Portland Trail Blazers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Blazers Offer Max Deal To Chandler Parsons

July 1st, 2016 at 2:06am CST by Luke Adams

FRIDAY, 2:06am: Parsons was “really impressed” with the Blazers’ presentation, which focused on the team’s long-term vision for him, a source tells Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com. Parsons will continue his free agent tour, meeting with the Grizzlies on Friday, but he’s “intrigued” by the idea of joining Portland, a playoff team with a young core, MacMahon writes.

THURSDAY, 11:55pm: The Trail Blazers got a meeting with Chandler Parsons during the first hour of free agency, and the team didn’t waste any time in putting a four-year, maximum-salary contract offer on the table, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link).

Parsons had been seeking a max deal, making a reunion with the Mavericks unlikely. It remains to be seen whether Parsons’ other suitors, such as the Lakers and Grizzlies, will be willing to make a similar offer, but the veteran forward has a meeting lined up with Memphis, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein (via Twitter).

While a max salary for Parsons will obviously be expensive, the fact that he only has five years of NBA experience means it won’t be as pricey as it would be for some other free agents. Parsons’ maximum salary for the coming season will fall in the $22MM range.

FA Rumors: DeRozan, Crawford, Clippers, Dudley

July 1st, 2016 at 12:47am CST by Luke Adams

Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News has updates on a pair of free agent shooting guards, reporting (via Twitter) that the Sixers and Lakers have inquired tonight on DeMar DeRozan, who is meeting with the Raptors in Los Angeles. Toronto remains the strong favorite to re-sign DeRozan. Wolfson also tweets that Jamal Crawford has received calls tonight from the Sixers, Knicks, Clippers, Magic, and Heat.

Here’s more from across the NBA:

In addition to reaching out to Crawford tonight, the Clippers also met with Austin Rivers in Orlando and Jeff Green in Miami, doing due diligence on their pending free agents, tweets Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. After meeting with the Clips, Rivers is expected to talk to the Knicks and possibly the Trail Blazers on Friday, per Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link).
The Nets, Jazz, and Suns are among the teams in pursuit of Jared Dudley, with the Wizards also in the hunt to bring back the veteran sharpshooter, tweets ESPN’s Marc Stein. Utah had a meeting with Dudley tonight, according to Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).
League sources continue to tell Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link) that the Kings may be preparing a “significant” offer for restricted free agent Dion Waiters. The Thunder would have the opportunity to match an offer sheet, but may not be aggressive in trying to retain Waiters now that they have Victor Oladipo.
The Thunder were indeed among the teams to reach out to Al Horford tonight, per Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. A Thursday report indicated that Oklahoma City has its eye on Horford as part of its pitch to keep Kevin Durant.
Speaking of Durant, during The Vertical’s free agency show tonight, Wojnarowski said that Jay-Z and Roc Nation tried to push Durant to take a free agent meeting with the Nets, but KD dismissed that idea (Twitter link via Anthony Puccio of NetsDaily).

FA Rumors: Turner, Batum, Gasol, Lin, Kings

July 1st, 2016 at 12:08am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks, Bulls, Pelicans, Mavericks, Lakers, and Grizzlies are in the mix for Evan Turner, a source tells Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. No meetings have been finalized yet for Turner, but it sounds like he’ll meet with at least a few of those suitors. According to Deveney, there’s also still a possibility that the Celtics will re-enter the picture for Turner.

Here are more free agent updates from around the NBA:

Unsurprisingly, Nicolas Batum, who has generated interest from Dallas, New York, Charlotte, and a few other teams, is seeking a max contract, tweets Deveney.
According to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com, Trail Blazers and the Timberwolves are expected to be among the suitors for Pau Gasol, who has also been linked to Golden State, New York, and San Antonio.
Jeremy Lin‘s price tag is expected to be in the neighborhood of $12-14MM per year, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter).
The Kings have expressed interest in Dion Waiters and Allen Crabbe, per Wojnarowski (link via RealGM.com). Sacramento has also reached out to Courtney Lee, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com.
Jazz free agent Trevor Booker is drawing interest from multiple teams and is expected to have a starting salary around $10MM, sources tell Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).

Eastern FA Rumors: Bazemore, Crabbe, Nets, Bulls

June 30th, 2016 at 11:46pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are a few late-night free agent rumors from around the Eastern Conference:

If the Hawks hope to re-sign Kent Bazemore, the team will have to be prepared to give him a mammoth raise. According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link), teams that have inquired on bazemore are under the impression that it might take $19-20MM per year to sign him.
The Nets are making a push for restricted free agent Allen Crabbe, tweets David Aldridge of NBA.com. The Trail Blazers have maintained that they’ll match any offer for Crabbe, but Brooklyn has the cap space to make it hard on Portland.
Another guard on the Nets‘ radar is Brandon Jennings, who will work out for the club on Friday, according to ESPN’s Chris Broussard (via Twitter). Vincent Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) has heard that Jennings is seeking more than $10MM annually.
While no deal may be reported or announced immediately, the Bulls expect to re-sign E’Twaun Moore without too much drama, per Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago (Twitter link).
The first call Courtney Lee received when free agency opened was from the Knicks, with Phil Jackson calling him personally, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders.

