Tobias Harris Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pistons Notes: Leuer, Smith, Johnson, Blake

September 14th, 2016 at 9:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Pistons players concentrated on recruiting this summer and wound up with two of their main targets, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Coach/executive Stan Van Gundy entered the offseason wanting an experienced backup point guard and a power forward with size who could make 3-pointers. Marcus Morris and Reggie Jackson took care of the first one by convincing former teammate Ish Smith to come to Detroit. Tobias Harris landed the power forward through his connection to Jon Leuer, who broke into the league along with Harris with the Bucks in 2011/12. “Just having a good relationship with Tobias and knowing that he’s been with these guys and knows what it’s like in the locker room and what it’s like to play for coach Van Gundy, it had a big impact on my decision,” Leuer said. “Just somebody that I trust and know has a good sense of what would be good for me.”

There’s more news tonight out of Detroit:

Leuer and the Pistons didn’t fully commit to each other until Al Horford eliminated Detroit from his consideration, Langlois writes in the same piece. When Horford made Boston, Washington and Atlanta his finalists in free agency, the deal was finalized. “Once Al made his decision, it was, ‘OK, let’s figure out how we can get this done,’ ” Leuer said. “We actually came to an agreement before he even landed, so it was more of a celebratory lunch than a meeting.”
After a long learning experience during his rookie year, Stanley Johnson hopes to show the NBA what he is capable of, relays Rod Beard of The Detroit News. Johnson said being a first-year player is like going from kindergarten to being a high school senior. He averaged 8.1 points and 4.2 rebounds in 73 games, but he believes he can do better in 2016/17. “As much as athleticism is involved in the NBA game, it’s more mental than anything,” Johnson said. “You’ll see with the rookies when you watch them play, they’re not behind but they’re making plays slower than everybody because they haven’t seen it yet. That’s where I was last year — except I was playing, I was in the fire, I was in front of everybody and they were watching me make my mistakes on a grand scale.”
Steve Blake, who spent last season with the Pistons, has been working out at the Trail Blazers’ facility, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. The 36-year-old point guard is staying in shape and hoping for another opportunity, she added.

Central Notes: Pacers, Maker, Drummond, Pistons

July 17th, 2016 at 6:18pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pacers seem ready to re-emerge as an elite team in the Eastern Conference, claims Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders. Indiana made several key additions this summer, swapping George Hill for Jeff Teague in a three-team deal, trading the 20th pick in the draft to Brooklyn for Thaddeus Young and signing free agent center Al Jefferson. The Pacers also have the security of a healthy Paul George, who showed during the season that he was fully recovered from a broken leg in 2014. In addition, Hamilton notes, Indiana has the flexibility for another major move or two this summer. The franchise is about $12MM under the cap and may have a $2.8MM room exception available. Looking ahead, the Pacers could have up to $50MM in cap room next summer if Rodney Stuckey and C.J. Miles opt out.

There’s more from around the Central Division:

The Bucks‘ Thon Maker grabbed attention in the Las Vegas Summer League with Kevin Garnett-like size and Giannis Antetokounmpo-level speed, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com. Many observers were surprised when the Bucks drafted Maker 10th overall, but his athleticism may make that gamble pay off. “We thought he wasn’t afraid and had a little toughness to him,” said GM John Hammond. “That was the key to the draft pick — that we enjoyed him so much as a person and had toughness and wasn’t afraid. You don’t know what is going to go from there.”
The Pistons are reaping the benefits of Andre Drummond‘s decision to put off his extension until this summer, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Because Drummond waited on his big-money deal, Detroit had the cap room to trade for Tobias Harris during the season and then sign free agents Jon Leuer, Ish Smith and Boban Marjanovic. “We either wouldn’t have been able to do Tobias during the year, or if we had done Tobias, we wouldn’t have been able to add the people we added this summer,” said coach/executive Stan Van Gundy. “It goes to Andre’s character, his true commitment to the Detroit Pistons beyond just getting the contract and [owner Tom Gores’] commitment and his relationship with Andre.”
Marjanovic’s three-year, $21MM contract will pay him $7MM each season, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. Smith will receive $6MM each year for three seasons (Twitter link), and Leuer’s four-year, $42MM deal starts at $11MM the first season and decreases (Twitter link). He also has $1MM in unlikely incentives.

