San Antonio Spurs Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bulls To Sign Kyrylo Fesenko

September 26th, 2012 at 9:47pm CST by Chuck Myron

9:47pm: K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune notes that the Bulls, who have $758,550 left to spend, could sign another player at the veteran's minimum once it pro-rates to that amount in late November (Twitter link). Mark Deeks of ShamSports suggests via Twitter that the Bulls could waive Fesenko at the end of training camp and re-sign him once they're able. The Bulls could do the same with fellow camp invitee Andre Emmett, but another team, either in the NBA or overseas, would be free to snap up Fesenko and Emmett while they waited.

8:29pm: The Bulls will sign Kyrylo Fesenko by the end of the week, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. He was in Chicago on Monday for a workout after auditioning for the Spurs earlier this month, and reportedly had the Cavs tentatively on his workout schedule as well. He was also said to be in contact with the Hawks and the Heat.

Stein says the 7'1" center will receive a non-guaranteed contract, and Sam Amick of SI.com reports via Twitter that it will be for the minimum. The team doesn't have enough room under its $74.307MM hard cap to retain Fesenko for the regular season, even at the minimum salary, without waiving or trading another one of its players.

Fesenko signed with the Pacers in March for the balance of the 2011/12 season, and appeared in only three regular season games. He scored a total of eight points and grabbed nine rebounds in 17 minutes, and didn't see action in any of the team's playoff games. The Ukraine native averaged 2.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 8.3 minutes per game during the previous four seasons with the Jazz, upping those numbers slightly when he started nine of the Jazz's 10 playoff games in 2009/10 for the injured Mehmet Okur.

Spurs To Sign Wesley Witherspoon, Tre Kelley

September 26th, 2012 at 6:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs will bring Wesley Witherspoon and Tre Kelley to training camp, reports Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News. They'll likely be on non-guaranteed, minimum-salary deals. While McCarney isn't high on their chances to make the team, they stand a relatively decent shot compared to many other training camp invitees around the league, since the Spurs only have 12 players on fully guaranteed deals.

Witherspoon, who ranked 91st on the list of top 100 prospects this year compiled by Chad Ford of ESPN.com, went undrafted in June out of the University of Memphis. The 6'9" small forward put up just 7.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 22.0 minutes per game this past season, though he did shoot 38.7% from behind the arc in his four years with the Tigers. He was with the Knicks' summer league team, and averaged 8.0 PPG and 2.2 RPG in 16.5 MPG.

Kelley is a 6'0" guard who has yet to make his NBA regular season debut despite training camp stints with the Heat, Thunder and Grizzlies. The 27-year-old spent 11 games with the Spurs' D-League affiliate in 2010/11, and split last season with teams in Italy and Venezuela, averaging 14.8 PPG and 3.5 APG in 27.7 MPG.

The moves will bring the Spurs' roster to 18 players, by my count. Aside from the dozen who have fully guaranteed deals, DeJuan Blair's deal is partially guaranteed for $1.05MM and the rest are believed to be non-guaranteed.

Knicks Maintain Interest In Josh Howard

September 26th, 2012 at 5:24pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Knicks, one of a handful of teams linked to Josh Howard over the summer, are still interested in the veteran swingman, a league source tells Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link). Howard met with the Sixers on Monday and Tuesday, a week after he visited the Spurs.

Howard was reportedly close to making a decision on where to sign at the end of July, with the Knicks one of five teams he was to have been choosing between, but nothing materialized. We heard a month later that the Knicks were one of three teams still in on him, and now it appears the Knicks are again a part of a new set of NBA clubs going after the 32-year-old former All-Star. He could be viewed as an alternative to Tracy McGrady, whom the Knicks are apparently no longer pursuing. The persistence of their interest would seem to make the Knicks a favorite to land Howard, but that's just my speculation.

When Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors looked today at free agents likely to receive more than the minimum, Howard received an honorable mention of sorts. Given the length of time his free agency has dragged on since he was reportedly close to a deal, it seems he's been holding out for more than the minimum, though the tenor of negotations may have changed since then, and Howard could simply be fighting for a deal that's fully guaranteed. He's been injury-hit the last several years, having played no more than 52 games in a season since 2007/08. Last year, he averaged 8.7 points and 3.7 rebounds in 23.0 minutes with a 10.5 PER for the Jazz.

Odds & Ends: Irving, Spurs, Clippers, McGrady

September 24th, 2012 at 10:00pm CST by Michael Pina

Reigning rookie of the year point guard Kyrie Irving rejoined his teammates on Monday, competing in his first five-on-five scrimmage since breaking his hand two months ago, writes Yahoo! Sports NBA reporter Marc J. Spears.

Here's a look elsewhere around the league.

