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Sergey Karasev

Cavs Notes: D-League, Deng

February 12th, 2014 at 7:17pm CST by Cray Allred

Steve Hetzel, coach of the Cavs D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge, gives Dakota Schmidt of Ridiculous Upside some insight as to how the developmental process works for Cleveland: “We all talk and communicate about when they’ll be sent down, their overall expectations and how they’ll be able to be coached. They allow me to coach these guys as if they’re my players. It’s a good relationship in the sense that we give constant feedback to each other on when we’re going to have those players and what they want the players to work on in-game. It’s a real benefit to be directly affiliated with the Cavs because it’s a struggle for teams who don’t have a direct NBA affiliation.”
Here’s more from Cleveland:

  • In the same interview, Hetzel doesn’t rule out the possibility of an Anthony Bennett assignment, telling Schmidt, “That’s completely up to Coach [Mike] Brown and the Cavs organization. If they want to send him down, we’d be open arms. Right now Bennett is getting time with Cleveland and if you’re getting minutes in the NBA, then that’s the best experience that you can get. Whether he’s flourishing or struggling, he’ll improve with the playing time that he gets. If that time comes, we’ll cross that bridge as it happens.” Bennett’s play has finally picked up in recent days, after his historically poor play for a number one pick had some calling for him to get some time in the D-League.
  • Rival executives believe new Cavs GM David Griffin‘s best option going forward would be trading recently acquired Luol Deng and trying to land a premium first-round pick in this year’s draft, per Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Since it appears unlikely that Deng will stay with Cleveland beyond this season, Kennedy thinks buyers would see value in obtaining him now, while he still has his Bird Rights, to have a leg up on signing him to a long-term contract extension. Deng can be traded a second time this season with some limitations: he cannot be dealt back to the Bulls and he cannot be traded away along with any other Cavs players.
  • The Cavs have recalled rookie Sergey Karasev from the D-League, per Cavs.com. Karasev has been in the D-League since being assigned late last month, and has totaled 17 games in his time with the Cavs.
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Odds & Ends: Mavs, Kings, Draft, Cavs

January 29th, 2014 at 4:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Mavericks president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson says he’s confident his team is attractive to marquee free agents, the sort he confirms the club will again be chasing this summer, observes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.

“The hope is … we’ll be able to [make a marquee hire] sooner than later,” Nelson said. “I think we’ve made an attempt to do that the last two summers. So much for second place. But, yes, that would be the plan and the hope at some level to be able to do that.”

Nelson also suggests the team won’t be aggressive before the trade deadline, and Sefko outlines the reasons why in a separate piece. As we wait to figure out what the Mavs do with the chance to open up roughly $30MM worth of cap space, here’s more on their rivals from around the league:

  • A group opposed to a $258MM civic expenditure for a new Kings arena has sued the city of Sacramento, report Ryan Lillis and Dale Kasler of The Sacramento Bee. The legal action has been anticipated since last week, when the city rejected a petition to put the funding up for a public vote.
  • The NCAA has cleared draft prospect Chris Walker to play for the University of Florida, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com, who adds via Twitter that the decision makes it a near-certainty that the small forward will return to school for next season. Walker, ranked as the 25th-best prospect for 2014 on the ESPN.com Insider list and No. 27 at DraftExpress, could become a lottery pick in 2015, Goodman says.
  • Cavaliers GM Chris Grant expressed confidence today in coach Mike Brown and said he’s unsure if the team will make any changes to the roster in advance of the trade deadline. Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer has more from Grant’s rare chat with reporters today.
  • The Cavs have assigned Sergey Karasev to the D-League, the team announced. Carrick Felix, Karasev’s usual traveling partner on trips to the Canton Charge, is out for the next six to eight weeks with a stress fracture in his left knee.
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Odds & Ends: Pelicans, Cavs, Bennett, Wade

January 26th, 2014 at 10:04pm CST by Zachary Links

Pelicans owner Tom Benson bought in to the NBA at the right time, writes Jimmy Smith of the Times-Picayune.  The Pelicans, purchased for $338MM by Benson in April 2012, are now worth $420MM.  It wasn’t an attendance boost that helped fill out Benson’s wallet even further but rather the new Collective Bargaining Agreement which is more owner-friendly than the previous one. More from around the league..

