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Ford’s Latest: Cavs, Magic, Wizards, Suns, Kings

June 25th, 2013 at 2:37pm CST by Luke Adams

ESPN.com's Chad Ford has published version 6.0 of his 2013 mock draft, with just over 48 hours remaining until draft night. As he has been for all six of Ford's mocks, Nerlens Noel remains in the No. 1 spot. The ESPN.com scribe wrote a lengthy piece last night on why he thinks the Cavaliers are still likely to select Noel, and provides details on plenty of other first-round teams in his new mock, so let's check out the highlights….

  • The Magic are prepared to leap on Noel if he's there at No. 2, but if the Cavs take him, Orlando's choice becomes trickier. Ford continues to hear that the Magic are leaning toward Victor Oladipo over Ben McLemore and others., though Cody Zeller could be a dark horse.
  • Otto Porter appears to be ahead of Anthony Bennett for the Wizards at No. 3.
  • Although Ford has the Suns selecting McLemore at No. 5, he says Phoenix prefers Oladipo and also likes Zeller and Michael Carter-Williams.
  • If Porter or Alex Len are still on the board at No. 6, the Pelicans will probably draft one of the two, but if not, the team may target a point guard like Carter-Williams or Trey Burke, says Ford.
  • C.J. McCollum has emerged as a potential selection for the Kings at No. 7.
  • The Trail Blazers wouldn't be opposed to drafting Carter-Williams if he slides to No. 10, since he has the necessary to play alongside Damian Lillard, according to Ford.
  • If the Cavs end up acquiring the Mavericks' 13th overall pick, Cleveland would probably use it to draft Sergey Karasev.
  • Ford has Shabazz Muhammad slipping all the way to No. 18 (Hawks) in this version of his mock.
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Odds & Ends: Bynum, Ginobili, Heat, Joerger

June 25th, 2013 at 12:18pm CST by Luke Adams

It's already been a busy day of news and rumors, and things don't figure to slow down anytime soon. With the draft fast approaching and free agency to follow shortly thereafter, the NBA's roster-movement season is in full swing. As we try not to let anything slip through the cracks, let's round up a few Tuesday odds and ends from around the Association:

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Draft Rumors: No. 1 Pick, Blazers, Kings

June 25th, 2013 at 12:12am CST by Zachary Links

The draft is right around the corner and Chad Ford and Marc Stein of ESPN.com have the latest rumblings as we approach Thursday..

  • The Cavaliers reached out to the Trail Blazers in an attempt to land LaMarcus Aldridge for the Nos. 1 and 19 picks but the Blazers quickly rebuffed them, sources say.  Late Monday night, we heard that the Blazers, Thunder, and T-Wolves have been the most proactive in trying to deal for the No. 1 pick.
  • The Kings want a second first-round pick and are using Jimmer Fredette as bait.  Sources say Sacramento has reached out to several teams in the mid-to-late first round in an attempt to secure another pick and the Pacers and Jazz are potential destinations for the guard.  Kings coach Mike Malone is high on Tim Hardaway Jr. and Tony Snell, but the Kings feel that they can get them much lower in the draft.
  • In addition to the Pacers' Fredette discussions, sources say Indiana has made the No. 23 pick available in hopes that they can unload Gerald Green's contract.
  • The Nets are shopping MarShon Brooks and sources say they want a first-round pick in return.  If the T-Wolves give up the No. 26 pick, they'll probably have a deal on draft night.  Yesterday it was reported that the two sides have discussed Brooks.
  • The Wolves want to move higher up in the draft to select Victor Oladipo.  They're offering Derrick Williams, the No. 9 and the No. 26 pick to move up, but so far haven't found a taker.
  • The Rockets badly want to move Aaron Brooks or Carlos Delfino in conjunction with the draft before they have to just let them go in order to create as much cap space as possible for Dwight Howard.
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Draft Notes: Nets, Hawks, Franklin, Oladipo

June 24th, 2013 at 5:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier today, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported that the Nuggets have made their first-round pick (27th overall) available via trade, in the hopes of acquiring a future first-rounder or moving down to the second round. But it sounds like Denver isn't the only team potentially interested in such a deal. Wojnarowski tweets that the more he talks to teams drafting in the late-20s, the less enthusiasm he hears from them about keeping their picks. Here are more draft news, notes, and rumors, with just over 72 hours remaining until things get underway:

  • Nets GM Billy King echoes Wojnarowski's point, telling Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (Twitter link) that plenty of GMs are looking to trade out of the draft, but they may not have many willing trade partners.
  • The Hawks are interested in using their 17th and 18th overall picks in an attempt to move up in the draft, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. According to Spears, Atlanta has had trade conversations with at least one team picking in the top five. Spears adds that the Hawks, who will have a final workout tomorrow featuring Jamaal Franklin, are intrigued by Shabazz Muhammad.
  • Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) asked NBA GMs and scouts to rate the top 50 prospects in the 2013 draft using a 1-10 scale.  Ford then took those scores, averaged them, and prorated them on a 100-point scale.  Somewhat surprisingly, the top-rated player was not Nerlens Noel but instead Indiana's Victor Oladipo.  
  • Franklin met and worked out with the Bucks today, according to the team's official PR Twitter account. Franklin wasn't part of the team's group workout for possible second-rounders (Twitter link).
  • Michael Carter-Williams worked out for the Sixers over the weekend, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
  • TNT's David Aldridge has unveiled his mock draft at NBA.com, with a surprise name at the top.
  • The Pacers announced that their workout schedule for prospects on Tuesday.  Reggie Bullock (North Carolina), A.J. Davis (James Madison), and Greg Echenique (Creighton) are among the players participating.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

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Odds & Ends: Spurs, Heat, Cavs, Eliyahu, White

June 23rd, 2013 at 12:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

For as compelling as the Finals were, it's a shame that we almost certainly won't see the Heat and Spurs clash again next season without at least a few changes to their rosters. Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News tackles a half dozen key questions for the Spurs amid uncertainty for soon-to-be free agents Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter and Gary Neal. In a separate piece, McDonald examines the prospects each Spurs player has of sticking around. I examined the offseason ahead for the Heat earlier today, and Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel follows with a look at what it will cost to keep each player on the Miami roster. The only constant in the NBA is change, and here's the latest on the league's comings and goings:

  • As expected, the Cavaliers met with both Nerlens Noel and Alex Len this week, as Bob Finnan of The News-Herald confirms amongst his league roundup. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, who argues that Otto Porter should get the nod at No. 1, notes that Porter, Ben McLemore and Victor Oladipo all worked out for the Cavs in the past few days.
  • The "overwhelming belief" is that the Cavs won't trade the top pick, Lloyd writes.
  • Lior Eliyahu, a former second-round pick whose NBA rights are owned by the Timberwolves, has parted ways with the Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv, Sportando's Emiliano Carchia reports with an assist from colleague David Pick. 
  • NBA contracts aren't necessarily guaranteed in case of mental disability, but Royce White's deal with the Rockets is, as Mark Deeks of ShamSports (Twitter link) points out. That means the Rockets wouldn't save any money if they waived him because of his psychological disorders.
  • The Bucks are looking for a shooting guard, and they'll bring in Jamaal Franklin for a workout Monday, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times.
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Draft Rumors: Jazz, McCollum, Bennett

June 22nd, 2013 at 8:29pm CST by Spencer Lund

The Jazz have a lot of question marks this summer, but with the 14th, 21st, and 46th picks in what many consider a wild card "down" draft, their chances of landing a quality starter with a high upside leaves a lot to be desired. 

Brad Rock of the Desert News writes about how rare it is to land anyone of merit with the 14th pick in the draft. Sure, there are exceptions, Rock mentions Tim Hardaway's selection by the Warriors with the 14th pick in 1989, but usually there's a dearth of talent in that position, with the pick being "unproductive at worst, respectable at best."

Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune reiterates what Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld wrote in his NBA AM piece: the Jazz will select a point guard, but there aren't a lot of options at their current picks. With few options for a point guard selected in their range, it's unlikely the Jazz will find a difference maker at point guard. When Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey was asked if he would be surprised if the draft came and went without the Jazz selecting a point guard, he said "Not at all."

But Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun said there's a lot of talent at point guard in the late first early second rounds, mentioning Dennis Schroeder, Myck Kabongo, Peyton Siva, Pierre Jackson, Isaiah Canaan, Nate Wolters, and Phil Pressey (Twitter). Here are a few more tidbits from the Jazz and the rest of the league with just five days before the 2013 draft. 

