Western Notes: Leonard, Jazz, Bledsoe, Nash
Kawhi Leonard is up for a rookie scale extension this summer, but it appears he envisions a long-term future with the Spurs, based in his comments to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press. Gregg Popovich believes the small forward will become the face of the franchise once Tim Duncan retires.
“I’ve been working hard to be one of the focal points in the NBA, one of the top guys. For him to say that and see that I could be the face, it just brings joy to me,” Leonard said. “I’m just happy that someone else sees it other than myself.”
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin is on shaky ground in Utah, but soon-to-be free agent Gordon Hayward said Corbin did a “tremendous job” considering the circumstances this year, observes Steve Luhm of The Salt Lake Tribune.
- Eric Bledsoe has been non-committal in his public statements about the notion of re-signing with the Suns this summer, though teammate and neighbor Ish Smith is confident Bledsoe will return, observes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. The Suns have said they intend to match any offer for Bledsoe, a restricted free agent.
- Steve Nash is fine with a reduced role on the Lakers next season, one he expects will be his last in the NBA, notes Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. “They can’t rely on me, frankly,” Nash said. “Hopefully, I come back and play 82 games next year and the sky is the limit. But they can’t rely on me if they don’t know what I’m going to bring, so they got to evaluate those guys for next season.”
- There’s a “strong possibility” the Jazz will have a one-to-one affiliation with the D-League’s Idaho Stampede next season, reports Gino Pilato of D-League Digest (on Twitter). The Jazz shared the Bakersfield Jam with four other NBA teams this season.
- The Warriors recalled Ognjen Kuzmic from the D-League today, the team announced. Golden State has been shuttling him back and forth to help the Santa Cruz Warriors in the playoffs, and Kuzmic had 23 points and 18 rebounds in Thursday’s win.
- Santa Cruz beat the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, who announced Thursday that the Rockets had assigned Isaiah Canaan and Robert Covington to play in the game (Twitter link). Houston brought them back to the big club today, the Rockets announced via Twitter.
Spurs Sign Damion James For Rest Of Season
The Spurs have signed forward Damion James for the remainder of the season, the team announced via press release. James was originally signed by the team to a 10-day contract on April 3rd. He has appeared in three games for the Spurs and is averaging 1.0 RPG in 3.3 minutes a night.
Prior to joining the team, James played in the NBA D-League for the Texas Legends and Bakersfield Jam. In 85 career D-League contests, James averaged 16.1 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 1.9 APG, and 1.04 BPG in 31.8 minutes per game.
James was originally drafted 24th overall in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Hawks. He was then sent to the Nets in a draft-night trade. In three seasons with the Nets, in 34 games James averaged 4.2 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 16.9 minutes a night.
Western Notes: Lakers, Suns, Barton
The Lakers are limping their way toward the offseason. Both Pau Gasol and Chris Kaman are likely done for the year, per a pair of tweets from Bill Oram of The Orange County Register. Kobe Bryant will not take part in the team’s scheduled exit meetings, opting to meet with GM Mitch Kupchak at a later date, per Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report (via Twitter). Kobe has expressed his frustration with the front office this year, but Kupchak recently said that Lakers brass won’t be making roster or coaching moves at Bryant’s behest. Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Dan Bickley of USA Today wonders whether contract concerns for Eric Bledsoe and Gerald Green could disrupt the Suns‘ chemistry next year. President Lon Babby tells Bickley that Phoenix can’t count on a repeat of this year’s dynamic. “I think chemistry is very, very important,” Babby said. “But I also know from experience that if we brought back the entire group with no changes in personnel, it would be very difficult to re-create the same chemistry…The analogy I use is that it’s like a new year of school. You come back, and everything is a little different. Your friends are a little different.”
- Will Barton is enjoying his role with the Blazers, but is uncertain about his future with the team, he tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. “I try not to think about it as much but I do sometimes,” said Barton, whose contract is non-guaranteed for next year. “You just never know what people are thinking. Hopefully I make it past the deadline…Portland took a chance on me. It would be huge if I can stay in Portland. But like I said, it’s a business and I’m aware of that. You just never know.”
- In an on-air interview with the Spurs broadcast team, Adam Silver commended San Antonio as a model franchise (transcription via Mike Monroe of San Antonio Express-News). “This is a model franchise, not only for NBA teams but teams in any sport,” said Silver. “This is the prototype of a small market team that is competing in a first-class manner and a well-run business on top of that.”
- Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders takes a look at what it will take for the Nuggets to make a turnaround next year. Blancarte doesn’t think a drastic roster overhaul is necessary.
Western Notes: Warriors, Young, Lakers
Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob told reporters that he, coach Mark Jackson and GM Bob Myers all get along, refuting reported dysfunction within the team, as Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group transcribes. Lacob referred to the re-assignment of assistant coach Brian Scalabrine and the firing of fellow assistant Darren Erman as “minor setbacks.” A little over a week ago, Myers gave Jackson a public vote of support, saying that he’s done a tremendous job; however, we’ve also relayed the belief from some writers who think that Jackson’s future in Golden State could be tied to how the team fares in this year’s postseason.
Here are a few other notes to pass along out of the Western Conference this evening:
- Lakers swingman Nick Young is “very confident” that he’ll reach an agreement to remain with the team beyond this summer, reports Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News. This isn’t the first time that the Los Angeles native has gone on record saying he’d like to stay, but he also hinted that it could be difficult to pass up a hefty pay raise somewhere else if the opportunity presented itself.
