Sam Hinkie Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Young, Woodson, Nets

April 18th, 2014 at 7:56pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Thaddeus Young is confident that the Sixers would meet any demands he makes on the organization, as he told reporters, including Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News. Young indicated that he might use the possibility of declining or exercising his player option for 2015/16 as leverage, and he also raised the possibility that he’ll ask for a trade, as we noted last night.

Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Hinkie, Celtics

March 28th, 2014 at 6:50pm CST by Eddie Scarito

It’s been eight weeks since the Sixers last walked off the court victorious, and while this stretch has been brutal for the city and the fans, the team still eyes a much brighter future, writes Tom Sunnergren of ESPN.com. When looking through their crystal ball to the 2014/15 season, the team envisions their future roster stockpiled with the raw talent and star power to rival any organization in the league. With Michael Carter-Williams running the show, Nerlens Noel as an elite rim protector, and their 2014 lottery pick playing heavy minutes, the team hopes this season’s record-breaking futility will quickly become a distant memory, writes Sunnergren.

Atlantic Links: ‘Melo, Granger, Sixers

February 25th, 2014 at 10:44pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Last summer, Dwight Howard decided to leave $30MM in extra earnings on the table in order to find a situation that gave him the best chance to win – a situation that Carmelo Anthony faces in July if he decides to opt out of his contract. Based on the Rockets’ success this year, Sam Amick of USA Today says that there’s no better blueprint for Anthony to follow than Howard’s. Dwight, who says he spoken with Carmelo about that dynamic, offered some advice:

“I know he has just got to do what’s best for him…I’ve been through it. I’ve seen it. The same people that love you one day, if you don’t do what they want you to do, then they’re going to hate you. You’ve got to always remember that you’ve got to do what’s best for you at the end of the day. If people don’t like you, you can’t stop that.”

Here’s more of what we’ve gathered from the Atlantic Division tonight:

Following a recent loss to the Hawks, Anthony told reporters: “It’s definitely testing me…The frustration has definitely sunk in, just from the simple fact we’re losing games the same way over and over and we’re just not learning from that.” After last night’s crushing loss to the Mavs, he told Clifton Brown of the New York TImes, “You score 40, 44, 44, 44, all losses — you kind of ask yourself is it worth it.”
76ers head coach Brett Brown says he isn’t annoyed that Danny Granger would rather play for a contending team instead of Philadelphia, writes Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times. Brown also discussed the team’s rebuilding situation: “This is a very different rebuild than the others…It is completely at the bare bones. It just puts a pretty definitive timeline and set of reality checks on all of us that we have a lot of work to do.”
Brown added that he has plenty of faith in the front office: “I trust Sam Hinkie’s judgment on the process that just happened and the process that’s coming up…I can’t wait to be a part of it, with all of our draft picks. Draft night is one of my favorite nights.”
Jimmer Fredette‘s family would be ecstatic if he could somehow find his way to the Knicks once he’s bought out by the Kings, writes Christian Red of the New York Daily News.

Eastern Notes: Sixers, Magic, Grant

February 15th, 2014 at 9:01pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Former Cavs GM Chris Grant has been taking a lot of heat for the state of the franchise. The team has underachieved and not all of his moves worked out, but Grant did a much better job than he’s getting credit for, writes Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Grant walked into one of the worst situations in professional sports, opines Lloyd. Shortly after he was named GM, LeBron James departed and the rest of the roster was in shambles. The team had no pick in that summer’s draft and no players of real value left to trade away and begin the rebuilding process. According to Lloyd, Grant restocked an organization bereft of young talent and future draft picks and he never lost a trade. Grant isn’t employed anymore because the Cavs played terribly for most of this season given the preseason expectations, but those expectations existed thanks to the remarkable work he did for the past three years.

Latest On Sixers, Trade Candidates

January 19th, 2014 at 8:54am CST by Jonathan Nehring

To date, Sixers GM Sam Hinkie has only made one big move in his short time in Philadelphia: trading for Nerlens Noel. Bigger transactions may lie ahead, but they might not happen until the summer, according to Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times, who believes there should be no rush to deal any of Evan Turner, Spencer Hawes, or Thaddeus Young, the club’s three prime trade candidates.