Hoopsworld.com's Yannis Koutroupis asks whether or not the Spurs title window is closed, given the fact that they only added one player (Nando De Colo) to their roster this offseason.
Hoopsworld.com's Joel Brigham gives five teams from the Eastern Conference he believes must be watched heading into next season.
Sporting News' Sean Deveney believes both Tracy McGrady and Baron Davis are at the crossroads of their respective careers, with both players possibly at a point where no more NBA basketball will be played.
In his continuing series previewing each division, NBA.com's John Schuhmann writes about the Pacific Division, honing in on the Clippers and how they'll try to keep up with the Lakers this year.
NBA.com's Sam Smith writes that the Bulls didn't dismantle their "bench mob" — they improved it.
It's a contract season for Jazz forward Paul Millsap, and in many ways it'll also be the biggest year of his life, writes The Salt Lake Tribune's Brian T. Smith.

Odds & Ends: Renfroe, Knicks, Cavs, Grizzlies, Bell

September 23rd, 2012 at 12:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

Guard Alex Renfroe was reportedly close to signing with the Warriors earlier this month, but now it appears the former Belmont University standout is headed to the Spanish club CB Valladolid, David Pick reports via Twitter (hat tip to Sportando). Renfroe is like many who remain as free agents this time of year, faced with the choice between more money overseas and a shot at making an NBA roster on a non-guaranteed minimum-salary deal. While the NBA remains far and away the premier league worldwide, there is legitimate competition for players on the fringes of the Association. Here's the latest:

Raptors radio analyst Eric Smith says the Knicks have hired former Raptors assistant Dave Hopla as an assistant coach for player development (Twitter link).
The Cavaliers considered adding another veteran this summer to fill the leadership vaccum left by the departures of Antawn Jamison and Anthony Parker, but decided against it, believing coach Byron Scott as well as Anderson Varejao and Daniel Gibson can provide voices that are strong enough, writes Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer.
Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal writes that the Grizzlies will remain in the top tier of an improved Western Conference if they can stay healthy.
Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel believes Raja Bell would be a welcome addition to the Heat. The 36-year-old shooting guard says the Heat would be his first choice if he can secure a buyout from the Jazz.
Former Spurs enforcer Bruce Bowen talked to Raul Barrigon of HoopsHype.com about the Spurs' decision to largely stand pat this season, the Heat's chances to repeat, and his desire to get into coaching or a front office job someday.
Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside spoke with guard Cameron Jones, who made first team All-Rookie in the D-League last season after spending training camp with the Heat. Jones is a cousin of Raptors guard Landry Fields.

Western Notes: Wolves, Suns, Akognon, Nash

September 21st, 2012 at 11:26pm CST by Chuck Myron

Wolves owner Glen Taylor has had plenty to say of late, and while guaranteeing he'll be majority owner for the next two years to ESPN 1500 radio's Darren Wolfson, the owner also weighed in on the trade market. "Nobody is talking trade right now," Taylor said, adding that action should pick up once preseason begins. That could be interpreted as tough news for Anthony Tolliver, who'd like to return to the Wolves but has been unwilling to do so on the minimum-salary deal he'd have to take unless the team moved another of its contracts. While there hasn't been a trade since the Dwight Howard/Andrew Bynum blockbuster was finalized on August 10th, that certainly hasn't stemmed the flow of news, and we've got more from the West tonight:

Lon Babby, president of basketball operations for the Suns, said the team "will not do anything dramatic at this point" to the roster in response to Channing Frye's season-ending heart ailment, as Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic tweets. There's no need for the Suns to seek a disabled player exception since they're more than $8MM below the cap.
Guard Josh Akognon, who's set to join the Mavericks in training camp, is headed back to China if he doesn't make the regular season roster, reports Christopher Reina of RealGM.com. D.J. Mbenga has already agreed to go to the Mavs D-League affiliate if he's waived, but Akognon apparently wouldn't be joining him. Both are longshots to make the team, since Dallas already has 15 fully guaranteed contracts.
Stephen Brotherston of HoopsWorld believes Steve Nash will have a greater impact on the Lakers than any other player changing teams this summer, and that includes new teammate Dwight Howard.
Danny Green gave the Spurs more than eight times the value of his minimum-salary contract last season, according to advanced metrics compiled by Quixem Ramirez of Air Alamo. As Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News points out, the Spurs had a host of players whose work exceeded their paychecks.

Derrick Brown, Spurs Agree To One-Year Deal

September 20th, 2012 at 2:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have reached an agreement with free agent forward Derrick Brown on a one-year, non-guaranteed contract, according to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. The Spurs, who worked out Brown earlier this month, "like him a lot and we feel comfortable about the opportunity," agent Calvin Andrews told Haynes.

Brown, 24, had his best season for the Bobcats in 2011/12, averaging 8.1 PPG with 3.6 RPG and a .518 FG% in 22.2 MPG. The 6'7" forward appeared in all but one game for Charlotte, making 17 starts and recording a solid 14.7 PER. Nonetheless, the team decided not to bring Brown back this season, withdrawing their qualifying offer in July to make him an unrestricted free agent.

