Sergio Llull Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Llull, Bertans, Gasol

March 28th, 2015 at 9:52pm CST by ChrisCrouse

GM Daryl Morey shot down the rumor that the Rockets are preparing to give draft-and-stash prospect Sergio Llull a contract for three years, totaling at least $17MM, calling it simply “not true” in an interview on Mad Radio, one of Houston’s local sports stations. Morey did say that the team may have interest in bringing the point guard aboard in the future. Houston acquired Llull’s rights from the Nuggets during the 2009 draft.

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

Spurs international prospect Davis Bertans tore his right ACL while playing for Laboral Kutxa of Spain’s Liga ACB, writes Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Bertans will likely miss at least six months of action. The small forward was the 42nd overall pick in the 2011 draft and San Antonio acquired his draft rights as part of the Kawhi Leonard trade.
Marc Gasol hasn’t ruled out leaving the Grizzlies and joining the Knicks, according to Fred Kerber of the New York Post. Kerber cautions that re-signing with Memphis seems to be the most likely option for Gasol, who has family ties to the city. The center reiterated that he isn’t concerned with his free agency at the moment. “I haven’t put any time in it,” Gasol said of his impending offseason decision. “The truth is, I haven’t put any time or any thought in that. It can have no impact right now. It can’t help me or my team. It’s not the time.”
James Harden is making a strong case to win the MVP award this season and he credits his familiarity in Houston as part of the reason that he is able to take his game to new heights, writes Kristie Rieken of the Associated Press. “[I’m] just more comfortable, knowing my teammates, being comfortable with myself on the court,” Harden said. “Knowing how to get shots, knowing how to get my teammates shots, and once I feel comfortable I can worry about doing other things.” The Arizona State product is in the second year of a five-year extension worth over $78MM, the maximum for a player with his level of experience.

Rockets Prep $17MM+ Offer For Sergio Llull

March 26th, 2015 at 8:30am CST by Chuck Myron

The Rockets are willing to give draft-and-stash point guard Sergio Llull a three-year deal worth a total of at least $17MM, according to Javier Maestro of Encestando.es (translation via HoopsHype). Such an offer would add up to the rough equivalent of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception. Presumably, the team’s interest in Llull is for next season, since Houston is limited to offering only the minimum salary for the balance of 2014/15. The 27-year-old is under contract with Real Madrid of Spain until 2019, as Mark Porcaro shows on our Draft Rights Held Players database, but apparently there are ways for him to get out of the deal via buyout.

Llull seemed disinterested in playing in the NBA as of a year ago, when Marc Stein of ESPN.com wrote that Houston believed the mainstay of the powerful Spanish national team could become an NBA rotation player. The Rockets acquired Llull’s NBA rights on draft night in 2009, shortly after the Nuggets took him 34th overall. He said two years ago that he was thinking about heading to the NBA at some point but spoke of unfinished business with Real Madrid. He’s averaged 10.5 points, 4.0 assists and 1.0 turnovers in 25.4 minutes per game for the club this season.

The only point guard under contract for the Rockets next year is Pablo Prigioni, who has a partially guaranteed deal, as we noted Wednesday night. Houston has nearly $54.5MM in guaranteed salary for next season, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders shows, against a salary cap that’s projected to come in at $67.4MM and an estimated $81MM tax threshold. Patrick Beverley, whose wrist injury has a decent chance of knocking him out for the rest of this season, is set to hit restricted free agency, and the Rockets have long been linked to soon-to-be free agent point guard Goran Dragic.

Southwest Notes: Llull, Rockets, Anderson

March 16th, 2015 at 9:19pm CST by Charlie Adams

Each club playing in the Southwest Division possesses a realistic shot at making the playoffs this season in the fiercely competitive Western Conference. However, the Pelicans might come just short of a postseason berth thanks to a revitalized Thunder team playing hot down the stretch. Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today look at the potential impact of changing the structure of the playoffs to include the 16 best teams, regardless of conference. Such an idea would stand to benefit a club like this year’s New Orleans bunch but hinder the postseason dreams of some Eastern Conference squads.

Adam Silver admits there are issues with the way the playoffs are constructed now but contests there’s no easy solution. For now, the Pelicans will just need to continue their strong play if they want to keeping competing past April. We’ll round up the latest coming out of the Southwest below:

Rockets draft-and-stash prospect Sergio Llull acknowledged that Houston has had interest in signing him over the past two or three years, as the point guard told Marca.com (translation via HoopsHype).
The Spurs have recalled Kyle Anderson from their D-League affiliate, the team announced via press release. The rookie out of UCLA has had four stints with the Austin Spurs so far this season, as our list of D-League assignments and recalls shows.
Chris Herrington of the Commercial Appeal looks at the struggling Grizzlies and wonders if Jeff Green‘s presence might be negatively impacting the club’s overall performance. Herrington compares Green to Rudy Gay and thinks in order to succeed, Memphis will need to potentially change the way they’re using him in the offense.
We heard this afternoon that the Mavs are no longer interested in bringing aboard JaVale McGee.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Western Notes: Adelman, Barnes, Rockets