The Sixers would ideally get a 2014 first-rounder and an expiring contract in return for Turner and Hawes, Moore writes, and Hinkie is willing to deal either player if another team meets his price. It’s unclear from Moore’s report just how open Hinkie is to dealing Young, though the team is apparently upping its aggressiveness in trade talks regarding the power forward, according to Grantland’s Zach Lowe.

If the Sixers keep Turner, they’re unlikely to extend him the $8.7MM qualifying offer he’s due in order to allow the team to match offers for him this summer. That would make Turner an unrestricted free agent. Moore says Hawes, who’ll hit unrestricted free agency this sumemr regardless, might not be the best fit for Philadelphia’s future with Noel returning from injury. If Turner and Hawes choose to leave, Moore suggests the Sixers could work out a sign-and-trade.

Ultimately, Moore doesn’t think February’s deadline should rush the Sixers to making a move. If no one will give Hinkie what he is asking for, he should roll the dice with free agency this summer to see if the asking prices for Turner and Hawes will fit in the Sixers budget, Moore opines. For what it’s worth, Young holds a slight lead on Turner among Hoops Rumors readers who shared their thoughts on which of the three is most likely to be traded.

Speaking of Hinkie rolling the dice, Nerlens Noel has drawn some Greg Oden comparisons but the Sixers GM remains confident that trading for Noel will prove to be smart. Hinkie told Mike Sielski of the Philadelphia Inquirer that “Nerlens is indicative of what we’re doing here,” which Sielski interprets to be “swinging for the fence at every pitch.”

Noel has not played in a NBA game since being drafted last summer but the Sixers are hoping the rookie will be able to recover from knee surgery and become a franchise player. However, if it doesn’t work out that way, Hinkie doesn’t believe it will destroy Philadelphia and has gathered other assets in future draft picks and flexible cap room to make sure it won’t hinder the near future of the franchise.

Atlantic Notes: Woodson, 76ers, Wallace

November 14th, 2013 at 6:04pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Iman Shumpert met with Knicks head coach Mike Woodson before last night’s win in Atlanta to address the recent flurry of trade rumors involving him and was told he should be flattered that other teams are interested, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman later adds that Shumpert hasn’t necessarily been on Woodson’s good side since the Las Vegas Summer League, specifically when the third-year guard left the team after one game to go to China for a tour with Adidas.

Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division tonight:

When asked if there was an ideal type of point guard for Carmelo Anthony to play alongside, Woodson bluntly responded with, “Raymond Felton” (Chris Herring of the Wall-Street Journal via Twitter).
After observing the 76ers strong start, Philly.com’s Michael Kaskey-Blomain wonders if now would be an opportune time to trade Evan Turner.
With former Daryl Morey-protégé Sam Hinkie running the Sixers’ front office, Jason McIntyre of The Big Lead compares Philadelphia’s rebuilding project with the Rockets’ three-year journey from being part of the “NBA middle” to becoming an expected title contender. With prospects such as Michael Carter-Williams, Nerlens Noel, and what could potentially be two lottery picks in a loaded 2014 draft (Philadelphia is currently owed a top-five protected pick from the Pelicans), McIntyre suggests that Hinkie has plenty of assets available to possibly enter trade discussions for a big name down the line.
Celtics forward Gerald Wallace told Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer that he may not be as durable as he once was: “I understand my situation…don’t think I could play 35-40 minutes a night for 82 games anymore” (Twitter link).
Jared Sullinger adamantly downplayed the idea of tanking this season in Boston: “(The media was) talking about the lottery. We didn’t even think about that,…We don’t care about that. We want to win, we want to make the playoffs, and we want to make a run. At the end of the day, that was something that you talked about, not us…we definitely wanted to shut (them) up. Definitely” (Jimmy Golen of Boston.com)
NBA.com’s Marc D’Amico discusses the Celtics’ struggles with consistency so far.

