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Southwest Rumors: Barbosa, Oden, James

July 20th, 2013 at 3:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

The news today has had a distinctly Southwestern feel, and we've already rounded up a few items from Texas teams. There's still more news from the Lone Star State amid our broader look at the Southwest Division:

Artur Barbosa, who doubles as the brother and agent of Leandro Barbosa, tells Terra Brasil that the Mavs have offered the veteran guard a contract, and that the Dallas option is preferable to the Bulls, who've also shown interest (translation via HoopsHype). The agent says he's also engaged in talks with the Rockets. The Mavs wouldn't comment last night about a Brazilian report linking them to Barbosa, so perhaps this is the report in question.
Greg Oden is the top big man on the Mavs' radar following the team's signing of Samuel Dalembert and the release of Bernard James, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com, who names the Heat, Spurs and Pelicans as the other teams still in the mix for Oden (Twitter link).
There's a legitimate chance that a team claims James off waivers from the Mavs, Stein writes in the same piece. A source close to James tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities that he's heard teams are eyeing the big man. The Wolves haven't expressed interest yet, but Minnesota is prepared to waive center Chris Johnson if necessary to make way for a better option, Wolfson reports (Twitter links).
Spanish club FC Barcelona announced the signing of Kostas Papanikolaou to a four-year deal (translation via Sportando's Emiliano Carchia). The Rockets hold the power forward's NBA rights, but it's unclear what the buyout clauses in his new contract are like. A report last weekend indicated that Papanikolaou "definitely" wants to play in the NBA this season, but signing a long-term European deal seems to run counter to that.
Tyreke Evans is ready to embrace a sixth-man role with the Pelicans, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News details.

Contract Details: Rice, Billups, Speights, Splitter

July 19th, 2013 at 11:46am CST by Luke Adams

We've already passed along plenty of new details and information this week on the summer's free agent contracts, with round-ups on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We've got a few more updates worth noting today, so let's dive in….

Eric Pincus updated salary details for several teams at HoopsWorld, including the Wizards, Jazz, Raptors, Spurs, Kings, and Trail Blazers.
Mark Deeks of ShamSports also provides new contract information for the Wizards, Trail Blazers, Warriors, Pistons, and Pacers.
According to Deeks, Glen Rice Jr.'s deal with the Wizards is a two-year minimum-salary pact, with a guaranteed first year and a partially guaranteed ($400K) second year.
Deeks also notes that Chauncey Billups and Marreese Speights are the only players known so far to receive actual team options on their contracts. Most other free agents reported to have signed deals with team options actually have a partially guaranteed or non-guaranteed season on their contracts (Twitter links).
According to Pincus, Tiago Splitter's contract with the Spurs starts at $10MM, and eventually decreases to $8.25MM in year four. The deal also includes a 15% trade kicker (Twitter links).

Thunder In Lead To Sign Mike Miller

July 18th, 2013 at 8:31pm CST by Luke Adams

8:31pm: Thunder GM Sam Presti is set to meet with Miller in Miami this week, The Oklahoman's Darnell Mayberry reports. Mayberry believes the team may waive DeAndre Liggins or Daniel Orton to accomodate a minimum-salary deal for Miller beneath the tax threshold.

5:16pm: The Thunder have interest in Miller, too, Berger tweets. Berger says the Thunder can only afford to sign him for the minimum, but I believe they have the bi-annual and mid-level exceptions available. Still, using them would likely push the team into tax territory, so the Thunder might not want to go any higher than the minimum salary.

5:00pm: Miller is telling friends he'll likely sign with the Thunder, according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).

4:55pm: Now that Mike Miller has cleared amnesty waivers, he's free to sign with any team besides the Heat, and the Thunder have emerged as a frontrunner for his services, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). David Aldridge of TNT reports (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies are also a "strong suitor" for the veteran forward.

In addition to the Thunder and Grizzlies, the Rockets, Spurs, and Warriors have been identified as potential destinations for Miller. Since he's in position to earn $12.8MM over the next two years from the Heat, money may not be Miller's number one concern. Still, with so many teams potentially in play, it may take an offer worth more than the minimum – or for more than one season – to lock up the 33-year-old.

Any team that makes Miller an offer will likely have to take a close look at his medical reports, since the sharpshooter is reportedly considering undergoing a procedure on his back to repair bulging disks.

Mike Miller, Linas Kleiza Clear Waivers

July 18th, 2013 at 4:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Mike Miller has gone unclaimed on amnesty waivers and will now become an unrestricted free agent, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The same is true for Linas Kleiza, who also cleared waivers, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter). Miller and Kleiza were amnestied on Tuesday by the Heat and Raptors, respectively.

It's no surprise that Kleiza didn't draw any interest on amnesty waivers, given his health problems and poor production last season. As Stein notes, he's a good bet to return overseas for the coming season. On the other hand, the Cavaliers were reportedly considering a bid on Miller, but it appears the team decided against it.