Eastern Rumors: Butler, James, Jack, Wall

June 30th, 2016 at 10:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

In an appearance Wednesday on ESPN’s “The Jump,” Bulls guard Jimmy Butler said he expected his partnership with Derrick Rose to be broken up, relays Nick Friedell of ESPN.com. It happened last week when Rose was shipped to the Knicks in exchange for three players. “I can’t say that I was surprised, but I knew that it had to be one of us, to tell you the truth,” Butler said. “Obviously, I enjoyed playing with him. I came into the league when he was the MVP. I’ve got so much respect for the guy. I have no bad things to say about him and I wish him the best moving forward.” Butler, who was the focus of draft night trade rumors involving the Celtics and Timberwolves, said he’s not certain he will still be with Chicago when the season opens.

There’s more tonight from the Eastern Conference:

The NBA’s “over 36 rule” is behind LeBron James‘ decision to decline his player option, explains Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. James would be subject to that rule if he signs a two-year deal just as he did last summer with the intention of opting out after one season. For players who have turned 36, their final annual salary in a four- or five-year contract is counted proportionally against the team’s cap each season. The rule was adopted to discourage teams from giving long-term contracts to players who are unlikely to be in the league for the entirety of them. The rule prohibits James from accepting a five-year, $200MM contract from the Cavaliers after this offseason because the pro-rated part would put him above the maximum salary. However, Zillgitt points out that the rule could be amended if the players or the league opts out of the current collective bargaining agreement in December.
The Cavaliers aren’t concerned about losing their stars, but they have decisions to make on six free agents, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. Cleveland will have to determine how many years it wants to commit to J.R. Smith and whether it wants to outbid competitors to keep Matthew Dellavedova. Also, Richard Jefferson and James Jones have to decide if they want to play another season at the veterans minimum.
The Nets stretched the $500K in guaranteed salary owed to point guard Jarrett Jack when they waived him earlier today, tweets NetsDaily. The move will save the team $333,333 in cap space this offseason.
John Wall wants to see the Wizards adopt an aggressive attitude toward free agency, tweets Dan Steinberg of The Washington Post. “The organization’s got to be willing to step up to the plate and get what needs to be done, done,” Wall said.
The Pistons would like to add two more big men this offseason, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Coach/executive Stan Van Gundy said starting power forward Tobias Harris doesn’t really fit that description, and he wants to be sure the team isn’t short on size next year. “I think I wouldn’t be comfortable going with fewer than five, so we’ve got to go out and get two bigs – four, five, whatever,” Van Gundy said. “We need two bigger guys, even though Marcus [Morris] and Tobias will play there a lot. You just get into certain matchups.”
The performance of second-round pick Michael Gbinije in summer league will help determine the fate of Phil Pressey, Langlois writes in the same piece. Pressey is also on the Pistons‘ summer league roster, but his chances at winning a backup point guard spot for next season will decrease if Gbinije shows he can handle the position.
A stress fracture in his lower back will sideline Detroit’s Darrun Hilliard for the summer league and possibly longer, according to Rod Beard of The Detroit News. A 6’6″ reserve guard, Hilliard played in 38 games last summer and was projected to have a significant role on the Pistons‘ summer league team. “I just thought my back was tight and I just thought that I wasn’t stretching enough,” he said. “I was stretching and stretching and stretching, thinking it would get better and it never got better.”
Free agent swingman Evan Fournier said he wants to stay with the Magic, writes Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Fournier, whose role likely increased with last week’s trade of Victor Oladipo to the Thunder, said he isn’t sure if his agent lined up meetings with any other teams. “Obviously, our priority is the Magic,” Fournier said. “I’ve said it many times: I feel great here.”

Central Notes: Harris, Jackson, Beasley

May 13th, 2016 at 7:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons executive/coach Stan Van Gundy said he considers the team’s trade deadline acquisition of combo forward Tobias Harris from the Magic better than signing a big name free agent this summer, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com relays. “The question for us was: He’s 23 years old with a contract that is descending over the next couple years, and can we do better than that in free agency? And for us, the answer was, ‘Not even close.’” Van Gundy told Lowe. “It’s a bird in the hand. We’re not desperate to get a player, and we don’t have to overpay to just meet the [salary floor]. We got a good, young player locked in for the next three years. A lot of people want shorter contracts. For us, young players on longer contracts is a good way to go.”

