Portland Trail Blazers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Stotts, Monroe, Waiters, Mitchell

October 16th, 2015 at 1:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The future of Terry Stotts is unresolved beyond this season, as the Trail Blazers have yet to pick up the team option on his deal for 2016/17, but Blazers players, including Damian Lillard, are fully supportive of the coach, as The Oregonian’s Jason Quick details.

“As long as I am here,” Lillard said, “I would like him to be here.”

Lillard signed a five-year extension this summer that will run through 2020/21, and the Blazers are making him the centerpiece of their retool, but time will tell if Portland retains Stotts as one of its building blocks. See more on the Blazers amid the latest from around the Northwest Division:

Greg Monroe narrowed his choices to the Bucks and Trail Blazers before selecting Milwaukee in free agency this summer, according to Michael Lee of Yahoo Sports, who recounts Monroe’s decision making that led up to his three-year max deal with the Bucks. That means he first eliminated the Knicks and Lakers, who, as Lee notes, also met with him.
The Thunder aren’t worried about making too many commitments to middling talents that would be tough to build around if Kevin Durant bolts next summer, and instead they’re focused on building a stable supporting cast around Durant for the long term, writes Royce Young of ESPN.com. That, plus Oklahoma City’s penchant for rewarding players who want to stick around, helps explain the team’s reported willingness to explore an extension for Dion Waiters, as Young examines.
Sam Mitchell didn’t feel a burning desire to coach again when Flip Saunders called to offer him a job with the Timberwolves last year, Mitchell tells Sportsnet’s Michael Grange. Saunders nonetheless made a convincing case, and Mitchell joined as an assistant, which led to his promotion to interim head coach when cancer treatment forced Saunders to take a leave of absence. “He thought I did a good job in the media — I thought I did an excellent job — but he said to me ‘you’re always going to be a basketball coach,’” Mitchell said of his conversation with Saunders.

Henry Walker Signs With Amerileague

October 15th, 2015 at 12:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

Five-year NBA veteran Henry Walker has signed with the Amerileague, the league announced (hat tip to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders). It’s a milestone of sorts for the six-team startup minor league, as Walker is the first of its signees who saw regular season action in the NBA last season. Walker, Josh Selby, Terrence Williams, Dajuan Wagner, Royce White, David Harrison and Antoine Wright are among those with NBA experience in the more distant past to join the Amerileague, Kennedy notes (Twitter link). Walker, who turned 28 last week, started 13 times in his 24-game stint with the Heat last season.

Walker joined Miami on a pair of 10-day contracts that led to a deal for the rest of the season with a non-guaranteed 2015/16 included. It was his first time back in the NBA since 2011/12, and the Mike Naiditch client made the most of it, as his 26.2 minutes per game for the Heat were a career high. Miami nonetheless released him in July, but Sam Amico reported soon after for Hoops Rumors that the Blazers had interest in the swingman.

The Amerileague is reportedly handing out salaries worth up to as much as $50K per month, about twice what the most well-compensated D-League players make. It’s not immediately clear if Walker will see that sort of money, but those salaries make the Amerileague more competitive with European teams. That helps explain why veterans like Walker are joining. The D-League has instead largely been the purview of younger, less-experienced players willing to sacrifice money for a chance to play with NBA-affiliated organizations.

Do you think the Amerileague will last for the long term as a legitimate minor league? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Northwest Notes: Mitchell, Mensah-Bonsu, Neto

October 14th, 2015 at 8:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Raptors coach Dwane Casey believes that Timberwolves interim head man Sam Mitchell will be an improved leader now that he is getting another head coaching opportunity, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes. “Huge,” Casey said of the difference between the first and second times around as a coach. “You learn so much from your mistakes, more from your mistakes than the success you have. So I’m sure Sam has learned. I don’t know a coach who has been fired who felt like he should have been fired. I didn’t feel like I should have been fired in Minnesota. We were in the playoff hunt. You never feel that way. I made mistakes in Minnesota. Everybody does. But you learn from them, you grow from them. I’m sure Sam has. He’ll tell you that.”

