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Cavs Notes: Pekovic, Aldridge, Noel, Porter

June 1st, 2013 at 4:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio reported earlier today that the Cavs aren't going after DeMarcus Cousins, and he has plenty more on Cleveland's team in his latest dispatch. He gets credit for the updates below, unless otherwise noted.

  • The Cavaliers have tried and failed to pry Kevin Love from the Timberwolves, and their alternative may be to go after center Nikola Pekovic, one of the leading restricted free agents. Cleveland has the cap room to make him an offer of $12MM or better, a price Wolves owner Glen Taylor has said he won't pay. 
  • The Blazers have no interest in Tristan Thompson, Dion Waiters or draft picks, and have turned down the Cavs' inquiries about LaMarcus Aldridge. 
  • Nerlens Noel says he'll be ready to play around Christmas, but the Cavaliers don't think he'll be back from his ACL injury until February or March. The team remains undecided about whether Noel will be the No. 1 pick, and Amico confirms that Otto Porter is also in the mix for that selection.
  • Amico hears the Cavs are willing to trade up to nab Sergey Karasev in the middle of the first round if it doesn't look like he'll fall to them at No. 19. The Cavs are also high on Alex Len, and he could be theirs if they trade out of the No. 1 pick.
  • The Cavs like Shaun Livingston, but he's seeking a larger payday than the team wants to give him.
  • Omri Casspi and Luke Walton probably won't be re-signed, but the Cavs hope to bring back Wayne Ellington.
  • The Plain Dealer's Mary Schmitt Boyer answers reader questions in her mailbag column, and opines that Al Horford makes more sense as a trade target for the Cavs than Love or Aldridge do. 
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Broussard On Cavs, Bucks, Suns, Wolves

April 25th, 2013 at 10:48am CST by Luke Adams

Cavs fans worried about what the hiring of Mike Brown might mean for the team's potential pursuit of LeBron James in 2014 shouldn't put too much stock in the move one way or the other, says Chris Broussard in his latest ESPN.com piece (Insider-only link). Brown's return to Cleveland doesn't mean LeBron is coming back too, but it also shouldn't be a deterring factor, according to Broussard, who notes that there will be plenty of other factors in play over the next 14 months. The ESPN.com scribe explores that topic and a number of others in his article, so let's round up the highlights….

  • The Cavs are hoping to upgrade the roster before next summer in an attempt to lure James (or another impact free agent, presumably). As we heard from Adrian Wojnarwoski of Yahoo! Sports yesterday, Tristan Thompson, Dion Waiters, and draft picks could be dangled as trade chips. Broussard mentions LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Love as potential targets.
  • The Bucks would like to keep all three of their free agent guards this summer, but recognize that they'll probably only be able to retain two, with Brandon Jennings the player most likely to stay put.
  • Several sources around the league believed Lance Blanks, who the Suns fired earlier this week, was a scapegoat for the team's poor season. According to Broussard, the widely panned signing of Michael Beasley was Lon Babby's call, and Blanks had "little to do with" Alvin Gentry's firing as well.
  • Bucks assistant GM Jeff Weltman is viewed as the frontrunner for the Suns' GM opening, says Broussard.
  • Former Suns assistant Elston Turner may join Rick Adelman's staff in Minnesota, with an understanding that if Adelman steps down, Turner would take over as the Timberwolves' coach. We've heard in the past that Adelman "badly wanted" Turner on his staff when he first took the Wolves' job.
  • While Kevin McHale isn't expected to step down as Rockets head coach anytime soon, Broussard hears from sources that the team would have "strong interest" in Stan Van Gundy if McHale left.
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Wojnarowski On LeBron, Cavs, Brown, Aldridge

April 24th, 2013 at 9:34am CST by Luke Adams

Now that the Cavaliers have made it official, announcing that Mike Brown has returned as the team's head coach, one looming question is what effect the hire will have on Cleveland's potential pursuit of LeBron James in the summer of 2014. LeBron told the Associated Press (link via Cleveland.com) that he's "very happy" for Brown, adding that he's a "really good coach," but would James be interested in playing for his former coach again? Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tackles that subject in his latest column, so let's round up the highlights….

