playoffs proved to be the right decision 12 years later, contends J.A. Adande of ESPN.com.
A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com believes the Celtics need to find a better balance in terms of getting Kevin Garnett more involved in the game on Monday evening against the Sixers.

Odds & Ends: Rose, Perkins, Smith

April 1st, 2012 at 9:29pm CST by Ryan Raroque

One interesting note about NCAA championship as it relates to the upcoming draft: The last time the winner had a player that would subsequently go on to become that year's number one pick was in 1988, when Danny Manning of the Kansas Jayhawks was selected first overall by the Clippers. With a win tomorrow, Kentucky's Anthony Davis (currently projected to go first among several draft boards) could have a chance at ending the 23-year streak.

Should Kentucky lose, Davis could join Derrick Rose, Greg Oden, Elton Brand, and Chris Webber as number one picks who had been on the runner-up team that season. With less than 24 hours until tip-off, here are a few interesting notes to think about from the basketball news wire:

As per Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times, Derrick Rose's injury could be worse than initially thought.
Kendrick Perkins' has had a profound impact on Russell Westbrook this season and can be credited for the young guard's further emergence as a special player, writes Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK.
In an exclusive interview with Raul Barrigon of HoopsHype.com, Kenny Smith indicated that he feels he'll "inevitably be coaching someday."
Tom Reed of The Plain Dealer provides a more in-depth look at Donald Sloan, the Cavaliers reserve guard who has begun to find minutes under Byron Scott.
According to Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel, Bucks forward Mike Dunleavy Jr. believes that teammates' trust in each other will be key in Milwaukee's pursuit of New York for the eight and final playoff spot.
Mavericks guard Jason Terry is alarmed by Dallas' habit of falling behind in the third quarter, only to rally in the fourth but come up short, writes Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram.
The Toronto Sun's Richard Zussman gives a primer for tomorrow's NCAA Title game and what to expect.