April 5th, 2014 at 7:40pm CST by Cray Allred

Wolves coach Rick Adelman spoke to reporters including Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune on Minnesota’s future, but didn’t include himself as part of the ongoing decision-making (Twitter link). “For the most part we’re still a pretty young team and the success of this franchise going forward is who else can they add,” said Adelman, who many believe will not be back to coach next year. Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer and Zgoda tweeted back and forth, speculating that Adelman’s quote was a tacit admission that he wouldn’t be a part of the Wolves future (Twitter links). Here’s more from out West:

Bob Finnan of The News-Herald says there is growing sentiment that the Warriors will look to trade away Harrison Barnes this offseason.
Marc Stein of ESPN.com says that the Rockets reached out to point guard Malcolm Delaney to see if bringing him in from overseas this late in the season was feasible. Stein first reported that the Rockets had interest in Delaney, but the news that Patrick Beverley should return for the playoffs has Houston brass leaning against a play for Delaney.
Stein says the Rockets believe in Sergio Llull as an NBA rotation piece, but that there are major barriers to bringing him in from overseas anytime soon, including Llull’s apparent disinterest in joining the NBA, where the Rockets own his rights.
Erik Murphy‘s former Bulls teammates are very happy he was claimed by the Jazz, per a tweet from K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. “He works too hard,” said Taj Gibson, who had positive things to say about Murphy at the time of his release as well.
Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey shared what he saw in Murphy to Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). “Big guys who can step out and shoot can be complementary to our group. And Erik is a super shooter,” said Lindsey.

Western Notes: Young, Llull, Sampson, Kings

April 3rd, 2014 at 6:07pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Following last night’s game against Sacramento, Lakers guard Nick Young hinted that he plans to opt out this summer and enter free agency (Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com reports). The 6’7 swingman referred to his popular epithet when responding to a question about whether or not he’s already made up his mind: “A little bit. It’s a mystery, though. I’ve got to keep y’all on your toes. That’s what Swaggy P does.”

Last week, we noted that Young would likely test the waters in July and remains interested in re-signing with the Lakers. Though he does hold a 2014/15 player option worth roughly $1.2MM, the L.A. native believes it’s time for a raise: “Most definitely. I deserve much more than that.”

Here’s what else we’ve gathered out West this evening:

The Rockets have the draft rights to Spanish league guard Sergio Llull, but he’s not among the players the team appears to be considering, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Llull, 26, is considered an NBA-level talent, but his contract with Real Madrid would require a hefty in-season buyout, Stein notes (Twitter links).
The abruptness of Kelvin Sampson’s departure from the Rockets wasn’t entirely by choice, as league rules mandate that he couldn’t remain with the team after having accepted the head coaching job at the University of Houston, tweets Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston.
Plans for a new Kings arena in Sacramento took another step forward today as the city won an appeals court ruling allowing it to retain possession of a building that sits on the site where the arena is to be built, as Dale Kasler of The Sacramento Bee details.
Nearly one year removed from a failed attempt to purchase and relocate the Kings franchise, Chris Hansen tells Percy Allen of the Seattle Times: “It’s inevitable Seattle will have a basketball team. It’s just a matter of when…The next time an opportunity comes our way, we’re going to be in a lot better position. We’re not going to have to prove to the NBA that we’re likely to get an arena built. We’ll have a fully-baked, signed off on deal.”
As far as an arena proposal goes, Hansen mentions the EIS (Environmental State Impact) process as one hurdle that needs to be cleared; However, he says that the process is going well and expects it to be settled by this summer at the earliest.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Odds & Ends: Rockets, Wilkins, Llull, Hornets, Draft

April 5th, 2013 at 11:10pm CST by Chuck Myron

The remaking of the Rockets started not with the acquisition of James Harden but the hiring of coach Kevin McHale, writes Beckley Mason of ESPN.com. In a lengthy piece that examines Houston's philosophy, Mason points to Josh Smith and Andrew Bynum, the two free agents he sees as most likely to change teams in the offseason, as the sort of players the Rockets don't usually target. Yet fellow ESPN.com scribe Amin Elhassan, in an Insider piece, pegs Smith as a perfect fit in Houston. Elhassan looks at ideal destinations for four other marquee free agents, and as many teams start to ponder the summer in the last days of the regular season, here's the latest from around the Association:

Damien Wilkins' minimum-salary deal with the Sixers is up at the end of the season, but the 33-year-old tells Lang Greene of HoopsWorld that he has no intention of retiring and wants to play until he's 40 (Twitter link).
Spanish point guard Sergio Llull is considering heading to the NBA at some point but still has unfinished business with Real Madrid, as he tells Eurosport (translation via HoopsHype). The Rockets own his NBA rights.
The Hornets will look for a small forward and depth in the draft this year, tweets Jim Eichenhofer of Hornets.com.
Scouts generally see center Alex Len as a project, but they haven't been thrown by his up-and-down play for Maryland this season, valuing his athleticism and shooting range, according to Don Markus of The Baltimore Sun.
The rosters are out for this year's Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, which features college seniors, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com analyzes the field. Only four players within Givony's top 100 are taking part, led by No. 45 prospect Solomon Hill.