Mitchell agrees with Casey’s assessment, and said that he is a better coach now because of his past failures, Zgoda notes. “You just try to get better,” Mitchell said. “You try to have more patience. You understand Rome wasn’t built in a day and you’re not going to win a championship in a day. You understand the process, the ups and downs a little bit better. You understand how difficult the league is. Everybody wants to win right now, but it just doesn’t work. You put in your time and you keep your players focused, understanding it’s a process.”

Here’s the latest from the Northwest Division:

Former NBA player Pops Mensah-Bonsu has officially retired from the game, Mark Woods of MVP247.com relays. The 32-year-old was in training camp with the Nuggets last year, but left the team due to personal reasons. Mensah-Bonsu appeared in 61 combined games over the course of his career and owns averages of 3.0 points and 3.0 rebounds to accompany a shooting line of .410/.000/.589.
Rookie Jazz point guard Raul Neto, who will be counted on in Utah’s rotation with Dante Exum expected to miss the season, is becoming more comfortable with the team’s system as well as life in the U.S., Mike Sorensen of The Deseret News writes. “Each game I’m getting more comfortable with the team and with the plays, with everything, so I’m feeling great,’’ Neto told Sorensen. “You always have somebody close to you, helping you. I really like it here.’’
With the departure of LaMarcus Aldridge via free agency this summer, Damian Lillard is poised to have big season, according to teammate C.J. McCollum, Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders relays. “I just expect him to continue to do a lot of the things he has done in the past: being a good leader, orchestrating the offense, being aggressive like he has been and just being a killer,” McCollum said of Lillard. “I always joke with him and tell him this is just like when he was at Weber State only he’s got more help. He’s going to take on the bulk load of attention from an in-game standpoint and a media standpoint so a lot of pressure is going to be on him, but I think he’s ready for it. Offensively, he has all the tools to be an All-Star again….”

Western Notes: Odom, Lillard, Randolph, Davis

October 13th, 2015 at 10:17pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Damian Lillard downplayed any rumored issues between him and LaMarcus Aldridge, and denied that their relationship was part of the reason Aldridge decided to leave the Trail Blazers for the Spurs as an unrestricted free agent this summer, Paul Flannery of SB Nation writes. “Our relationship was fine,” Lillard said. “Me and LA never had an argument. People are searching for something that’s not there. When you have two All-Stars on the same team and one of them decides to leave, it’s automatically, ‘They didn’t get along.’ We had back-to-back 50-win seasons. We both made the All-Star team. We played through him and after that it was me and that was that. We played well together. We never had an issue.”

Portland executive Neil Olshey noted that the franchise sought Lillard’s approval before embarking on a full-rebuild and surrounding the point guard with a younger crop of players, Flannery adds in the same piece. “This was not done without Dame’s participation,” Olshey said. “If he was at all reticent, if he said it would be great if you could get me another vet to help out, we would have gone out and found a couple of other guys to take the pressure off of him. He’s not that kind of kid. He embraces it. He thrives on it.”

Here’s more from out West:

Former NBA player Lamar Odom was hospitalized after he was found unconscious earlier this evening at a Nevada brothel, Andrew Dalton and Sally Ho of The Associated Press report. The 35-year-old was stabilized and taken to Desert View Hospital in nearby Pahrump, a sheriff’s office statement said. There was no further word on Odom’s condition. Odom’s last NBA action came during the 2012/13 season with the Clippers.
Zach Randolph is prepared to do whatever it takes to help the Grizzlies win this season, including accepting a reduction in his minutes in order to preserve his energy and health, Teresa M. Walker of The Associated Press writes. “I think I’m still in my prime, and I’m going to let my game, the way I play, speak for itself,” Randolph said. “But I mean whatever I need to do to help this team, if it’s play less minutes, whatever, I’m with this team whatever we need to do.“
Blazers power forward Ed Davis has switched representation from Relativity Sports to IT Sports Management and agent Paolo Zamorano, Sam Amick of USA Today tweets. Davis inked a three-year, $20MM deal with Portland this offseason.
Dwight Howard has no desire to repeat the circus that accompanied his previous forays into free agency, and he intends to keep the focus on the Rockets‘ 2015/16 campaign, and not where he may be playing next season, Fran Blinebury of NBA.com writes. The big man can opt out of his current deal after the season and become an unrestricted free agent, Blinebury adds, and Howard believes that he can play for another 10 seasons. “Even though this will be my 12th season in the NBA, I still feel like I’ve got a lot left in me,” Howard said. “I believe my best 10 years are still in front of me, if we play it smart and I appreciate the coaching staff, the training staff and everybody for working toward that.“