Multiple Teams Interested In Harkless

June 30th, 2016 at 10:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Dwight Howard is seeking a contract starting at $24MM annually, a league source tells Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link). Howard is expected to conduct his meetings in Atlanta, with the Celtics and Hawks the first two teams scheduled to meet with the big man, Watkins notes. The Blazers and Hornets have also expressed interest in Howard, who is an unrestricted free agent, the scribe adds.

The Pistons, Wizards, Bulls, Lakers and Mavericks are among the teams interested in Trail Blazers restricted free agent Maurice Harkless, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders reports (via Twitter).The 23-year-old appeared in 78 games this season and averaged 6.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 18.7 minutes per contest.

Mavs, Heat, Blazers Vying For Hassan Whiteside

June 30th, 2016 at 7:43pm CST by Luke Adams

7:43pm: The Mavericks are emerging as the frontrunners for Whiteside, Wojnarowski tweets.

2:06pm: The Trail Blazers also remain in the mix for Whiteside, having scheduled a meeting with him that will take place within the next 24 hours, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Jackson reports that Whiteside hasn’t set up any sit-downs with suitors outside of Miami, Dallas, and Portland.

One source who spoke to the Heat tells Jackson that there’s growing sentiment within the organization to offer Whiteside a max contract, though the team hasn’t made a final decision on that yet.

1:56pm: With midnight fast approaching, Hassan Whiteside‘s focus is centered on the Mavericks and the Heat, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter), who adds that a decision could come quickly once the calendar turns to July. While Wojnarowski doesn’t explicitly say that Whiteside has narrowed his choice to Dallas or Miami, it sounds like those two clubs are the current frontrunners.

We’ve heard the Lakers, Celtics, Hornets, and Trail Blazers identified as other teams with interest in Whiteside, but the Mavericks are the team set to meet with him shortly after the recruiting period gets underway on July 1st. According to a report from Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, the Mavs will “absolutely” put a maximum-salary offer on the table for Whiteside, who is one of the club’s top two targets, along with Mike Conley.

The Heat have the cap room necessary to retain Whiteside, no matter what his asking price, but some reports have indicated that not all members of Miami’s front office are sold on the idea of a max deal for Whiteside. With free agency about to get underway, and the possibility of losing Whiteside looming over the franchise, I wonder if the Heat will bite the bullet and make a max offer.

Whichever team lands Whiteside will be getting a rim-protector and rebounder, who averaged 11.8 boards and a league-leading 3.7 blocks per game last season, in just 29.1 minutes per contest. Whiteside also contributed on the offensive end, scoring 14.2 points per game, with a .606 FG%.

Latest Free Agency News

June 30th, 2016 at 6:10pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Trail Blazers have a face-to-face meeting scheduled in Los Angeles on Friday with Parsons and Portland guard Damian Lillard is expected to be in attendance, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group relays (via Twitter).

Blazers Amend Cliff Alexander's Guarantee Date

June 30th, 2016 at 10:16am CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have amended the language in Cliff Alexander‘s contract, moving his salary guarantee date from June 30th to July 25th, reports Jason Quick of CSNNW.com (via Twitter). The move will allow Portland to delay its decision on Alexander until after the free agent period — the team could cut him or guarantee his salary later, depending on how the summer plays out.

Latest Free Agency News

June 29th, 2016 at 8:02pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Trail Blazers are potentially interested in signing unrestricted free agent center Dwight Howard to a short-term deal, Sam Amick of USA Today relays.
The Blazers are expected to be very active in free agency this offseason, but one player who isn’t on the team’s radar is power forward Ryan Anderson, Jason Quick of CSNNW.com relays (on Twitter). Anderson is expected to be in high-demand around the league this summer.

Blazers Extend QOs To Crabbe, Leonard, Harkless

June 29th, 2016 at 8:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have ensured that their three players eligible for restricted free agents will indeed becomes RFAs when July begins. According to Jason Quick of CSNNW.com, Portland has issued qualifying offers to Allen Crabbe, Meyers Leonard, and Maurice Harkless, giving the team the right of first refusal on all three players.

Of the trio, Crabbe appears poised to cash in with the biggest deal this summer, after a breakout 2015/16 season that saw him set new career highs in PPG (10.3), FG% (.459), and several other categories, while shooting 39.3% on 3.5 three-point attempts per game. Three-and-D wings like Crabbe – whose qualifying offer is worth $2.725MM – should do well on the open market this year, so it’s no surprise that he’s drawing interest from several teams already.

Ian Begley of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that the 76ers, Nets, and Kings are among the teams with interest in Crabbe. If he signs an offer sheet with one of those clubs, or another suitor, the Blazers will have the opportunity to match it and bring him back.

The same can be said about Leonard and Harkless, who each receive qualifying offers exceeding $4MM. They’ll have the option of simply signing the QO (which is essentially a one-year contract offer), working out a new contract with the Blazers, or signing an offer sheet elsewhere, which Portland could match.

Both players were solid rotation pieces for the Blazers in 2015/16, though Harkless continued to struggle to shoot from outside, while Leonard’s increased usage came with a career-worst .448 FG%. Of course, Leonard’s dip in field goal percentage was partly the result of an uptick in three-point attempts (3.7 per game), on which he shot 37.7%. His ability to make outside shots and grab boards should generate plenty of interest around the league.