Here’s more from out of the NBA’s Central Division:

The Bucks have interviewed Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame), Malik Beasley (Florida State) and Deyonta Davis (Michigan State) at the NBA Draft combine this week, Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times relays (via Twitter).
Jackson is also scheduled to sit down with representatives from the Bulls this weekend, with the player adding that he believes Chicago will look to select a guard in the first round this June, Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago tweets.
The Pistons interviewed Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV) and Caris LeVert (Michigan), Keith Langlois of NBA.com notes (Twitter links). LeVert is expected to remain in a walking boot for another month as he recovers from a lower left leg injury and won’t be able to work out for teams leading up to the draft, Rod Beard of The Detroit News tweets.
Other players interviewed this week by the Pistons include: Beasley, Josh Hart (Villanova), Malik Newman (Mississippi State), Jake Layman (Maryland), Wade Baldwin (Vanderbilt) and Tyler Ulis (Kentucky), David Mayo of MLive tweets.
Maryland sophomore point guard Melo Trimble has workouts scheduled for next week with the Bucks, Pacers and Sixers, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays (on Twitter).

Eastern Notes: Fournier, Sixers, Nets, Wall

May 5th, 2016 at 12:50pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Pistons targeted another Magic player before settling on the trade for Tobias Harris in February, and that player was likely Evan Fournier, as Rod Beard of The Detroit News writes in a slideshow of mostly far-fetched candidates to sign with the Pistons in free agency. Fournier is poised to become a restricted free agent in July, but Magic GM Rob Hennigan, who can match all competing bids for the swingman, expressed determination to keep him, and Fournier apparently wants to stay in Orlando.

See more from the Eastern Conference:

The Sixers struck deals to hire NBA Associate VP of basketball operations Ned Cohen to a high-ranking basketball operations job and Wizards VP of Scouting Marc Eversley as vice president of player personnel, report The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski, USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt and The Undefeated’s Marc J. Spears (All Twitter links). Cohen and Eversley will presumably report to president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo. Many around the league regard Cohen highly and see him as a future GM, Wojnarowski tweets. Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post previously reported the Sixers were interviewing Eversley, who worked under Colangelo on the Raptors.
The Nets have added several to their front office, including former No. 5 overall draft pick Shelden Williams, who’ll serve as a pro scout, and U.S. circuit court law clerk Natalie Jay, who’ll work as a cap and contract specialist, as the team details via press release. Spurs staffer Andrew Baker joins the Nets as strategic planning coordinator and Stanford assistant coach Charles Payne will be a pro and college scout for Brooklyn, the team announced. The Nets also said they promoted Ryan Gisriel to director of basketball administration. Gisriel has served the team as an intern, special projects coordinator and as assistant to the GM since his hiring in 2013.
John Wall has undergone procedures on both knees, but he’s expected to be ready for the start of next season, the Wizards announced.

Central Notes: Caldwell-Pope, Harris, Lue, Vogel

April 30th, 2016 at 2:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope may think twice before committing to a contract extension with the Pistons, according to David Mayo of MLive. The third-year shooting guard will be eligible for an extension this offseason, but he may try to increase his value with another productive season and then take his chances as a restricted free agent next summer. “I think what’s important is we’ll have to have discussions and see what’s important to Kentavious and have a sense of where they’re at with the whole thing,” said GM Jeff Bower. “It’s something that doesn’t have to take place. But what does have to take place is an understanding of what’s important, what time frames are important, how he understands his place and role here.” Caldwell-Pope started all 76 games he played this season, averaging 14.3 points per night.

There’s more on the Central Division:

Replacing Ersan Ilyasova with Tobias Harris in a February trade helped the Pistons reach the playoffs, Mayo writes in a separate piece. Ilyasova tended to slow down the offense, while Harris displayed a willingness to pass, shoot, drive, rebound and do anything the team needed from him. Detroit’s offensive rating improved nearly three points per 100 possessions after Harris arrived. Mayo adds that the Pistons will emphasize shooting as they search the free agent market for backups at the point guard and power forward positions.
Tyronn Lue hasn’t signed a new contract since taking over as the Cavaliers‘ head coach in January, but he’s not interested in any of the open positions around the league, relays Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Lue was the league’s highest-paid assistant, with a four-year deal he signed in 2014 worth $6.5MM. After replacing David Blatt, Lue reached a verbal agreement worth $3MM prorated for his time as head coach this season and another $3MM for next year, along with a team option for 2017/18 at $3.5MM with a buyout. An unidentified source told ESPN the Cavs will live up to the offer and plan to finalize the deal with Lue this summer.
Pacers coach Frank Vogel is used to the level of criticism he received after the Game 5 loss to Toronto, which included calls for his firing on social media, writes Gregg Doyel of The Indianapolis Star. “I don’t take it personally,” Vogel said after the Indiana blew out the Raptors in Game 6. “I hear everything. I don’t take anything personal. The passion the fans have? It isn’t as strong as mine.”