  • The Cavs announced that they have recalled Carrick Felix and Sergey Karasev from the D-League.  Both players were recalled and re-assigned to the Canton Charge last week but are back in the fold with the varsity squad today.  Felix has played in nine games for the Charge this season, averaging 11.0 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.4 steals in 28.7 minutes per game.  Karasev has appeared in six games for the Charge and is averaging 13.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 28.8 minutes per game.
  • Meanwhile, NBA executives are stumped as to why the Cavs won’t demote Anthony Bennett, tweets Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated.  The No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft picked up yet another DNP-CD tonight.
  • In today’s mailbag, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel wonders if Dwyane Wade might take a financial sacrifice for the Heat by opting out and re-working his deal.  Instead of taking $40MM over the next two seasons, Winderman suggests a five-year, $60MM deal for the veteran.
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Odds & Ends: Stuckey, Teague, D-League

January 23rd, 2014 at 5:49pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Considering his expiring contract and recent stellar play, Pistons guard Rodney Stuckey could be a hot commodity on the trade market soon, especially for teams looking to add bench scoring or create some cap flexibility this summer, writes Brendan Savage of MLive.com. Despite the likelihood of being included in discussions as we inch closer to the February trade deadline, Stuckey insists that he’s strictly focused on playing basketball:

“Nah, I don’t think about that,..Whatever happens, happens. I’m here to play basketball. I’m a Detroit Piston right now…I have no control over that. My agent will take care of that. It’s up to the organization, what they want to do and what they’re looking at. I don’t think about it at all. I just try to come out every night and compete and try to win.”

Here’s more from around the league this evening:

  • Newly acquired Nets guard Marquis Teague said he wasn’t shocked about being dealt from the Bulls and admitted that he didn’t fit well with the style of former coach Tom Thibodeau: “It just wasn’t clicking with Thibs the right way… trying to figure out the system was kind of tough for me. The way they play isn’t really my style, so it’s kind of difficult for me. But I’ve got a new start now, so I’m just looking forward to the future” (Mike Mazzeo of ESPN New York).  
  • As per the team’s official website, the Suns have assigned Archie Goodwin to the Bakersfield Jam.
  • The Cavaliers recalled Carrick Felix and Sergey Karasev from the Canton Charge earlier today (Twitter link).
  • According to Gino Pilato of DLeagueDigest.com, former University of Miami forward Kenny Kadji has entered the NBDL player pool and will likely receive a claim from a D-League team.
  • Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun believes that if the Raptors sign Vince Carter as a free agent this summer, it could help the team’s perception with other free agents who may question why the franchise hasn’t honored its most decorated star.
  • ESPN’s Marc Stein forecasts the makeup of the 12-man Team USA roster which will compete in this year’s FIBA World Cup. Of the 28 names listed in the USAB’s national team player pool, Stein believes that 10 of them appear to be realistic locks (barring injury), leaving an interesting race for the final two spots.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post. 

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Central Rumors: Bulls, Green, Scola

January 22nd, 2014 at 5:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls could take a couple of different paths regarding trade exceptions from Tuesday’s deal with the Nets. Chicago could absorb Tornike Shengelia’s $788,872 salary into the $2,025,000 exception they received in the Luol Deng trade, leaving that exception at $1,236,128 and creating a new exception worth the equivalent of Marquis Teague’s $1,074,720 salary. It seems more likely that they would leave the Deng exception alone and create a tiny $285,848 exception from the difference between Teague and Shengelia’s salaries, simply because a roughly $2MM exception is more useful than two exceptions worth about $1MM. Still, their choice remains unconfirmed. Here’s the latest from the Central:

  • Gerald Green isn’t upset with the Pacers for burying him last season or trading him over the summer, and says he has no intention of ever leaving the Suns, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
  • Luis Scola says the memories of his time with the Suns are painful, as Coro passes along in the same story. Scola nonetheless had concerns about how much of a role he’d have on the Pacers when the team traded for him this summer, observes Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star. Frank Vogel assured the longtime starter he’d be a major part of the team, and Scola appears content as a key player off the bench.
  • The trade talk surrounding Greg Monroe is starting to bother him, as he tells Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News. “It does, to be honest. We’re still trying to get things right, here,” Monroe said. “To see that stuff … I just focus on what we’re doing here. I’m here. If that changes, then I’ll move forward. If it never does, I’ll focus on playing these games and trying to win these games.”
  • The Cavaliers have assigned Carrick Felix and Sergey Karasev to the D-League, the team announced. It’ll be the fourth D-League stint this year for Felix, who just returned from the Canton Charge on Tuesday, and the third for Karasev.
  • No other NBA teams made an offer to Mike James, who jumped on a 10-day contract from the Bulls and harbors no ill will toward the team for waiving him earlier this season, as he tells reporters, including K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
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Eastern Rumors: Deng, Knicks, Bucks, 76ers

December 30th, 2013 at 11:55am CST by Luke Adams

When a report surfaced earlier in December suggesting that Luol Deng and the Bulls had been about $5-6MM per year apart in extension talks, I speculated that perhaps Deng was looking for an annual salary in line with his current $14MM+, while the Bulls may have preferred something in the $10MM range. However, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, the actual figures discussed were a little lower. Cowley reports that Deng and agent Herb Rudoy were seeking $12-13MM annually, while the Bulls slotted the All-Star forward at $7-8MM per year.

With Deng still a year away from free agency when the two sides talked about an extension, perhaps the Bulls were just driving a hard bargain, knowing that they still had plenty of time to work something out. But if Chicago stays committed to something in the neighborhood of $7-8MM annually, it seems highly unlikely that the club will be able to retain Deng beyond this season.

Here’s more from around the East….

  • James Dolan is right not to scapegoat coach Mike Woodson for the Knicks’ poor performance this season, since the team’s struggles are the result of years of moves overseen by the owner, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post.
  • According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, the fact that Dolan told his players there won’t be any trades simply means that the Knicks don’t have any deals imminent — it doesn’t mean the team won’t make moves before the deadline.
  • The Bucks and 76ers continue to sit atop Chad Ford’s Tank Rank list at ESPN.com, though Ford says Milwaukee owner Herb Kohl hasn’t totally given up on the idea of contending for the playoffs. Ford adds that the Sixers are among the NBA’s most active teams in trade discussions.
  • In his weekly Morning Tip piece at NBA.com, TNT’s David Aldridge spoke to Kohl about finding investors in the Bucks and the possibility of both private and public funding for a new Milwaukee arena. Aldridge also explored the subject of why the Knicks and Nets feel compelled to avoid undertaking a full rebuild.
  • The Cavaliers have recalled rookie forward Sergey Karasev from the D-League, according to the Cleveland Plain-Dealer (Twitter link). During his weekend stint with the Canton Charge, Karasev averaged 14.0 PPG in two games, making six three-pointers in total.
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Odds & Ends: Thomas, Karasev, McGary

December 27th, 2013 at 10:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Isaiah Thomas’ continued improvement is likely why the Kings felt comfortable parting with Greivis Vasquez in their trade for Rudy Gay, Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling writes in an in-depth look at the Sacramento point guard. Zwerling also spoke to a source who said there have been no contract talks yet between Thomas and the Kings, but he believes the 24-year-old could land a starting salary of $5MM+. The lack of contract discussions is no surprise at this point, since Thomas isn’t eligible for an extension.