Northwest Notes: Gallinari, Kaman, Timberwolves

October 12th, 2015 at 9:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Danilo Gallinari will often move from small forward to power forward this season to take advantage of offensive skills, Pat Graham of the Associated Press reports. Gallinari played a lot of power forward for Italy at the EuroBasket tournament, where he averaged nearly 18 points a game, and new Nuggets coach Michael Malone plans to use the same tactic, Graham continues. “He’s 6’10”. He can handle the ball. He can play pick-and-roll. He can stretch the floor and shoot the 3,” Malone said in the story. “There’s not a lot he can’t do offensively.” Gallinari is eager to step into the role as a go-to guy, Graham adds. “I’ve always been trying to do that, since I came to Denver,” Gallinari told Graham. “That’s what I like to do. I feel good filling those shoes.”

In other news around the Northwest Division:

Veteran center Chris Kaman is unlikely to get much playing time this season, but he still believes he can serve a valuable role with the Trail Blazers, according to Mike Richman of The Oregonian. Kaman is behind Meyers Leonard, Mason Plumlee, Ed Davis and Noah Vonleh at the power forward and center spots, and Al-Farouq Aminu is also likely to get minutes at power forward, Richman continues. But Kaman feels like he can contribute in other ways, as he told Richman. “I still feel like I can provide a lot on or off the court for this team,” he said. “If my role is to be the guy that’s helping guys off the bench and I get a little bit of minutes here and there, I’m going to play as hard as I can.”
Nuggets point guard Jameer Nelson wants to go into coaching but he has no plans to retire at the moment, Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post reports. He has already made an immediate impression on Malone with his mentoring skills. “I have the utmost confidence in Jameer Nelson as a leader,” Malone said to Dempsey. Nelson held a summertime team bonding session at his Philadelphia-area home and has been instructing rookie point guard Emmanuel Mudiay in camp, Dempsey adds.
Anthony Bennett decided to explore a buyout with the Timberwolves after he met with his agent, Jeff Schwartz, following his stint with Team Canada this summer, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Schwartz recommended the change of scenery since the Timberwolves had a logjam at power forward, the story continues. Bennett had other options, including the Trail Blazers, after he cleared waivers before signing with the Raptors.

Cavs Lead With 16 Free Agent Signings

October 12th, 2015 at 5:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers have drawn plenty of attention the past few months for a free agent they haven’t signed, but even though Tristan Thompson lingers in free agency, Cleveland has taken care of more free agent business than any other team in the league during the 2015 offseason. They signed 16 free agents, three more than the Spurs, the team that recorded the next most free agent signings. The Cavs just made their latest signing this weekend, replacing Michael Dunigan with Dionte Christmas on the camp roster.

It might be easy to presume a direct correlation between free agent activity and success, given the teams at the very top and bottom of the list below. The Cavs and Spurs are strong bets to win their respective conferences this season, while the Jazz, Timberwolves and Sixers are nowhere near the title picture. The presence of the Warriors and Thunder on the bottom half of the list and the Kings and Nets close to the top debunk that theory, however. It has more to do with the fact that the Cavs had only four players signed for 2015/16 when they ended last season, while the Jazz had 13. Cleveland simply had more jobs to hand out.