Eastern Notes: Bazemore, Pistons, Whiteside, Lin

April 24th, 2016 at 1:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks‘ Kent Bazemore stands to significantly increase his $2MM salary as he heads toward free agency, but he tells Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe that he has been too busy to think about it. “Honestly, I haven’t had time,” Bazemore said. “It’s been a very aggressive year as far as scheduling, as far as the physical and mental load. I think in December, I had already played 300 more minutes than I had the whole last year. So physically, it was a lot.” Bazemore probably attracted a lot of suitors by averaging 11.6 points and 5.1 rebounds in his first full year as a starter with the Hawks. He was the team’s fourth-leading scorer and third-leading rebounder. Although he can expect to get plenty of offers this summer, Bazemore’s first choice is to remain in Atlanta. “Being able to be out there and play through your mistakes and have a coach [Mike Budenholzer] who takes it personal to coach you,” Bazemore said. “He loves my competitiveness and I love how competitive he is. It’s a match made in heaven.”

There’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Cleveland’s 3-0 lead over the Pistons in their playoff series has helped expose some of the changes that need to be made this offseason, according to David Mayo of MLive. The team could use another player who can create off the dribble, Mayo writes, along with more shooters and a reliable backup point guard. The Pistons will also look at what Tobias Harris has brought to the team since he was acquired in February and see how to compensate for the weaknesses in Andre Drummond‘s game.
The Heat were hurt by not having the taxpayer’s mid-level exception available last season, writes Bobby Marks of The Vertical. Miami had to use its room mid-level, which limits contracts to two years, to sign free agent center Hassan Whiteside. He emerged into a player who may demand a max contract this summer, and the Heat don’t own his Bird rights because he only had a two-year deal.
The hiring of coach Kenny Atkinson, who was Jeremy Lin‘s mentor with the Knicks, could give the Hornets point guard a reason to come to Brooklyn, according to NetsDaily. The Nets need backcourt help and may be interested in Lin, who passed on a $3.5MM mini-mid level offer from Brooklyn last season.

Eastern Notes: Grunfeld, Harris, Plumlee, Marks

April 14th, 2016 at 10:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld was disappointed by the failure to make the playoffs but insists his team has a strong foundation for the future, according to Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. Washington fired coach Randy Wittman shortly after the 41-41 season came to a close. “The players tell you what to do, and I thought we were very inconsistent this year,” Grunfeld said. “That’s probably the only consistent thing about us: We went up and down. And there was no sense of urgency. I don’t think we played with the type of energy on a nightly basis that you need to achieve the kind of goals that we had. We had high expectations internally and externally.” Grunfeld will lead the search for the Wizards’ next coach and says he has already heard from agents for several interested applicants.

There’s more tonight from the Eastern Conference:

The trade that brought Tobias Harris to the Pistons emerged right before the deadline, according to Rod Beard of The Detroit News. “His name wasn’t even out there for us until two days before we did the deal,” said coach/executive Stan Van Gundy. “We were really surprised.” Harris averaged 16.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game after arriving from Orlando, helping Detroit secure its first playoff spot since 2009 and the first of Harris’ career.
Center Miles Plumlee is looking forward to next year after the late-season surge that made him a key part of the Bucks‘ rotation, writes Charles F. Gardner of The Journal Sentinel. “I’m just really thankful for the opportunity to get out there and play,” Plumlee said. “I love the game. I love the team here. I think we’re building something really special and I hope to continue to be a part of it.” Plumlee completed his four-year rookie scale contract and will enter restricted free agency this summer.
Sean Marks started fining players for showing up late after taking over as Nets GM, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Several players confirmed to Lewis that frequent lateness was a problem with the team.

Atlantic Notes: Prokhorov, Crowder, Casey

April 14th, 2016 at 11:58am CST by Chuck Myron

Russian law enforcement and tax officials are searching the Moscow offices of Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov’s company, ONEXIM, reports Yuliya Fedorinova of Bloomberg.com. It’s not entirely clear why the search is taking place, though the Russian wire service Interfax reports the search has to do with offshore investment and tax payments and is part of a criminal proceeding, according to NetsDaily (Twitter link). Prokhorov ran against Russian president Vladimir Putin in 2012, and Putin is applying political pressure on offshore investors, as Fedorinova details. The ONEXIM under investigation isn’t the same as the holding company that controls the Nets, as NetsDaily points out.