Here’s more from around the NBA:

  • The Cavaliers have assigned Sergey Karasev to the D-League, the team announced today in a press release. It’s the second time Karasev has been sent to the Canton Charge this season, though his first assignment lasted just one day.
  • Michigan prospect Mitch McGary will have back surgery, which figures to end his season, as ESPN.com’s Jeff Goodman details. McGary’s decision to return to school for his sophomore year surprised some, and looks like it may backfire. One NBA GM tells Goodman that McGary will be a “borderline first-rounder” in 2014, whereas he would’ve been a lock in 2013, and a couple more of Goodman’s NBA sources echoed that sentiment (Twitter link).
  • In his NBA PM piece for HoopsWorld, Yannis Koutroupis explores whether the Thunder and Knicks ought to make a move or stand pat.
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Central Notes: Neal, Teague, Cavs

December 12th, 2013 at 5:37pm CST by Ryan Raroque

This past offseason, the Spurs extended then-restricted free agent Gary Neal a qualifying offer worth about $1.1MM, which was significantly below the two-year, $7.5MM agreement he eventually reached with the Bucks. According to Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio-Express News, Neal believes he got a fair shake from Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford and understood that he wouldn’t be retained if he wanted more than what San Antonio was initially offering:

“I figured after three years, the Spurs benefitted me, and I benefitted the Spurs…But it’s a business. I kind of knew after Game 7 in the Finals, unless I signed a qualifying offer, I wouldn’t be back…I have no complaints…If (they didn’t give me the opportunity), they could have found another guy one of those summers to shoot 40 percent from three,..I thank Coach Pop a thousand times for that.”

Here’s more out of the Central Division:

  • The rest of the league is confused why the Bulls aren’t willing to give Marquis Teague more playing time, tweets Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. Chicago reportedly dangled Teague in trade talks during the preseason.
  • The Cavaliers have recalled Carrick Felix, Sergey Karasev, and Henry Sims from the D-League, as per the team’s official website.
  • Pistons forward Gigi Datome is determined to play for the Italian national team next summer, whether it’d be during the FIBA World Cup or the Eurobasket Qualifying Round, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (hat tip to Tuttosport).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post. 

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Odds & Ends: Collins, Augustin, Mavs, Cavs

December 11th, 2013 at 5:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Jannero Pargo‘s contract with the Bobcats became fully guaranteed when the team didn’t waive him yesterday, and A.J. Price passed his contract guarantee threshold with the Timberwolves this weekend. That means the rest of the players with non-guaranteed contracts won’t have their deals fully guaranteed unless they remain on their teams until the leaguewide guarantee date of January 10th. We’ll continue to track non-guaranteed contracts here until that date. Here’s more from around the league:

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Central Links: Cavaliers, Boozer, Snell

October 17th, 2013 at 9:45pm CST by Ryan Raroque

As Mary Schmitt-Boyer of The Plain Dealer notes, Cavs coach Mike Brown has been very impressed with rookie first-round pick Sergey Karasev:

“There’s a certain level of confidence that he has about himself and in his game. It rubs off on me the right way as a coach and it makes me have confidence in him and putting him out there. I like Sergey’s demeanor…You like that quiet confidence, quiet toughness that he has. He just plays the game. He can pass. He can shoot. He can dribble. He thinks the game. If you take this away, he’ll go the opposite direction. If you take that away, he’ll go the other way with it. He’s a basketball player. We like that.”

We have a few more notable links to share out of the Central Division tonight, and you can find them below:

  • Making cuts and determining the final roster won’t be an easy task for Cavaliers’ coach. After strong performances by many of the team’s camp invites, Brown tells Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio: “It’s gonna be a tough decision. Everybody’s showing their worth” (Twitter link).
  • Though Carlos Boozer isn’t a stranger to neither being under-appreciated nor drawing the ire of Chicago fans when things haven’t gone well for the Bulls, he tells Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times that he’s comfortable regardless knowing that his teammates, coaches, and the team’s ownership are fully supportive of him.
  • Following his ubiquitous performance last night against the Pistons that included 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting, four assists, and three steals in 25 minutes, Bulls rookie Tony Snell could potentially be primed as significant reserve contributor this year on what is already a deep bench, opines Sam Smith of Bulls.com. The Chicago Tribune’s K.C. Johnson discusses the focus that Snell has been placing on defense (Subcribers only).
  • In another piece, Johnson takes a look at some of Joakim Noah‘s offseason workouts in preparation for the upcoming season (Subscribers only).
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