Shortly after we heard that the Cavs were mulling a bid for Miller, another report indicated that the veteran sharpshooter is considering surgery to repair bulging disks in his back. Miller has hardly been a picture of good health over the last several seasons, so that's likely true, but it could also have been leaked to scare off non-contenders like the Cavs from making a claim. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal notes (via Twitter) that Miller "made it clear to people around him" that he wasn't interested in landing in Cleveland.

Even with potential surgery looming, Miller figures to draw interest from contending teams. Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com both list the Spurs, Thunder, and Rockets as potential suitors, while Woj also mentions the Warriors and Windhorst names the Grizzlies (Twitter links).

Potential 2014 Amnesty Candidates

July 17th, 2013 at 1:05pm CST by Luke Adams

2013's amnesty period came to an end last night at 11:00pm CST, leaving just seven teams and 11 players still in play for the amnesty clause. The Bobcats, Lakers, Heat, Bucks, and Raptors all used the amnesty provision this year, making 20 teams in total that have taken advantage of it in the last three years.

While that leaves 10 teams who haven't amnestied a player yet, three of those clubs will no longer have any players eligible. The Pelicans entered this offseason with no amnesty-eligible players under contract, and the Pistons (Charlie Villanueva, Greg Monroe) and Jazz (Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward) both elected to keep their remaining amnesty-eligible players, all of whom are on expiring contracts.

That leaves the following list of teams that could still release a player via amnesty next July:

Atlanta Hawks: Al Horford
Boston Celtics: Rajon Rondo
Chicago Bulls: Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer
Memphis Grizzlies: Zach Randolph, Mike Conley
Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Durant, Kendrick Perkins, Nick Collison
Sacramento Kings: John Salmons
San Antonio Spurs: Tony Parker

It's safe to assume that, barring a catastrophic, career-threatening injury, Horford, Rondo, and Parker are safe, meaning the Hawks, Celtics, and Spurs are unlikely to use the amnesty provision. That leaves just four teams in play. Here's a look at the candidates on those clubs:

Chicago Bulls:

Even though Noah will still have two years left on his contract entering next offseason, he's still young and productive enough that it's hard to imagine him becoming a realistic amnesty candidate before his deal expires. The same can't be said for Boozer. After being discussed as a potential victim last summer, he didn't inspire too many rumors this time around, but there's still a consensus that he could be in danger next July.

With Luol Deng's contract set to expire, the Bulls could clear a big chunk of cap space by letting Deng expire and amnestying Boozer. The veteran power forward is coming off a decent season, but he's not the same player he once was, and clearing his $16.8MM cap hit for 2014/15 could have significant cap and tax benefits.

Memphis Grizzlies:

Randolph and Conley both continue to be essential pieces of the Grizzlies' core, so I think it's extremely unlikely that either player becomes an amnesty candidate. Still, it's worth noting that Randolph is on the books for $16.5MM in 2014/15, and Conley will still have two years left on his contract heading into next summer. We've seen situations change quickly before, so I don't want to entirely shut the door on either possibility, but it's a long shot that Memphis uses its amnesty provision.

Oklahoma City Thunder:

Durant isn't going anywhere, and I doubt the Thunder will be so hard up for flexibility next summer that they'll need to clear Collison's modest $2.24MM cap hit from the books. But Perkins has been and continues to be a very viable amnesty candidate. OKC decided this year that Perkins still provides enough value on the court that it's not worth paying him to play for another team, but when his salary increases to $9.65MM in 2014, the club may change its stance.

Sacramento Kings:

On the surface, Salmons looks like one of the strongest amnesty candidates remaining, but after this season, most of his remaining salary is non-guaranteed — the Kings are only on the hook for $1MM of his $7MM total. That means that Sacramento could choose between saving $6MM in cap space by buying out Salmons for $1MM, or saving $7MM in cap space by paying him his full salary. It's pretty hard to imagine many scenarios in which clearing that extra $1MM in cap room is worth paying Salmons an extra $6MM, so it looks like the Kings won't use their amnesty clause.

Overall, while it remains possible that players like Boozer or Perkins could be released in 2014, it looks like most of the teams that are going to use the amnesty provision during this CBA have already done so.

Multiple Teams Preparing Offers For Greg Oden

July 16th, 2013 at 3:30pm CST by Luke Adams

3:30pm: Oden's agent tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida that it will likely still be a few weeks before his client picks a team, and stopped short of calling Miami the frontrunner, though Oden is "very interested" in the Heat (Twitter links).

9:50am: ESPN.com's Marc Stein reported yesterday that Greg Oden was expected to meet with the Mavericks, Kings, and Pelicans this week in Las Vegas, as the list of potential suitors for the former first overall pick grew. Stein and Yahoo! Sports scribe Marc J. Spears have updates on the Oden situation today, so let's dive in and check out the highlights from their respective pieces….

