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Injury Updates: Shumpert, Nash, Griffin

November 6th, 2012 at 9:08am CST by Luke Adams

We don't focus a whole lot on covering day-to-day injuries at Hoops Rumors, but we do keep tabs on the more serious injuries or issues affecting star players. In those cases, a team is more likely to explore a roster move to bring in a replacement player. Here's the latest on a handful of injuries from around the league:

  • Iman Shumpert tells Marc Berman of the New York Post that he's aiming for a return sometime in 2013, rather than next month. "It could be as easy as December, but I’m not aiming at December," Shumpert said. "When I feel my knee’s right, that’s when I’m going to come back. January, February, that’s the target. If you can talk to my knee, I’d love you to write what it says." While Shumpert and Amare Stoudemire are out, offseason additions Jason Kidd and Ronnie Brewer will continue to start for the Knicks.
  • Although coach Mike Brown believes Steve Nash may only miss a week with the small fracture in his left leg, the Lakers aren't putting any pressure on Nash to return quickly, writes Dave McMenamin of the Los Angeles Times. Even if Nash misses a few weeks, the Lakers don't appear interested in adding another point guard, as we heard yesterday.
  • Blake Griffin is playing with a burst burca sac in his right elbow, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register. Griffin has experienced the issue before and expects to play through it, though he concedes it's "never this bad." If Griffin were forced to miss time, the Clippers do have a spare roster spot, and a certain ex-Clipper power forward is looking for work.
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Lakers Don’t Intend To Add Point Guard

November 5th, 2012 at 10:07am CST by Luke Adams

Last night, Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times tweeted that Steve Nash could miss up to four weeks with the fracture in his left leg, rather than the one or two weeks initially reported. While that's not good news for the Lakers, the team doesn't intend to add a point guard for depth purposes, according to Bresnahan.

Considering the depth the Lakers already have at the position, the club's stance makes sense. Steve Blake and Darius Morris have been earning most of the minutes at the point in Nash's absence, while Chris Duhon has seen limited playing time as well. Los Angeles is also carrying a fourth point guard in Darius Johnson-Odom, who has been inactive for each of the Lakers' first four games.

Although the Lakers plan to wait out Nash's recovery with their current group of point guards, there are a number of options available on the free agent market if the team changes its mind. Former Laker Derek Fisher is perhaps the most obvious candidate, while Delonte West and Anthony Carter are among the other unsigned veterans.

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Western Notes: Morris, Murphy, Thunder, Thabeet

November 3rd, 2012 at 5:40pm CST by Ryan Raroque

With news of Steve Nash's leg fracture keeping him out for another week, Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles thinks that this will be a good opportunity for Darius Morris to prove himself, noting that that his potential is what helped the Lakers decide to keep him over recently-cut guard Andrew Goudelock. McMenamin also cited Mike Brown's postgame comments last night about Morris, who also appeared to be encouraged about the second year point guard's ability to change the tempo of the game and apply good defensive pressure (Sulia link). Here are more of this evening's links out of the Western Conference:

  • Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram writes that Troy Murphy's familiarity with Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle's system made the 6'11 forward an ideal fit with the team. Although Murphy is not yet in 'great' shape, Price says that he will be expected to help stretch the floor with his shooting ability. 
  • Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK shared a handful of notes from Thunder practice today, mentioning that Kendrick Perkins should be ready to play the Hawks on Sunday after spraining his ankle last night, discussing the growing confidence of Hasheem Thabeet amidst concerns about the team's depth at center, Serge Ibaka's early shooting struggles, and coach Scott Brooks' effort to get minutes for Jeremy Lamb, among other topics. 
  • Nick Gallo of NBA.com looks at the Thunder's emphasis on protecting the paint this season and how center Hasheem Thabeet can be used effectively in that role against bigger lineups. 
  • K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweeted that Hornets coach Monty Williams credits Knicks center Tyson Chandler for Anthony Davis' development during the London Olympics this past summer. Williams also weighed in on the league's concussion policy, addressing the notion that Davis could miss several games because of league protocol after suffering a mild concussion yesterday: "It's just that now you treat everybody like they have on white gloves and pink draws. It's just getting old, but it's just the way the league is now…I'm not saying I don't like it; we've got to protect our players…but as a coach I’m a baby about it. I want my guys ready to play.'' (John Reid of NOLA.com reports). 
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Mark Cuban Talks Lakers, CBA, Steve Nash