  • One former Cavs staffer told Wojnarowski that "the way Mike had to bend for LeBron weakened him as a leader. They'd be crazy to put him through that again. It's pointless."
  • One league source tells Wojnarowski "there are still some scars" when it comes to Brown and the Cavs, primarily centered on the coach's relationship with Dan Gilbert, who fired him in 2010.
  • Agent Rich Paul has created anticipation for LeBron's possible return to the Cavs in 2014, but according to Wojnarowski, "the idea of returning as the conquering hero is probably much more romantic than reality." Wojnarowski suggests that it's "unfathomable" that James would trade Miami, Erik Spoelstra, and Pat Riley for a return to Cleveland.
  • According to Wojnarowski, the Cavs have privately pitched the idea of trading young players and draft picks to the Trail Blazers for LaMarcus Aldridge.
  • Such a deal with Portland is unlikely to ever happen, says Wojnarowski, since the Cavs value their young players like Tristan Thompson and Dion Waiters more than other teams around the league do.
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Cavs Notes: Thompson, Scott, Ellington, Gibson

April 13th, 2013 at 11:54pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Aside from shedding light on Tristan Thompson as arguably the Cavaliers' most valuable player (aside from Kyrie Irving), Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer makes the case that Cleveland will have to add a couple of experienced and productive veterans through trades or free agency if they are to make significant progress in 2013-14. We've got a few more notes to share out of Ohio tonight:

  • Pluto finds it odd that Irving didn't comment on Byron Scott, especially considering that Thompson gave the head coach a strong vote of confidence. Even if Irving was wary of saying the wrong thing, it didn't seem to indicate that all was well between the two. 
  • The team will offer restricted free agent Wayne Ellington some type of contract for next year, and although they'd like for Marreese Speights to exercise his $4.5MM player option, they'll also take a look at the type of offers he'll get if he declines. 
  • After an injury-riddled season and one of his worst statistically, Daniel Gibson tells Jodie Valade of The Plain Dealer that he doesn't want to end his tenure with the Cavaliers this way and would be willing to consider any offer that they'd give him this summer. 
  • Mary Schmitt Boyer (also of The Plain Dealer) answered a bunch of questions from her readers about the Cavs, saying that the team should look to add a defensive specialist this summer and isn't sure whether or not Byron Scott will be back. Boyer doesn't think Scott should be fired, and believes that the team will make the playoffs if they are healthy next season. 
  • Cleveland has four draft picks in June, and Boyer doesn't foresee them ultimately adding four rookies to an already young roster. With that being said, she expects some of those picks to be shopped.

 

 

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Odds & Ends: Mavericks, Leslie, T’Wolves, Mayo

March 9th, 2013 at 6:37pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Eddie Sefko of SportsDayDFW writes that the Mavericks are now in the market for adding a player after severing ties with guard Dominique Jones. Sefko comprises a list including Mike Bibby, Michael Redd, Earl Boykins, and Gilbert Arenas as available veterans who could be worth a look. Among the D-League hopefuls who could warrant an opportunity, Justin Dentmon, Chris Wright, or Sean Singletary come to mind. Sefko rules out the chances of Delonte West making a return to Dallas, citing that the team wouldn't want to reconnect after how badly things ended with him last year. You can find more of tonight's miscellaneous news and notes below:  

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Odds & Ends: Coach K, Howard, Harkless, Rookies

February 26th, 2013 at 10:43pm CST by Sean Highkin

A roundup of the latest news and notes from around the NBA on Tuesday evening:

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Odds & Ends: Gay, Knicks, Bulls, Sullinger