Southwest Notes: Llull, Lamb, Spurs, Wright

September 6th, 2012 at 11:10am CST by Luke Adams

Shortly after the London Olympics, in which Sergio Llull helped lead Spain to a silver medal, we heard that the Rockets' 2009 draft pick was hoping to stay long-term with Real Madrid, who had reportedly offered him a six-year extension. Now, it appears that Llull has agreed to that extension. The translation of this report from Encestando.es is rough, but the outlet suggests that Llull has agreed to a contract to keep him with Real Madrid through 2018. It's not clear whether there would be any NBA outs in the deal, but it certainly seems that Llull won't be playing in Houston anytime soon.

Here are the rest of the morning's notes out of the Southwest Division:

Jason Friedman of Rockets.com talked to Rockets first-round pick Jeremy Lamb about his expectations for the coming season and what aspects of his game he's working on at the moment.
While Andray Blatche's deal with the Nets isn't finalized yet, the Spurs are definitely out of the running for the big man. Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News notes that the Spurs' frontcourt is looking "just a wee bit thin" heading into the season.
The Spurs officially announced the hiring of former Jazz assistant Scott Layden as the club's assistant general manager yesterday. The Jazz, meanwhile, are close to finding a replacement for Layden, according to Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune.
In a piece for Mavs.com, Earl K. Sneed wonders how high Brandan Wright's ceiling is. Another strong year for Wright could put the former lottery pick in strong position when he hits free agency next summer.

International Moves: Songaila, Woods, Armstrong

August 29th, 2012 at 11:21am CST by Chuck Myron

Many of the overseas leagues begin their seasons about a month earlier than the NBA does, meaning international training camps are getting under way. Some of the player movement involves guys with NBA ties, and we'll round up all today's international news here, with the latest on top:

Darius Songaila has signed with BC Donetsk in the Ukraine, according to the team website (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Songaila, an eight-year NBA veteran, had expressed an interest in returning to the NBA after a strong performance with the Lithuanian Olympic team, but he apparently won't be coming back this year.
Former first-round draft pick Qyntel Woods confirmed via Twitter that he's heading to Lagun Aro of Spain, Carchia reports. Woods was taken 21st overall by the Blazers in 2002, and spent parts of four seasons in the NBA with Portland, the Heat and the Knicks.
Hilton Armstrong wants to return to the NBA, but is drawing interest from Panathinaikos of Greece, a source tells Carchia. The 12th overall pick in the 2006 draft by the Hornets, Armstrong hasn't played in the NBA since a 12-game stint with the Hawks in 2010/11.
We heard last night that guard Sergio Llull is content to remain with Real Madrid in Spain, and the Spanish website Marca.com reports the team has offered him a six-year contract with an option for a seventh season (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). It's not clear whether the contract would include a clause that would allow him to sign at any point with the Rockets, who hold his NBA rights.

Odds & Ends: Smith, Knicks, Rockets, Suns

August 28th, 2012 at 1:12pm CST by Zachary Links

On this date in 2004 at the Athens Olympics, Argentina won its first-ever Olympic gold medal in men's basketball and became the first country other than the United States to win the gold medal since 1988. Luis Scola had 25 points as Argentina steamrolled Italy to win it all, 84-69. Here's this afternoon's look around the Association…

J.R. Smith's brother Chris Smith has a good chance of making the Knicks' roster, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post (Twitter link). Berman cites Smith's defensive potential and Iman Shumpert's injury as reasons why the younger Smith could be a fit.
According to a Europa Press report (link in Spanish), Sergio Llull is happy with Real Madrid and has no intention of leaving the club. Llull, who played a major role for Spain at the Olympics in London, expressed a desire to finish his career with Real Madrid despite strong interest from the Rockets, the team that drafted him in 2009.
As part of the team's offseason makeover, the Suns are putting a greater emphasis on player development, as Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic writes.
Sixers coach Doug Collins says that he hopes to use Spencer Hawes in a "Pau Gasol role" alongside the newly-acquired Andrew Bynum, writes Max Rappaport of NBA.com. Collins notes that Hawes, like Gasol, has the ability to play on the perimeter thanks to his ability to shoot and pass.
Zach Lowe of SI.com wonders how Kobe Bryant will mesh with the revamped Lakers roster in 2012/13. Bryant's elite basketball IQ and style of play could make his transition to the Princeton offense a smooth one, but he'll have to work more quickly than he's used to.
Hawks GM Danny Ferry will bring back former coach Bob Weiss to join Larry Drew’s staff as an adviser, writes Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Former Knicks assistant Kenny Atkinson has also officially been hired as an assistant coach. Atkinson has been in talks with the club since early August.