Sixers GM Talks Coach, Rebuild, Analytics, Goals

August 30th, 2013 at 10:13am CST by Luke Adams

Since he was hired as the team's head of basketball operations in May, new Sixers GM Sam Hinkie has made some interesting decisions, including trading the club's best player (Jrue Holiday), launching a full-fledged rebuild, and conducting a head coaching search that lasted well until August. During his first several months on the job, Hinkie hasn't offered as many interviews as some of his fellow GMs, but he recently spoke to Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News about a number of topics of note. Here are a few of Hinkie's more interesting quotes from the conversation:

On the secrecy of the Sixers' new front office:

"Every little edge you can get is important. There is some level of secrecy as teams try not to let on to what they're doing. If we were to have had Nerlens Noel come in and work out before the draft, that would have caused a stir being that we had the 11th pick, and the kind of things that happened on draft night possibly couldn't have been possible. So we chose not to let teams know who we are working out, and a lot of forward-thinking organizations do that with the comings and goings of potential players. We did a lot of trading in the second round and that was because people didn't know our interest in [Arsalan] Kazemi."

On the team's coaching search:

"I would say things largely progressed as I would have anticipated. Finding the right guy was always the priority, and when we did in Brett Brown we moved forward. Our first interviews were in Las Vegas in mid-July when I went out there for the summer league, just after the Orlando Summer League. It was a solid week of interviews. Then there were a few more to follow and then some more. I was focused immensely on finding who was the best fit for what we were looking to do."

On whether a massive rebuild was hard to sell to potential coaching candidates:

"I think it's much easier than you might think. People recognize the tradition of the Sixers and what we're trying to do and they see what's ahead, and that's clear. Those plans were much clearer in July than they would have been in June. We found all the candidates that we spoke with open-eyed and excited."

On the role analytics will play in the team's roster decisions:

"We'll just try to make the best decisions with all the information, however we can get it. From everything we gather from the scouts and how players fit and how every time we get a chance to look at all the information we can. I don't think any time you look at a player you look solely at one area. Gathering as much information as you can is the way I will go about things."

On his goals for the next two or three years:

"We want to bring in a real influx of new talent into our team. We've already added several young players and we want more. I hope they come in and I hope they come in waves. We want to do a lot of things that lead to a better environment. We want to finalize a new practice facility. That not only helps how potential players view us, but how current players view their work every day. That is the way we will get where we want to go. That is what I want for this organization."

Evan Turner On His Future With The Sixers

August 17th, 2013 at 5:57pm CST by Spencer Lund

Former No. 2 overall pick Evan Turner is among those eligible for a rookie-scale extension this summer, but he understands that in GM Sam Hinkie's rebuilding project, the Sixers could trade him before he has a chance to re-up with the team. "All I can worry about is being better," Turner said to Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com.

Hinkie made a splash right after accepting the Sixers' GM position when he sent All-Star Jrue Holiday to the Pelicans on draft night in exchange for the pick that turned into Nerlens Noel and a 2014 top-3 protected first round selection. But now the Sixers are supposedly in tank mode in preparation for that exciting 2014 NBA Draft, and Hinkie may have positioned them for two lottery selections, depending on how they finish this season.

It stands to reason that Turner could be cast out before he's given a rookie-scale extension, so the former Ohio State University Buckeye has a cloudy future in Philadelphia. Despite those trade rumors, which have surrounded Turner during Philadelphia's first rebuilding steps this offseason, he's looking forward to working in new coach Brett Brown's uptempo offense.

Here's what Turner told Moore during their Q & A.

On keeping perspective with the rebuild:

"I just don’t want to let these type of situations deter the fun I have with the game. Everything that’s been going on this summer has been about chess moves and money and all that. At the end of the day, it’s about playing basketball."

On his discussions with recently hired head coach Brett Brown around tanking:

“I told him, ‘Everybody wants to be in tank mode and thinks we’re going to lose. I intend on trying to win as much as possible because losing’s too easy,’ ” Turner declared. “He said, ‘Well, they got the wrong coach if we’re going to go out and lose on purpose. We want to compete and get better.’ ”

On increased effectiveness now that former coach Doug Collins is gone:

“I think each year I’ve been taking jumps,” he proclaimed. “I don’t want to sit here and say if I’m successful it’s because of Doug [leaving]. I want to think it’s maturing and growing.”