The Spurs have only 14 players under contract before signing Brown, and not all of those deals are even guaranteed, so it would seem like the former Bobcat has a good chance to earn a spot on the club's regular-season roster. Still, San Antonio has worked out a number of free agents in recent weeks, and could make another veteran addition or two before training camp opens.

Free Agent Notes: Spurs, Pargo, Aguilar, Kennedy

September 20th, 2012 at 1:33pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs worked out unrestricted free agents Tracy McGrady and Josh Howard recently, and while San Antonio may not sign either player, the team has a history of signing veteran free agents, says LeAnna Kosub of the San Antonio Express-News. In a lengthy list, Kosub recalls some of the Spurs' more memorable veteran acquisitions, including Robert Horry, Michael Finley, and Antonio McDyess. As McGrady and Howard continue to look for work, here's the latest on a few other free agents that also remain unsigned:

Jannero Pargo is in discussions with a few NBA teams, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com. Pargo, who ranks among the top scorers, shooters, and distributors still on the free agent market, hopes to sign an NBA deal before training camps begin.
Last Tuesday, we heard that former Philippine Basketball Association first overall pick Japeth Aguilar had a workout scheduled with the Spurs and was trying to line one up with the Magic. Now, Joseph Pimentel of ABS-CBN News reports that two NBA teams have contacted Aguilar's agent about the 6'9" forward. The description of the teams (one Eastern Conference club and one Western team that's a "top-five" squad) seems to fit the Magic and Spurs, but the report suggests that these potential suitors are different from the two that worked out Aguilar last week. Either way, the 25-year-old is hoping to earn a training-camp invite in the coming weeks.
D.J. Kennedy isn't technically a free agent yet, but after being waived by the Grizzlies, he's expected to clear waivers and hit unrestricted free agency. Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside wonders if a return to the D-League is in the cards for Kennedy.

Odds & Ends: Curry, Knicks, Jones, Trail Blazers

September 19th, 2012 at 8:31pm CST by Michael Pina

It appears Warriors guard Stephen Curry's ankles are either 100% or very close to it. Earlier today Curry tweeted that he was finally able to participate in scrimmages with his teammates, and CSNBayArea.com's Matt Steinmetz later confirmed the tweet by writing that Curry indeed played five-on-five at the team's downtown Oakland practice facility.

Here's some other news from around the league.

Current Nuggets forward and former member of the Knicks Danilo Gallinari said that the fact New York is rumored to bring Isiah Thomas back into their front office is why they'll never win, writes KnicksJournal.com's Keith Schlosser.
Rockets rookie forward Terrence Jones sat down with Rockets.com's Jason Friedman for an informative Q&A.
Houston Chronicle reporter Jonathan Feigen analyzes what San Antonio's new uniforms could mean for the rest of the league.
SpursNation.com's Dan McCarney talks about what the recent sale of AEG might mean for some other teams across the league, including the Spurs.
In an in-depth season preview for the loaded Northwest Division, NBA.com's John Schuhmman says that the Trail Blazers might be the worst defensive team in the entire league next year.
Lakers head coach Mike Brown recently stated on ESPN Radio that he's excited about the upcoming season, for obvious reasons, writes ESPNLosAngeles.com.
NBA.com's Earl K. Sneed quotes Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle as saying that this is the year Rodrigue Beaubois puts it all together.

Bobcats To Sign Jeff Adrien, Eyeing Three Others

September 19th, 2012 at 4:44pm CST by Luke Adams

4:44pm: The Bobcats have agreed to terms with Adrien on a non-guaranteed contract, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. According to Spears, the Rockets, Clippers, Lakers, Spurs, and Celtics also showed interest in the forward.

3:53pm: Looking to bring at least 17 players to their training camp, the Bobcats are finalizing agreements with a handful of players expected to compete for a spot on the team's roster. According to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, Paris Horne, Josh Owens, Jeff Adrien, and DaJuan Summers are expected to be added to the Bobcats' roster in the near future.

Horne, 25, played in Germany last season after graduating from St. John's in 2011. He's a 6'3" guard. Owens, a 6'9" forward out of Stanford, was eligible for this year's draft and was ranked as a top-100 prospect by ESPN.com's Chad Ford, but went undrafted. Both players were part of the Bobcats' summer league squad.

Adrien and Summers both have previous NBA experience. The 6'7" Adrien, a UConn product, received limited playing time for the Warriors in 2010/11 and the Rockets in 2011/12. Summers, meanwhile, was drafted 35th overall in 2009 and has since played for the Pistons and Hornets. The 24-year-old forward has averaged 3.4 PPG in 81 career contests.

If the Bobcats finalize deals with these four players, they're likely to be non-guaranteed contracts. With 13 Charlotte players on guaranteed deals, there could be a roster spot or two available on the team for players who impress in training camp.