October 31st, 2012 at 9:02am CST by Luke Adams

Without Dirk Nowitzki, the new-look Mavericks caught the NBA world off-guard last night, with a 99-91 upset victory over the Lakers in Los Angeles. From Darren Collison to Eddy Curry, the Mavs' offseason additions looked far more in sync than the Lakers' high-profile acquisitions, something that had to please owner Mark Cuban. Before the game got underway, Cuban spoke to reporters about a number of topics related to his team, the Lakers, and Steve Nash. Let's check out the highlights:

  • Joking that he just hopes the Lakers "suck" this year, Cuban questioned whether L.A.'s so-called superteam would be able to live up to the expectations, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes. "Obviously, Nash is great. He's phenomenal, Dwight [Howard]'s phenomenal, Kobe [Bryant]," Cuban said. "But it takes a team. They've got to come together and play as a team."
  • Cuban added that he isn't bothered by the fact that the Lakers were able to add two significant pieces under a CBA that was supposed to limit major market teams.
  • More Cuban on the Lakers: "I don't have a problem with it, because until guys start playing until they're 50 (years old), it always comes to an end at some point. Houston went for it when they got (Charles) Barkley and it didn't happen. Guys have shelf lives. They don't play forever, so at some point, you have to re-formulate your team. Everybody's got to go through it."
  • The Mavs owner admitted he was wrong about Nash back in 2004 when he let the point guard leave Dallas. The decision to let Nash go "was all based on what we thought physically would end up happening, and it didn’t work out that way," Cuban said, according to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star Telegram.
  • Cuban also said he considered trying to bring Nash back to Dallas this past summer, but wasn't interested in committing to a three-year deal, tweets Price.
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Steve Nash Talks Free Agency, Raptors, Knicks

October 26th, 2012 at 11:51am CST by Luke Adams

Since he agreed to a three-year deal with the Lakers and was signed-and-traded to a division rival by the Suns earlier this summer, Steve Nash has discussed the move with a handful of reporters, explaining his motives for choosing Los Angeles. In a lengthy interview with Doug Smith of the Toronto Star, Nash expanded a bit on his free agent experience, among many other topics. The interview is worth a read in its entirety, but here are the key quotes from Nash on his free agency:

On whether there's been a backlash since he decided to sign with the Lakers:

"From Phoenix? Yeah, a little bit. But I’ve felt some backlash but I’ve also felt an overwhelming amount of support. There are people that are pissed off that I came here to the enemy but, to me, this opportunity ticked all the boxes after Phoenix didn’t want me to come back. That’s the thing that I think some fans don’t realize or don’t understand, an offer was never made…. So am I supposed to pass up an opportunity to play on a great team, be in a great city and be an hour from the kids just because? For me, my kids trump everything."

On having had the chance to sign with the Raptors:

"Toronto was a very special opportunity to me because, I mean, when they came to recruit me, it’s Bryan [Colangelo] who I’ve known my whole career; Jay Triano, recruited me in high school and who is a very close friend and our national team coach; Marc Eversley, who was my Nike rep way back and now an executive for the Raptors and very close friend of mine; Johnny Lee, who is a very close friend of mine, manager on the Olympic team. It’s hard when it’s a room full of people you care about to say no to that…. Let alone the fact I love Toronto as a city, it’s home in many ways and I would have been proud to play for the Raptors and in front of those fans and to try to move the ball forward a little bit with that franchise; that was exciting."

On weighing the Knicks' offer against the Lakers' and Raptors':

"The Knicks opportunity was exciting; I’ve been in New York for 10 summers, always wanted to play in the Garden for the Knicks in some way and I have so many friends in the city now living there. Just the challenge of playing the Garden even though it’s been such a tumultuous environment recently, it still was an exciting proposition just to experience it. They have a lot of talent, too…. I would have been happy to go to either and I would have been thrilled to play in Toronto."

On whether his decision was made when the Lakers began to show serious interest:

"It wasn’t over because there were factors. We started talking to the Lakers, had to get them to sign off on a third year (of a contract) and the Suns had to sign off on a sign-and-trade, which was very difficult and took almost two days."