Still, other factors are at play, since free agent signings don’t encompass draft picks, draft-and-stash signings, trades or waiver claims. The Trail Blazers made significant changes to their roster, but they did much of their work via trade instead of free agency. The Rockets had 10 players under contract on July 1st, but they still wound up making 11 free agent signings.

Here’s a look at the number of free agent signings for each team. Click the team’s name to see the names of each of their signees via our 2015 Free Agent Tracker.

Western Notes: Howard, Martin, Morris

October 10th, 2015 at 9:43pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Fans knew that Dwight Howard was battling a knee injury during last season’s Western Conference finals, but the injury was worse than it seemed at the time, Calvin Walkins of ESPN.com writes.

“I was basically playing with a torn MCL and meniscus,” Howard said. “I never said anything about it. I tried to cover it up saying it was a sore knee. But I was in pain the rest of the series. I just looked at it like, man, you just never know if you will ever make it back to this moment. So just sacrifice your mind, your body and your spirit for your teammates and the city and hope for the best.”

The Rockets intend to utilize second year big man Clint Capela in a larger role in an effort to reduce Howard’s workload this season. In the summer of 2013, Howard signed a four-year, max contract that includes a player option after this season. The health of his knee, along with the level of his play this season, could determine whether he decides to turn down his option, worth slightly more than $23.28MM, and enter free agency in 2016.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders opines that Kevin Martin is a prime candidate to be traded after the Wolves announced that sophomore Zach LaVine will be the team’s starting shooting guard. Martin has two years and slightly over $14.46MM remaining on his current deal and Greene believes if Minnesota wanted to move him, there would be teams willing to bring the veteran aboard at that price.
Although Markieff Morris declared that he wants to remain in Phoenix, the Suns could ultimately end up dealing the forward anyway, Greene opines in the same piece. Morris is on a team-friendly deal that will pay him $32MM over the next four seasons and if he has a good start to the season, more than a few teams should be interested in acquiring him.
After losing LaMarcus Aldridge to the Spurs in free agency, many are not optimistic about the Blazers‘ chances of making playoffs, but statistician Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com argues that competing for a playoff spot is not out of the question, Cody Sharett of NBA.com writes. Pelton cited the additions of Ed Davis, Mason Plumlee and Al-Farouq Aminu, who have all shined in terms of advanced statistics, as reason for optimism.

Top Bloggers: Eric Griffith On The Trail Blazers

October 8th, 2015 at 11:30am CST by Chuck Myron

Anyone can have a blog about an NBA team, but some set themselves apart from the rest with the dedication and valuable insight they bring to their craft. We’ll be sharing some knowledge from these dialed-in writers on Hoops Rumors in a new feature called Top Bloggers. As with The Beat, our ongoing series of interviews with NBA beat writers, it’s part of an effort to bring Hoops Rumors readers ever closer to the pulse of the teams they follow. Last time, we spoke with William Lou of the score and Raptors Republic. Click here to see the entire Top Bloggers series.

Next up is Eric Griffith of SB Nation’s Blazer’s Edge. You can follow Eric on Twitter at @DeeringTornado and click here to check out his stories. You can also follow Blazer’s Edge at @blazersedge.

Hoops Rumors: How surprised were you that LaMarcus Aldridge went from pledging a long-term commitment a year before free agency, to reiterating that pledge before the start of last season, to bolting for the Spurs when he finally did hit the open market?

Eric Griffith: I was pretty surprised by Aldridge’s decision. From a financial perspective, it made a ton of sense for him to sign a one-year contract with Portland and then hit the market the following season. By signing a long-term deal with the Spurs this offseason he left literally tens of millions of dollars on the table. I thought the money alone would be enough of an incentive to stick it out for one more year with the Blazers.