  • Gordon Monson of the Salt Lake Tribune believes the Jazz should move up if they're looking for a difference maker, largely mirroring what his colleague Oram wrote; the Jazz aren't going to land anything special, unless they luck out, if they stay put. 
  • ESPN.com's Chad Ford has a list of the 10 green room invites for ESPN's Thursday draft coverage: Nerlens Noel, Victor Oladipo, Otto Porter, Alex Len, Anthony Bennett, Ben McLemore, Trey Burke, Michael Carter-Williams, Cody Zeller & C.J. McCollum.
  • The selections perfectly align with the top 10 in Ford's latest mock draft, but Ford mentions the NBA is likely to add some more green room attendees as we get closer to the big night, and even offers some guesses as to who else will be invited (Twitter). 
  • About one of those confirmed green room invites, John Rohde of the Oklahoman has a piece on how far McCollum has come since he was a middle school phenom in Oklahoma City.
  • Another green room invite, Bennett, visited the Bobcats today, but he couldn't work out, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Bennett is recovering from surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff on his left shoulder, but he'll be ready to play in August. 
  • Marcus Fuller of the St. Paul Pioneer Press ranks the Timberwolves' 24 years of draft picks–including Kevin Garnett, Ricky Rubio and Kevin Love–in the days preceding their 26th pick in this, their 25th draft anniversary.
  • As the draft approaches, Scott Agyness of Pacers.com writes that University of Kansas 7-footer Jeff Withey (represented by Darren Matsubara) participated in his last predraft workout with the Pacers today.
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Draft Workout Updates: Friday

June 21st, 2013 at 10:30pm CST by Luke Adams

With just six days left until the 2013 draft, NBA teams continue to bring in prospects to work them out and gather as much information as they can. Here are the latest updates on workouts taking place today, over the weekend, and early next week:

  • Allen Crabbe will work out Tuesday with the Bucks and Wednesday for the Nets, reports Scott Howard Cooper of NBA.com. Crabbe, widely projected as a late first-rounder at best, made it a priority to visit the Bucks, who have the No. 15 pick (Twitter links).
  • Mason Plumlee wasn't on the list the Pistons released of players with whom the team has met, but he was scheduled to work out for Detroit on Friday, according to MLive's David Mayo.
  • We heard about Vander Blue's workout with the Bucks today (below), and Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel notes that Blue has also auditioned for the Mavs, Spurs, Hawks, Sixers, Pistons and Magic, with another workout on tap for Monday with the Grizzlies.

Earlier updates:

  • Anthony Bennett will visit the Bobcats on Saturday, though his injured rotator cuff will prevent him from working out, tweets Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.
  • Pelicans GM Dell Demps traveled Friday to get a close look at Victor Oladipo, sources confirmed to John Reid of The Times Picayune.
  • Keith Langlois of Pistons.com passed along a list of players who met with the Pistons this past week: Trey Burke, Michael Carter-Williams, C.J. McCollum, Cody Zeller, Derrick Nix, Dexter Strickland, Augusto Cesar Lima, Jared Berggren, Kenny Boynton and Karron Johnson (All Twitter links).
  • The Kings updated the workout schedule on their website, which shows Shabazz Muhammad, Doug Anderson, A.J. Davis, John Dickson, Mfon Udofia and Kwame Vaughn coming in Saturday. McCollum will be in for a workout on Monday, Cowbell Kingdom's James Ham tweets.
  • Today's workout for the Timberwolves is expected to be the last one for the team, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune, adding that Mason Plumlee, Kelly Olynyk, Colton Iverson, and Christian Watford were in attendance.
  • Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution passes along a couple tweets from Gorgui Dieng, surmising that the big man appears to be in Atlanta for a workout with the Hawks.
  • The Suns' workout today is headlined by Glen Rice Jr., according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, who has the full list of participants in a pair of tweets.
  • Vander Blue, Grant Jerrett, Brock Motum, Dejan Musli, Nemanja Nedovic, and Andrew Smith are working out for the Bucks today, according to the team's PR Twitter feed.
  • Tim Hardaway Jr. and Erick Green will be among the prospects working out for the Nets on Monday, the team announced in a press release.
  • Hardaway Jr. was also among the prospects who worked out for the Clippers today, along with Tony Snell, Ricky Ledo, and Reggie Bullock (link via Eric Patten of Clippers.com).
  • The Pacers announced today that they'll work out a a handful of prospects tomorrow: Matt Dellavedova, Angel Sharpless, Jamaal Franklin, Zeke Marshall, and Jeff Withey.
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Amico On Draft, Cavs, Wolves, Wizards, Pierce

June 21st, 2013 at 5:59pm CST by Luke Adams

Sam Amico's latest NBA Report for FOX Sports Ohio touches on a few topics of note related to the draft and potential trades, so let's dive in and round up the highlights….