On why the Lakers loading up on stars didn't inspire as strong a backlash as when LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh teamed up in Miami:

"I think it’s a different situation. I think the way that it was handled was different, I think always the first time is the hardest when something like that happens and people get over it. I think it’s slightly different."

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Mitch Kupchak On Howard, 2014, Nash

October 23rd, 2012 at 7:57pm CST by Chuck Myron

The acquisition of Dwight Howard may have received more fanfare, but Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak believes the sign-and-trade that brought Steve Nash aboard was the linchpin to the team's ballyhooed offseason, citing the enthusiasm others have for playing with a distributor like Nash, as Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News reports. The Nash deal wouldn't have been possible without last year's Lamar Odom trade, but Kupchak said he wasn't envisioning a summer like the team just had when he let Odom go last year. Kupchak shared plenty more with Medina, as we highlight here.

On whether Dwight Howard has told him he'll re-sign next year:

"I have not asked that question nor do I intend to ask the question. I hear he's embraced the city. Certainly, everything he says publicly is positive. But there really is nothing to pursue there from that point of view. It doesn't make any sense for him to do anything other than wait for this summer."

On what the Lakers must do to convince Howard to come back:

"Winning a championship wouldn't hurt. If we didn't win it this year, would that factor into his decision? I don't know. I would think that if he has a great year and there's great chemistry and the city embraces him like I think we do and will, I'm not sure it would be a factor. But that's something that he'll have to decide. He doesn't have to decide that now."

On 2014, when executive Jim Buss says the team plans to "make a big splash":

"Even if we sign back Dwight, we'll have cap flexibility. But I don't know who's going to be available two years down the road. I don't know what will happen in the next year or two. There may be a trade that comes along. Right now, we do have financial flexibility."

On the team's pursuit of Nash this past summer:

"When we were talking about it in the office, we said, 'Steve is on our list.' but I said, 'It's unlikely.' Jimmy said, 'Well, make the call.' I said, 'we'll make the call anyway, but don't get your hopes up.' He took the optimistic approach to it. Lo and behold, the unlikely took place."

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NBA GMs Weigh In On 2012/13 Season

October 22nd, 2012 at 10:48am CST by Luke Adams

The results are in on NBA.com's annual survey of the league's general managers, with all 30 NBA GMs weighing in on dozens of questions about the 2012/13 season and the 2012 offseason. We won't round up all of their answers here, so feel free to check out the full results at NBA.com, but here are a few of the more notable responses:

  • 70% of respondents believe the Heat will repeat as NBA champs, while 96.7% think Miami will win the Eastern Conference. Since GMs aren't allowed to vote for their own teams, that means the rest of the league's 29 GMs picked the Heat to come out of the East.
  • The Lakers are the favorites to come out of the West, earning 60% of the votes. The Thunder (36.7%) and Nuggets (3.3%) were the only other teams mentioned.
  • LeBron James is the player most GMs would start a franchise with, earning 80% of the votes.
  • 86.2% of GMs believe the Lakers made the best offseason moves, with Dwight Howard (70%) and Steve Nash (20%) earning the most votes for the summer addition who will make the biggest impact. Los Angeles' sign-and-trade for Nash was also voted the summer's most surprising move.
  • Besides the Lakers, the other teams receiving votes for the best offseason roster moves were the Nets, Hawks, and Warriors.
  • The Nets (62.1%) ran away with the votes on which team will be most improved, while Andre Iguodala (16.7%) topped the choices for most underrated acquisition — the Celtics' duo of Jason Terry and Courtney Lee also received support in that category.
  • Anthony Davis (76.7%) and Gregg Popovich (80%) were the runaway picks for rookie of the year and the NBA's best coach, respectively.
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Jim Buss On Summer Moves, Kupchak, Analytics

October 21st, 2012 at 9:33am CST by Chuck Myron

Lakers executive vice president Jim Buss this week revealed the team has arranged almost all of its contracts to end in 2014 so the purple and gold can "make a big splash in the free agent market" that summer. The big fish that year could be LeBron James, just the latest in a star-studded litany of names that have been associated with the Lakers in the past several months. After a second straight playoff exit in the conference semifinals left Buss "very disappointed" in the team at the end of 2011/12, the Lakers appear back in business of contending for titles after the acquisitions of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash. Though Buss tells Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register that his father Jim is still "the final hammer" within the organization, GM Mitch Kupchak said the younger Buss is gradually taking over. "It's almost been a complete transition, really," Kupchak said in Ding's report.