In January, Aldridge also elected to play through a thumb injury rather than have surgery and miss several weeks during a crucial part of the season. To most Blazers fans that decision implied that Aldridge truly believed the Blazers had a shot at contending. For a player that rarely interacts publicly with the fans and is visibly uncomfortable in front of a mic and camera, that decision spoke volumes about his confidence in the team. Going into the offseason, I hoped that his belief in Portland as a championship caliber team had not wavered after an early playoff exit and that Neil Olshey could keep the team together for one more season. Unfortunately, Aldridge apparently decided that the aging Spurs are THAT much better than an intact Portland team. I’ll admit I was a bit surprised by that as well.

Hoops Rumors: Few teams can lose a star and have another, younger star lock in for a five-year extension the very same summer. How quickly do you think the Blazers can rebuild around Damian Lillard and become a surefire playoff team?

Eric Griffith: As of right now, the Blazers have one proven NBA starter and a team full of reserves. For Portland to become a consistent playoff threat they will need some of those reserve-level players to develop into quality NBA starters. The most likely candidates are Noah Vonleh, C.J. McCollum, and Meyers Leonard. Portland’s playoff chances will get a huge shot in the arm if one or two of those players can show consistent development this season.

The Blazers will also need at least one more All-Star to pair with Lillard, preferably at one of the wing positions. Unfortunately, there are few max-level free agents available next summer and the Blazers do not have the assets to complete a trade for a superstar, so they will likely have to rely on the draft to get that superstar.

As for when Portland will be a surefire playoff team, I think it’s virtually impossible to accurately predict right now. Too much of their future will be determined by player development this season and lottery luck over the summer. If they do get a “hit” on some of their young talent and do get a high lottery pick, then the Blazers could be a consistent playoff threat by 2018. But if all goes awry, they could easily be pressing the reset button again in a couple of seasons. (Griffith went into further detail on this topic here and here).

Hoops Rumors: Which of the moves the Blazers made this summer, aside from the Lillard extension, will help the team the most?

Eric Griffith: Both Mason Plumlee and Ed Davis have shown potential to become quality big men and they both will get plenty of chances to prove themselves this season. Both players also pair well with the perimeter game of Leonard. Either Plumlee or Davis could turn out to be the most helpful addition to the team for this season.

For the long term, many Blazers fans are salivating over Vonleh. He appears to have the potential to develop into an All-Star and is a good bet to at least become a solid rotation player. Olshey acquired Vonleh for Nicolas Batum, who was likely to leave in free agency after this season anyway, so anything Vonleh can give the Blazers can be considered a bonus.

A sneaky choice for the most helpful move might be trading a top-55 protected second round pick for Moe Harkless. The rumors coming out of training camp are that Harkless has been wowing his teammates with his athleticism and that his three-point shot has returned.

Hoops Rumors: How would the Blazers be different, both for this season and the future, if the Thunder hadn’t matched the Enes Kanter offer sheet?

Eric Griffith: It would have been interesting to see how Leonard would have been affected by Kanter’s presence. With the current roster, Leonard will, by necessity, be the primary scoring option from the power forward/center positions. Kanter presumably would have taken some of those shots from the low post instead of Leonard shooting from the perimeter. Leonard also fits well with the complementary skill sets of Davis and Plumlee, but defense would have been an issue if Leonard and Kanter had been paired together.

To me, the Kanter offer sheet (and the Greg Monroe one before it) is interesting because it implies that the Blazers are not content with their current power forwards and centers even though the 4/5 spots are the deepest and most complete on the roster. It’s easy to imagine the Leonard/Vonleh/Davis/Plumlee rotation becoming very effective in a year or two but, apparently, Olshey thinks that lineup still needs more tinkering.

Hoops Rumors: What are reasonable expectations for the Blazers this season? Is a playoff spot truly attainable?

Eric Griffith: The Blazers lost five of their top six players and struck out on their top two free agent choices. It’s tough to imagine any team making the playoffs after that kind of offseason, and the Blazers are no exception. Also, as mentioned above, they have only one established NBA starter. It’s going to be tough for them to win games, especially early in the season.