On new coach Brett Brown's uptempo offense:

“(Brown) said he wants to get us in the best fitness shape of our life,” revealed Turner before saying he enjoys that Brown had a winning track record in San Antonio. “He feels like my skills will flourish in that situation.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Sixers Notes: Brown, Hinkie, Ownership

August 14th, 2013 at 10:15pm CST by Alex Lee

After the longest head coaching search in recent memory, the Sixers finally introduced Brett Brown as their guy today at a press conference at the Wells Fargo Center. Here are some reactions to what Brown and general manager Sam Hinkie had to say, as well as some other Sixers news:

Brown and Hinkie have a huge mountain to climb to bring the Sixers back to respectability, but because of the commitment the team made to Brown, it is appears that they are in for the long haul together, writes Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer. With the Sixers roster in the shape its in, Brown prioritized the guarantee of four-year pact.
In the short term, both Brown and Hinkie, as well as Sixers fans, will have to exhibit a level of tolerance and patience, writes Sean Deveney of the Sporting News. Brown, of course, came from San Antonio where the Spurs haven't had a losing season since 1996/97, which led to them landing Tim Duncan.
While Brown's introductory press conference was a long one, Max Rappaport of Sixers.com was able to sit down with the former Spurs assistant afterwards for a one-on-one interview. The team's website also has the press conference in its entirety in three different pieces.
Team owner Joshua Harris is in negotations to buy the NHL's New Jersey Devils, which has some paranoid Sixers fans expressing concern that the New York City-based Harris could attempt to move the team north to Newark's Prudential Center, which no longer houses an NBA team with the Nets in Brooklyn. Hinkie alleviated some of those concerns today after the Brown presser, telling Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com, "Josh Harris is more committed than ever to owning the Sixers and the fans of Philadelphia and keeping the Sixers here forever."
Brown's job this year is to see what he has, Moore writes, adding that next summer will go a long way to deciding the fate of the Sixers under Brown. With significant cap space and two potential lottery picks in a loaded draft, Philly could quickly become an appealing destination for free agents.

Odds & Ends: Lakers, Asik, Warriors

July 4th, 2013 at 11:59pm CST by Ryan Raroque

While trying to rationalize a sign-and-trade involving the Lakers sending Dwight Howard to the Warriors from L.A.'s point of view, Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com (Insiders only) writes that Golden State could possibly sweeten their offer by adding another expiring contract to the table while agreeing to take on the rest of Steve Nash's deal in return. If in fact Dwight decides to leave, Pelton thinks that acquiring expiring contracts, future first round picks, and a young talent like Harrison Barnes would be much more preferable than seeing their star free agent walk away for nothing.

Here are more of the rest of tonight's miscellaneous notes:

Although 76ers GM Sam Hinkie chose not to comment much on the team's possible interest in Omer Asik, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that Hinkie is very familiar with the Rockets big man, as he was part of Houston's front office when they signed him to a deal last summer.
ESPN's Marc Stein tweets that the most notable aspect of the D12 rumors from the Warriors' perspective is how they'll deal with Andrew Bogut if their pursuit of Howard falls through. Matt Steinmetz of CSN Bay Area (via Twitter) adds David Lee, Barnes, and Klay Thompson to the list of players that will be owed an explanation as well.
A number of the Mavericks' point guard targets – including Monta Ellis, Mo Williams, Jarrett Jack, Chauncey Billups, and Jose Calderon – remain on the free agent market, and Eddie Sefko of SportsDayDFW writes that the team is working behind the scenes with multiple agents regarding potential acquisitions. In another piece, Sefko details why Howard would fit and make a much needed positive impact in Dallas.
Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times goes through the potential repercussions for the four teams that miss out on signing Howard this summer.
John Canzano of The Oregonian endorses the under-the-radar moves Neil Olshey has completed recently for the Trail Blazers, even if they may not appeal to fans who were expecting a big splash thus far.
Kevin Sherrington of SportsDayDFW says that there’s virtually no chance that Mark Cuban sells the Mavericks even if things don’t continue to go well, citing a tweet from the team owner himself.
Jared Zwerling of ESPN NY recommends keeping an eye out for Reyshawn Terry and Toure Murry as players who could find themselves on an NBA team's radar soon (Twitter links). Terry, whom Zwerling thinks could be another team's 'Chris Copeland,' has reportedly played well overseas and could find himself on an NBA summer league team. Murry is currently on the Knicks' summer team and could be good enough to make a team's regular season roster.
Earlier tonight, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE tweeted that the Mavericks were expected to see if the Celtics are more willing to trade Rajon Rondo now with Brad Stevens as the new head coach. However, with a report that Rondo is keeping an open mind to the hiring, it might not seem likely that Danny Ainge would be receptive to trade overtures just yet.