While we wait to find out the implications of the Brooklyn-related news, see more from the Atlantic Division:

The Magic insisted that the Celtics include Jae Crowder in a would-be deal when the sides discussed potential Tobias Harris trades before the deadline, and Orlando’s insistence on Crowder stopped the talks from going further, a league source told A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. Crowder isn’t untouchable, but he’s close, a league executive whose team negotiated with the Celtics told Blakely.
The Raptors have yet to pick up the team option on their contract with coach Dwane Casey for next season, but GM Masai Ujiri strongly signaled Wednesday that the team will, as expected, observes Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (Twitter link). “He’s been phenomenal I think, whether it’s reading games or adjustments, or just growth overall as a coach,” Ujiri said. “To be honest, everyone makes such a big deal like ‘OK, if we don’t make it past the first round, what will happen to Casey?’ Well Coach Casey deserves to be our coach, that’s 100% and I stand by that. He deserves to be our coach in the future because he has put in the work I think to bring winning to our program. The players have responded well I think, and it has translated a little bit and we hope it translates to the playoffs and I’m very hopeful it will because he’s a defensive minded coach but he’s been tremendous for us.”
Owner James Dolan still trusts team president Phil Jackson and his triangle offense, sources tell Marc Berman of the New York Post, and it’s doubtful Jackson will opt out of his deal after next season, as he hopes to serve out his contract, which runs until March 2019, Berman writes. Some around the league think Dolan wants Jackson to think about deferring to GM Steve Mills for the decision on the team’s next head coach if the Zen Master does intend to opt out, and if that’s the case, Mark Jackson, Scott Brooks and Randy Wittman, along with David Blatt, would be candidates, according to Berman.

Southeast Notes: Harris, Haslem, Millsap

March 25th, 2016 at 9:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Being dealt to the Pistons at the trade deadline this season initially stunned Tobias Harris, but he harbors no feelings of resentment toward the Magic, noting that he understands that Orlando’s roster needed a shakeup, John Denton of NBA.com relays. “No hard feelings at all because the situation in Orlando was always like family to me,’’ said Harris. “Getting traded from Milwaukee to over there [Orlando in 2013], I got an opportunity to show what I could do and I got to meet some really great people throughout the city. So no hard feelings at all and I wish them nothing but the best going forward. I still have a great relationship with those [Magic] guys and I got to see a lot of them [on Tuesday], so it’s all love for them.’’

Magic coach Scott Skiles noted that his call to Harris to tell the combo forward he had been traded was an emotional one, Denton adds. “It was hard, very hard. He and I are still in communication,’’ Skiles said. “It’s always hard with any player, but Tobias and I go back even further than the Orlando Magic. Those things are very difficult and it’s the worst part of the business.’’

Here’s more from out of the Southeast Division:

Udonis Haslem has seen his role markedly diminished for the Heat this season, but teammate Dwyane Wade stuck up for his teammate and noted that the veteran can still play and would be a rotation player on quite a few other teams, Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post writes. “Just look at Udonis,” Wade said. “He’s a three-time champion. There’s guys on other teams playing around this league that I would put him against any day, and here he’s not playing and not getting minutes. Think about the pride that takes and the ego that he doesn’t have to still be here and not be asking to get out of here, to not be tearing up the locker room every night. I get it. It’s tough. Special guys like that come around and when an organization has those guys, they try to keep them as much as they can.”
Paul Millsap spurned other suitors last summer and re-signed with the Hawks because he believed that the franchise was on the cusp of becoming a perennial contender in the East, Michael Lee of the Vertical writes. While the team won’t equal its 60 wins of a season ago, the power forward still believes Atlanta has what it takes to reach the Conference Finals, Lee adds. “I think we do. Record says otherwise. But we don’t care about the record,” Millsap told Lee. “I think the main thing we have to do is stay focused on winning as many as we can. I don’t think we care where we fall. As long we’re in and we have an opportunity to play for a title, it doesn’t matter where we fall. Because at the end of day, we’re going to have to go through everybody. And whoever it is in the first round, hopefully, we’ll be ready.“