Ding sat down with Jim Buss for a lengthy interview, and the Lakers executive shared several intriguing tidbits.

On this summer's moves:

"I've felt the last two years, we had a chance to win the championship. Adding two Hall of Famers, basically, to this squad? To me, you kind of erase that 'we're taking steps' idea. We're here. Do what we're supposed to do."

On the front-office collaboration with Kupchak:

"It's a collective effort on every step. Mitch might have his own thoughts. He might make some phone calls to see if it's even possible. And he'll introduce it to me, and I'll say, 'Give me a day to work out some numbers and see if I think it's a fit.' Basically it's the value part I do. I'm not going to question if he likes a guy. Maybe I'd say, 'Mitch, by my numbers, the guy's a $3MM player. Right now, the market's dictating he's getting six. We just can't do it.'"

On why he says he defers to Kupchak most of the time:

"That's the area that is gray for me. Mitch is fantastic at saying, 'Well, he's a good player, but he doesn't fit our team.' Breaking down a player, you can do so much number-wise. But you need that extra 'does he fit?'"

On his approach to analytics:

"To me, a ridiculous stat is plus-minus. I think it's just useless. I needed to weed out and understand what affects the game of basketball. In the past five years, those applications of numbers came into play where I believe them. It took me years to believe they do have an effect."

On his new point guard:

"The intangible with Steve Nash is he's a winner; he's dedicated. He's just a phenomenal facilitator. My numbers take that all into consideration. I'm not concerned about his defense, because he's the oil to make this whole thing run, and I think the guys will help out defensively. And I don't see as bad of defense as everybody talks about."

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Pacific Rumors: Nash, Duhon, Johnson-Odom

October 11th, 2012 at 6:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

Eric Pincus is one of many NBA writers changing affiliations as the season approaches, heading from HoopsWorld to the Los Angeles Times, where he'll cover the Lakers. He gets a head start on his new gig in today's piece for HoopsWorld, as he wonders whether the team's improvements to its bench will be enough this season. He's got more on the Lakers, and we'll pass along that and other updates out of the Pacific Division.

  • New Suns point guard Goran Dragic was "shocked" by the sign-and-trade deal that put Steve Nash in a Lakers uniform, as Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports writes. It's a move that would have taken Suns president of basketball operations Lon Babby by surprise at the beginning of the summer, as well. "My first reaction was I can't do that," the Suns executive said. "As time went on, (Suns owner) Robert Sarver was really good and said, 'We have to make a basketball decision that's best for our franchise.' "
  • Nash believes the Suns will be all right without him, as Spears writes in the same piece. "They can be a surprise team this year," Nash said. "They brought in a lot of guys who can play. They brought in some young guys and put themselves in a position to build. I think they did a great job."
  • Chris Duhon isn't represented by Dan Fegan, but like former Magic teammate Jason Richardson, he wasn't surprised Orlando included him in the Dwight Howard blockbuster, Pincus reports. “I kind of anticipated being traded and it’s fortunate that I was able land in a nice spot here in L.A," Duhon said. "I’m just going to try to make the most of this opportunity."
  • Pincus also sizes up the chances 6'2" guard Darius Johnson-Odom, the 55th pick this past June who's in Lakers camp on a non-guaranteed deal, has of making the regular season roster. With Devin Ebanks and Jodie Meeks penciled in as the backup two guards, and four point guards on the roster, Johnson-Odom faces long odds, Pincus opines. 
  • Dwight Howard says it wasn't just his back that was affected by the herniated disk that required season-ending surgery last year, as Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times tweets. "It affected my nerves to the point where my whole left leg just went dead," Howard said.
  • ESPNLosAngeles.com scribe Arash Markazi sizes up the impact new shooting coach Bob Thate could have on the Clippers.
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Odds & Ends: Josh Howard, Pittman, Paul

October 4th, 2012 at 11:25pm CST by Ryan Raroque
Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today writes that free agent guard/forward Josh Howard is just waiting for an opportunity to be signed. Howard has fielded interest from several NBA teams and says that he has been given positive feedback. Zillgitt added that Howard's workouts this summer have strengthened his knee and given him confidence in his ability to contribute on an NBA team. We have more of tonight's miscellaneous links from around the Association…
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