Looking at the Western Conference standings, it’s hard to pick out a team that is definitely worse than the Blazers. As of now, it seems like they’ll be in the conference basement with the Lakers, Nuggets, and possibly Timberwolves. So a reasonable expectation for Portland this season is probably a 13th-place finish in the conference. Over the last six seasons the 13th-place team in the west has averaged 27.7 wins, suggesting that a win total in the high 20s is a fair prediction.

Western Notes: Kroenke, Lillard, D-League

October 7th, 2015 at 10:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The National Football League gave its OK to Stan Kroenke’s plan to transfer ownership of the Nuggets to his wife, Ann Walton Kroenke, satisfying an NFL rule barring its owners from also owning another pro sports team in an NFL city, report Nathan Fenno and Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times. Kroenke’s son Josh, who already serves as Nuggets team president and is the team’s representative on the board of governors, will continue to run the Nuggets and the National Hockey League’s Colorado Avalanche, Fenno and Farmer add. Stan Kroenke owns the NFL’s St. Louis Rams.

Here’s more from the West:

Damian Lillard, with input from C.J. McCollum, organized a team getaway to San Diego for the Trail Blazers in an effort to draw together all the newcomers from an offseason of upheaval in Portland, writes Anne M. Peterson of The Associated Press. It furthers the notion that Lillard, who signed a five-year max extension this summer, has replaced LaMarcus Aldridge as the team’s central figure, Peterson writes. “It’s still going to take us time to get to know each other. It’s going to take more than a week in San Diego, or getting here early before camp,” Lillard said. “It’s going to take more than that. Being out together in the preseason, we’ll learn more about each other. … I think it’s about the growth, the process.”
The Spurs announced via a press release that Patrick Mutombo and A.J. Diggs have been hired as assistant coaches for their D-League affiliate, the Austin Spurs. “The additions of Patrick and AJ bring a wealth of NBA and player development experience to our team that will serve our group well moving forward,” said coach Ken McDonald. “We are fortunate to continue to attract strong candidates to join our coaching staff.”
The Mavericks‘ rotation at center is unsettled and while it’s not ideal, the team is counting on veteran big man Samuel Dalembert to contribute this season, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes. “Dalembert’s having a solid camp,” coach Rick Carlisle said after Tuesday night’s preseason contest against the Nuggets. “He came in a little bit out of shape. He’s working really hard to get himself where he needs to be. I thought his minutes tonight were positive.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Northwest Notes: Alexander, Henderson, Nuggets

October 4th, 2015 at 10:23am CST by ChrisCrouse

Cliff Alexander will miss two weeks with a bone bruise in his left knee, Joe Freeman of The Oregonian writes. “We’re going to kind of shut him down for a couple weeks and then work him back in,” Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts said on Saturday. “So he’s going to be back for a little bit.” Alexander was projected to develop into a lottery pick coming out of high school, but he battled injuries and struggled at Kansas before being declared ineligible by the NCAA for receiving improper benefits.

Here’s more out of the Northwest Division:

When asked if Alexander can make the team despite missing two weeks of training camp, Stotts answered in the affirmative, according to Freeman (Twitter link).
Gerald Henderson remains sidelined after undergoing offseason hip surgery, but he is eager to join his new team on the court, Freeman writes in a separate piece. “I try to pay attention as much as I can,” he said. “I feel like if I can know what we’re doing on both sides of the floor, I’ll have an easier transition. But, of course, getting out there and playing, that’s what I love to do, regardless of the situation. And on a new team, it’s even more important.” The Blazers acquired Henderson in the trade that sent starter Nicolas Batum to Charlotte.
Readers of Hoops Rumors ranked the Nuggets as the third worst team in our power rankings and the consensus in NBA circles is that the team won’t sniff the playoffs. Despite the projections, Denver won’t adopt a tanking strategy this season, Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post writes. “Everybody can do it their own way. We’re not here to criticize 29 other teams and their approach,” said coach Michael Malone. “We’re just worried about us. But I think anytime you allow losing to creep into your culture, and your franchise, and the fact that you accept losing for betterment down the road, I think that’s awfully hard to get that out of your organization. Losing should not be accepted.”