  • Interest around the league is building in lottery picks, particularly in the top three, according to Amico. We've heard for weeks that there's not a lot of high-end talent in this draft and that it's not the year you necessarily want a top-three pick, but perhaps all that chatter has reduced the potential trade value of those selections.
  • The Cavaliers had been trying to work on something big, but their recent trade talks have been merely "exploratory (and) touching base, but nothing serious." The Timberwolves are one team Cleveland has spoken to, says Amico, adding that Wolves brass is confident that a package of Derrick Williams and the No. 9 pick can net a top-three pick in return.
  • Victor Oladipo probably isn't in the mix for the Cavs' No. 1 pick, but he had an "explosive" workout for the team and could be considered if Cleveland trades down. Ben McLemore's workout with the Cavs was less impressive, according to Amico's sources.
  • The Wizards aren't completely sold on Otto Porter, and are deciding between him and Anthony Bennett, Amico hears.
  • The Bucks have talked to the Celtics about a possible Paul Pierce trade, says Amico. There have been rumblings that the Cavs could be in the mix for Pierce as well, but Amico hasn't been able to confirm any Cleveland/Pierce rumors.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Cavs Rumors: Draft, Workouts, Karasev, Trades

June 18th, 2013 at 4:03pm CST by Luke Adams

As I wrote last week when I previewed the Cavaliers' offseason, Cleveland figures to be one of the league's most active teams this summer, particularly in the trade market. With four draft picks in the top 33 (including No. 1 overall) and a good chunk of cap space available, there are plenty of options available to the Cavs this summer. Here are the latest rumblings out of Cleveland on how the club may look to improve its roster:

  • While the Cavs remain undecided on who they'll pick first overall, it won't be Anthony Bennett or Victor Oladipo unless they trade down, sources tell Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio.
  • That leaves Nerlens Noel, Otto Porter, Alex Len, and Ben McLemore as potential options for the first overall pick, and the Cavs figure to meet with all those players this week. Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer passes along a report from ESPN.com's Andy Katz (via Twitter) suggesting that Porter, McLemore, and Oladipo will work out for the Cavs on Wednesday, while the injured Noel and Len will interview with the club on the weekend.
  • In addition to the aforementioned players, one other prospect is under consideration by the Cavs with the No. 1 pick, sources tell Amico, though it's unclear who the player is. Cleveland will continue to look into trading the top pick as well.
  • The Cavs are also exploring trade options involving their two second-round picks (31st and 33rd), according to Amico. The team could attempt to package those two picks for a third first-rounder, or could throw the 19th pick into the mix as well in an attempt to move up in the first round.
  • We heard from ESPN.com's Chad Ford earlier today that the Cavs like Sergey Karasev, and Amico echoes that report, also noting that the Russian forward may not be on the board when Cleveland picks at No. 19.
  • Cleveland has recently engaged in trade talks involving a "viable" small forward, a source tells Amico.
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Ford’s Latest: Cavs, Bobcats, McLemore, Mavs

June 18th, 2013 at 3:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Echoing an overnight report from Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio, ESPN.com's Chad Ford says in his latest mock draft that the Cavaliers remain undecided on their first overall pick. While the team appears likely to keep the pick, a number of players are still being considered, including Nerlens Noel and Alex Len. According to Ford, Noel remains the favorite because he fits the sort of high-upside profile the Cavs typically target, but there are some in the organization who prefer Len.

Here are several more highlights from version 5.0 of Ford's 2013 mock:

  • Ford hears that Victor Oladipo has the upper hand over Ben McLemore for the Magic at No. 2, though the team would strongly consider Noel if the Cavs passed on him.
  • The Bobcats will likely be deciding between Anthony Bennett and Len at No. 4, if both players are available, but Cody Zeller could be a dark horse, says Ford.
  • Teams are worried about McLemore after a series of unimpressive workouts, and it's possible he slips past the Suns at No. 5, according to Ford.
  • The Timberwolves appear to have narrowed down their choice at No. 9 to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Shabazz Muhammad.
  • The Sixers figure to target size at No. 11, with Zeller, Mason Plumlee, and Lucas Nogueira among the possibilities.
  • Assuming the Mavericks don't trade the 13th pick, though it's very likely they will, a player like Sergey Karasev, who could be stashed overseas for a year or two, is a strong possibility, says Ford.
  • Karasev also interests the Cavaliers at No. 19, though Cleveland likes Reggie Bullock as a potential consolation prize, according to Ford.
  • The Jazz appear to be a good bet to target a big man at No. 14 and a point guard at No. 21.
  • Ford continues to hear that the Knicks have a "strong affinity" for Tony Mitchell.
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