Oden has now had meetings with the Heat, Spurs, Celtics, Mavs, and Kings, according to Spears. The Pelicans had been hoping to meet with Oden on Wednesday, but he's heading back to Indianapolis today, which figures to postpone that meeting until later this week.
New Orleans' pitch to Oden figures to focus on the fact that the big man could start his comeback attempt away from the media spotlight and with no immediate pressure to contribute if he signed with the Pelicans, according to Stein.
The Pelicans are expected to make Oden an offer with a starting salary of about $3MM, reports Spears, noting that three other clubs will likely extend offers in the same ballpark.
Stein reports that the Kings are viewed as "long-shot contenders" for Oden, and may end up shifting their attention to Nuggets restricted free agent Timofey Mozgov. Yannis Koutroupis of HoopsWorld mentioned that possibility yesterday (on Twitter), and Stein says Sacramento is "planning a hard push" for Mozgov.
The Mavericks are still hoping they'll be able to sign both Oden and Samuel Dalembert to solidify their frontcourt, writes Stein.

Point Guard Rumors: Tinsley, Jazz, Mo Williams

July 16th, 2013 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld has passed along a few tidbits of free agent information related to the point guard market this morning, so let's round up the highlights….

The Mavericks, Rockets, Bobcats, and Suns have all expressed interest in signing Jamaal Tinsley, tweets Kennedy.
Tinsley spent last season in Utah, but after reaching an agreement with John Lucas III, the Jazz are no longer interested in bringing back Tinsley, according to Kennedy (Twitter link).
Mo Williams is considering taking a discount to join a contending team like the Heat or Spurs, says Kennedy (via Twitter). No deal is imminent, but it's one potential option Williams is weighing.
Earlier today, we heard that the Suns may have put Kendall Marshall on the trade block.

Contract Details: Ginobili, Knicks, Bogans

July 15th, 2013 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

CBA guru Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com passed along a few specific figures on some recently signed contracts today, including the new salary for the real winner of the Celtics/Nets blockbuster. Let's round up Deeks' updates….

Manu Ginobili's two-year contract with the Spurs will pay him $14.5MM over two seasons, and the first-year salary will be slightly higher than the second-year figure (Twitter links).
The Knicks used $1,591,350 of their mini mid-level exception to re-sign Pablo Prigioni, which leaves $1,591,650 for Metta World Peace (Twitter link).
C.J. Leslie's two-year, minimum-salary deal with the Knicks will guarantee him $200K for 2013/14, but is fully non-guaranteed for year two (Twitter link).
In a full blog post, Deeks goes into detail on Keith Bogans, the biggest beneficiary of the Celtics/Nets deal. Because he needed to be signed-and-traded to help match salaries, Bogans will receive a three-year contract. Only the first year is guaranteed, but for 2013/14, he'll earn a staggering $5,058,198.

Greg Oden To Meet With Mavs, Kings, Pelicans

July 15th, 2013 at 8:36am CST by Luke Adams

Greg Oden will be in Las Vegas to week, and will meet with at least three teams while he's there, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein. The Mavericks, Kings, and Pelicans will all meet with the former first overall pick this week, according to Stein, who adds that the Mavs' sitdown is scheduled for today.

While the Spurs and Heat still appear to be the frontrunners for Oden's services, a handful of other teams remain in the mix. In addition to the three teams he'll meet with this week, the big man also still has the Celtics and Bobcats on his radar, his agent indicated on Friday. As I noted at the time, the comments made by Mike Conley Sr. suggested to me that Miami remained atop Oden's wish list.

Given the number of teams interested in Oden, it seems possible he'll receive more than the minimum salary if and when he signs. But I imagine clubs are still wary of his medical history, so he'll likely have to show strong indications he'll be ready to play in the fall before a club is willing to roll the dice on him.

Spurs Re-Sign Tiago Splitter

July 13th, 2013 at 1:02pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 13TH: The Spurs announced via press release that the deal has been finalized.

JULY 2ND, 3:49pm: The Spurs and Splitter have reached an agreement in principle, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein.

3:06pm: There won't be a fifth year in the Spurs' deal with Splitter, tweets Wojnarowski. However, the average annual salary will stay the same, meaning the agreement figures to be for four years and $36MM+.

2:44pm: The Spurs are putting the finishing touches on an agreement that will keep Tiago Splitter under contract for five more years, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). The deal will be worth about $45MM, according to Wojnarowski. ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported that the two sides had "ramped up" negotiations and were expecting to reach an agreement soon, with other potential suitors falling off.

According to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), the Trail Blazers figured to be one of those rival suitors for Splitter. With the threat of a significant offer sheet from Portland looming, the Spurs decided to make a preemptive strike, working out an agreement with Splitter before he had the opportunity to sign a lucrative offer from the Blazers.

As I noted in that earlier post, an agreement with Splitter may signal that the Spurs don't expect to use room under the cap this summer. With close to $42MM in salary commitments heading into July, a new deal for Splitter and a new contract for Manu Ginobili would use up a good chunk of San Antonio's potential space, even assuming Ginobili takes a significant pay cut. At that point, the team would likely just have the mid-level exception to spend on other free agents.

Splitter, 28, has improved his production in each of his three NBA seasons, playing a career-high 24.7 minutes per contest in 81 games in 2012/13. The Arn Tellem client averaged 10.3 PPG and 6.4 RPG while shooting 56.0% from the field as a frequent starter in the Spurs' frontcourt.