Zoran Dragic Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Witte, Young, Dragic

August 31st, 2014 at 5:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Sixers director of player personnel, Courtney Witte, is leaving to take a scouting position with the Clippers, Dei Lynam of CSNPhilly.com reports. According to Lynam’s source, Witte had been told by the Sixers that his contract wasn’t going to be renewed, and that the search for Witte’s replacement has been “ongoing for some time.”

Here’s more from around the league:

The league has trended towards smaller lineups the last few seasons, but John Zitzler of Basketball Insiders takes a look at five centers that are on the rise. Zitzler believes bigger things are in store for DeMarcus Cousins, Andre Drummond, Jonas Valanciunas, DeAndre Jordan, and Nikola Vucevic.
In an interview with Michael Rand of the Star Tribune, Thaddeus Young was asked how the rebuilding process differs between the Wolves and the Sixers. Young said, “I think the situation in Philly is much different. It’s the same process, but this team is much more competitive and it’s a better roster. Philly, they were getting rid of everybody and getting worse. But I think [Philadelphia GM Sam Hinkie] is doing a great job and has made some big moves.”
Zoran Dragic has re-negotiated his contract with Unicaja Malaga, reports La Opinion de Malaga (Translation by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Dragic’s contract has a buyout clause that he can exercise next June if he decides to leave for the NBA, Carchia notes. The Pacers are reportedly among the teams eyeing Dragic.

And-Ones: Wiggins, Dragic, Ingles

August 30th, 2014 at 10:33pm CST by Cray Allred

While a dark cloud hung over the Wolves franchise from the moment Kevin Love made it known he was prepared to move on, Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reports that the team’s fan base has been energized by the package Minnesota received in the Love trade. The Wolves just set a team record for most season-ticket packages sold in a week, after netting Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and Thaddeus Young in the franchise-altering move. Here’s more from Minnesota and the rest of the league:

Wiggins tells Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune that he is happy to have been traded to the Wolves, where he will be thrust into a much bigger role than he would have carved out with the superstar-heavy Cavs.“I wanted to go to a place where I’m pushed to do a lot and become a special piece for the team. It’ll help me reach my potential,” said Wiggins. “I said I wanted to play for a team that wanted me, and now I’m here and I feel nothing but love.”
The Pacers are one of the teams interested in Zoran Dragic, reports Orazio Cauchi of Sportando. The younger brother of Goran Dragic is under contract in Spain. It is unclear if the guard is poised to exercise any sort of escape clause that would allow him to come stateside, although he’s reportedly eager to someday play in the Association.
Joe Ingles is generating interest from multiple NBA teams, tweets David Pick of Eurobasket.com. Pick says the Australian wing, who spent last season with Maccabi Tel Aviv, will need to perform well at the FIBA World Cup to get a shot.

Int’l Notes: Dragic, Andersen, Moser

August 29th, 2014 at 4:25pm CST by Zachary Links

Not everyone on the Dream Team can be a Hall of Famer, and Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders goes back through history to isolate the worst-ever Team USA members. Among those earning the dubious distinction are Kirk Hinrich (2006), Raef LaFrentz (2002), and the 1998 roster, which was made up of college players thanks to the NBA lockout. Speaking of international competition, here’s today’s look around the globe…

NBA teams continue to eye Zoran Dragic, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com, who writes in a full story that the younger brother of Goran Dragic “badly wants” to play in the Association. Still, Zoran signed a two-year extension last month with Unicaja Malaga of Spain, which Stein says offers the 25-year-old greater financial security. The Rockets appeared to be at the front of the line for the younger Dragic as of May.
Australian center David Andersen is eyeing a return to the NBA and has kept his dance card open beyond the World Cup, writes Roy Ward of the Sydney Morning Herald. The 34-year-old, who has been traded three times within the NBA, last appeared in the Association with New Orleans in 2010/11. Across 103 career games, Andersen averaged 4.9 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 12.3 minutes per contest.
Despite lots of interest from teams overseas, Celtics summer camp standout Mike Moser will be in an NBA training camp next month, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Dragic, Tolliver, Bogdanovic, Aldridge

July 9th, 2014 at 11:30pm CST by Cray Allred

Dahntay Jones has met with the Clippers, and has received interest from the Knicks, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Here’s more from around the league:

Zoran Dragic has signed a two-year contract extension with his Spanish League team, the Euroleague announced (H/T Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). NBA teams including the Rockets had shown interest in the brother of Goran Dragic. The original deal had a $500K NBA buyout clause for the upcoming season, although it is unclear if the extra years will feature the same flexibility.
Free agent Anthony Tolliver has been in serious discussions with six teams, including the Clippers, Cavs, Pistons, Spurs, Wizards, and Hornets, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.
Bogdan Bogdanovic and the Suns signed a declaration that the 2014 draft pick will not play in the NBA this season, a formality that clears his rookie scale cap hold from the team’s books, tweets Mark Deeks of ShamSports. Bogdanovic is signed overseas and can’t opt out until at least 2016.
LaMarcus Aldridge‘s choice to seek a new deal with the Blazers as a free agent next summer was one of two options presented him by Portland owner Paul Allen and GM Neil Olshey last month, reports Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. The Blazers brass suggested the All-Star consider a three-year, $55MM extension he could sign immediately, or wait to become eligible for a five-year, $108MM max deal as an unrestricted free agent. “I don’t want it to be perceived that I’m not happy or I’m not staying on because I’m not signing a three-year deal,” Aldridge said. “It’s just financially smarter to wait … and I’m looking forward to signing the five-year deal when the chance comes.”
Considering the recent max offers extended to Gordon Hayward and Chandler Parsons, it seems certain that Klay Thompson will also merit a max deal when he becomes a free agent. Tim Kawakami of Bay Area News Group hears that the Warriors have budgeted measures to find room for the shooting guard, should he not be traded away in a deal for Kevin Love.

Rockets, Others Interested In Zoran Dragic

May 14th, 2014 at 9:07am CST by Chuck Myron

The Rockets are the leaders among many NBA teams interested in Spanish league shooting guard Zoran Dragic, reports Lefteris Moutis of Eurohoops.net. Unicaja Malaga is likely to pick up its team option on Dragic this summer, but the contract includes a $500K NBA buyout. That figure is within the NBA’s Excluded International Player Payment Amount of $600K for next season, so the buyout probably won’t be a stumbling block. An NBA deal is more likely to hinge on playing time for the brother of Suns guard Goran Dragic, as Zoran Dragic is seeking a significant role right away, Moutis writes.

Dragic played for Houston’s summer league team in 2012, around the time his brother left the Rockets to sign with the Suns. It’s unlikely he’ll play in an NBA summer league again this year, Moutis writes. He’s set to undergo hernia surgery after the Spanish league playoffs, and that will knock him out for a month. Once healthy, he’ll join the Slovenian national team as it prepares for this summer’s World Cup of basketball, as Moutis documents.

An enhanced role in Unicaja Malaga’s offense allowed Dragic’s numbers to jump this season, as he put up 10.6 points on 8.1 shots per game after posting just 4.9 PPG on 3.9 shots a contest in 2012/13. He also improved his three-point stroke, going from woeful 22.5% accuracy last year to 32.7% this season, but that still makes him a below-average shooter who’d seemingly have trouble fitting in with Houston, which places a premium on the trey. He went undrafted in 2011 and turns 25 in June, so it’s worth wondering just how much potential he possesses. Perhaps teams are considering him with an eye toward his brother, who can become a free agent next summer.

And-Ones: Draft, Dragic, Neal

March 12th, 2014 at 10:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The NBA draft is still more than three months away but the debate on who will be the first player taken rages on. According to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times, scouts have told him that if the draft were held today, the first overall selection would either be Kansas center Joel Embiid or Duke forward Jabari Parker. While Embiid and Parker represented the top tier in this poll and Andrew Wiggins, Julius Randle and Dante Exum represented the second tier, the six through ten choices were all over the board according to the article. There is a chance that neither Embiid, if his back proves too problematic, or Parker, if he decides to play one more season as he’s hinted, will even declare for this year’s draft.

International Notes: Gordon, Simmons, Wallace

August 17th, 2012 at 3:26pm CST by Luke Adams

With things relatively quiet on the NBA front these days, we'll keep track of today's international news and rumors right here….

Undrafted rookie free agent Drew Gordon has signed with Serbia's Partizan Belgrade, according to Sportando. The 6'9" forward out of New Mexico was ranked as this year's 56th-best prospect by ESPN.com's Chad Ford and played for the Mavericks at the Las Vegas Summer League, but won't be heading to camp with an NBA team.
Former NBA big man Cedric Simmons has signed with Enel Brindisi in Italy, according to Sportando. Simmons played for the Hornets, Cavs, Bulls, and Kings from 2006 to 2009.

Earlier updates:

Greek's Panathinaikos reportedly has some interest in Ben Wallace, as Emiliano Carchia of Sportando notes. I imagine it's unlikely anything comes of this, since Wallace is said to be debating between retiring or returning to the Pistons.
Goran Dragic's brother Zoran Dragic played in the Las Vegas Summer League for the Rockets, but won't be coming to the NBA at this point. As Wendell Maxey writes at Ridiculous Upside, Spanish reports suggest Zoran is close to signing a two-year deal with Unicaja Malaga.
Ilkan Karaman, who was selected 57th overall by the Nets in the June draft, has officially signed with Fenerbache Ulker Istanbul, the team announced (link via Sportando). Brooklyn will retain the Turkish forward's rights if and when he eventually makes his way over to the NBA.