January 10th, 2013 at 10:51pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Thursday night:

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Central Notes: Pacers, Thompson, Cook

January 6th, 2013 at 11:09pm CST by Ryan Raroque

While the Pacers didn't necessarily want to cut Sam Young, a recent ankle injury that required several weeks of recovery coupled with the need for more help at the wing position had forced Indiana's hand, says Mike Wells of IndyStar.com. Wells also writes that the team will likely sign someone to a 10-day contract and thinks about Dominic McGuire as a possible fit. Lastly, he believes that guard Ben Hansbrough will remain on the team for the rest of the season. Here are a few more tidbits we've heard from the Central Division tonight: 

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Eastern Notes: Varejao, Pietrus, Celtics

November 29th, 2012 at 10:36pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Cavaliers center Anderson Varejao received as good a vote of confidence as one can get from head coach Byron Scott, who called the Brazilian big man "the best center in the NBA right now." Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio writes that Varejao's statistical production makes Scott's statement a difficult one to disagree with, also mentioning that some fans have wondered if Cleveland should take advantage of his value and trade him. With that being said, Amico asserts that Cavaliers brass currently has no intention of dealing their most tenured veteran. For the rest of tonight's tidbits from the Eastern Conference, you can find them below: 

  • Bill McCandless, the agent of Mickael Pietrus, told Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com about the other teams that that had been under consideration while they had waited for the right opportunity in free agency. Whereas the Rockets and Timberwolves were potential destinations in the West, McCandless listed the Bulls and Hawks as the other Eastern Conference teams which had been in the hunt along with Toronto.
  • Celtics coach Doc Rivers offered a poignant comment about Rajon Rondo and the current state of his team, telling reporters: “I don’t know if I want to rally around my 6-foot guard being the enforcer. That’s nice but at the end of the day, if that’s the threat you’re sending, the other team has to feel [good]" (Mike Petraglia of WEEI.com reports). Although we heard Rivers say earlier that the team is in no rush to make any changes to the roster, Petraglia hypothetically mentioned Kenyon Martin as a possible target if Boston decided to look into free agency for help. 
  • Aside from wanting rookie guard Maalik Wayns to become a more accomplished defender, 76ers coach Doug Collins likes the direction of his development, writes Mark Narducci of Philly.com. 
  • Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer points out that Zydrunas Ilgauskas was at the Cavaliers' practice facility on Thursday to help Byron Scott teach forward Tristan Thompson about making quicker decisions and moves offensively to counter shotblockers. 
  • Mary Schmitt Boyer (also of the Plain Dealer) discusses the challenge that Danny Ferry faces in building the Hawks into a playoff contender, just as he had done in Cleveland from 2005 to 2010.  
  • Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes that Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap has taken notice of Jeff Taylor's development as the rookie has stepped in to fill the void left by Gerald Henderson's injury. In another article, Bonnell mentions that the continued lobbying of New Orleans Hornets owners to rebrand their franchise could mean an opportunity for Charlotte to re-acquire the Hornets nickname. 
  • Nate Taylor of The New York Times discusses Tyson Chandler's offensive efficiency as of late, noting that the 7'1 Knicks center is averaging a career best in points (12.0 PPG) and leading the league in field goal percentage at 71.8%. 
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Odds & Ends: Udoh, Howard, Knicks, Warrick

November 16th, 2012 at 10:24pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Friday evening:

  • Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel writes that Bucks center Ekpe Udoh is finding ways to contribute outside of the stat sheet.
  • Josh Howard is looking forward to helping the injury-plagued Timberwolves. (AP link via NBA.com)
  • Al Iannazzone of Newsday.com writes that the Knicks' age has worked in their favor so far as they've begun the season 6-0.
  • The Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell believes that Hakim Warrick, acquired this week from the Hornets for Matt Carroll, can help the Bobcats this season.
  • Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer writes that the Cavs' Tristan Thompson has been more active this season.
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