- Some members of Lakers brass are high on the idea of bringing in a young, up-and-coming head coach who wouldn’t command too much money, making him cheap to get rid of if he doesn’t pan out, according to Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding.
- In addition to making the argument that Dirk Nowitzki ranks among one of the NBA’s 12 greatest players, Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle thinks that Dirk – currently the 10th highest scorer in NBA history – has plenty left in the tank to surpass a few more names on that list: “He’s got a lot more good basketball left in him…A lot more great basketball. So I think he’s going to pick off a few more guys going up the ladder” (ESPN’s Marc Stein reports).
- The Kings have assigned Willie Reed to their D-League affiliate in Reno, according to GM Pete D’Alessandro.
- Former Spurs training camp invitee Courtney Fells has signed a deal with Bucaneiros de la Guaira in Venezuela, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Fells played in 47 games for the Spurs’ D-League affiliate in 2013/14, averaging 20.5 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 40.4 MPG.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
And-Ones: NBPA, Jackson, Irving, Stevens
The National Basketball Player’s Association announced tonight that they have hired Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson to head a search committee to find a new executive director, tweets Howard Beck of Bleacher Report. The NBPA also announced that Kyle Korver has been elected to take over for Matt Bonner on the executive committee after his term expired (link). The press release indicates that the union’s goal is to have a new executive director in place by the start of next season, which would give them a new leader 20 months after firing Billy Hunter. More from around the league..
- If the Knicks are going to replace Mike Woodson as head coach, they should put Phil Jackson in his place, Larry Brown opined in an interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio.”You’re not going to make the Knicks better by living in L.A. and being there half the time and not talking to your coach,” Brown said, according to Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press. “Let him coach. He was the best coach probably ever. Let him coach.“
- Cavs guards Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters are downplaying talk of a rift, writes Bob Finnan of The News-Herald. “I just think, man, throughout this whole year with us two not liking each other, it’s total BS,” Waiters said. “We’ve been friends before we even made the NBA, before any of this. I just think y’all saying we don’t like playing with one another. … Yeah, we still need to learn certain things, but I think at the end of the day, we’re genuinely friends. I love him as a friend, teammate, everything. I just want everybody to know that. I don’t hate this guy.“
- People around the league have had doubts from the beginning of Brad Stevens‘ tenure with the Celtics that he’ll want to stay for his entire six-year deal, but the coach tells Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald that he intends to fulfill his contract.
- Former Spurs guard Nando De Colo is making an impact with his new team, writes the Toronto Sun’s Frank Zicarelli. De Colo came to the Raptors in an under-the-radar deadline move, but he’s been anything but since February. “[I’m] just being aggressive and playing my game,” said De Colo. “When a shot is open, you have to take it. Whether I’m playing the one (point guard) or two (shooting guard), staying focused on my job and nothing more.“
- The Cavs believe Scotty Hopson can play a role for next year’s team, particularly if C.J. Miles signs elsewhere, according to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.
- Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman said he and team president Flip Saunders would talk about signing a player, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star-Tribune. The club now has an open roster spot following the release of A.J. Price last week.
- Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News writes that Mark Jackson‘s greatest strength is also one of his trouble spots: a dead certainty that he’s doing everything exactly right. Jackson’s contends that the recent staff shakeup doesn’t have anything to do with him, but Kawakami argues that the dispatching of Brian Scalabrine after a philosophical dispute followed by the dismissal of Darren Erman must have something to do with the Warriors head coach.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Amico’s Latest: Allen, Battier, Rivers, Kerr
Ray Allen appears unlikely to return to the Heat next season, writes Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio. League insiders nonetheless believe that if the Heat’s trio of stars return, there’s a strong chance the team will try to re-sign Allen, too, so it seems his future is contingent on what LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh decide to do. Indeed, those three will have much to say about what happens in free agency leaguewide, and Amico has more on the summer ahead and another member of the Heat as we highlight here:
- Several teams are expected to court Heat forward Shane Battier for an executive job or a gig related to player development, Amico hears. Battier recently reiterated his plans to retire at season’s end.
- The emergence of Brian Roberts has strengthened the belief around the league that the Pelicans will trade former lottery pick Austin Rivers this summer, according to Amico. Roberts is set to become a restricted free agent.
- Sources tell Amico they wouldn’t be surprised if several teams aside from the Knicks try to convince Steve Kerr to run their basketball operations. Kerr has expressed a desire to coach, but it looks like the leaguewide interest in him is as an executive, the role he held with the Suns from 2007 to 2010.
- Boris Diaw, Luol Deng, C.J. Miles, Marvin Williams, Luke Ridnour, Kris Humphries, Devin Harris and Jimmer Fredette are other free agents who appear unlikely to be back with their respective teams, Amico writes.
Tony Parker Says Duncan, Ginobili Will Return
Tim Duncan has said on multiple occasions over the last two months that he hasn’t decided whether to return for 2014/15, but Tony Parker tells Christophe Brouet of the French website Basket-Infos that he knows that Duncan and Manu Ginobili will play next season (translation via HoopsHype). Ginobili said recently that he’s “pretty sure” he’ll continue his NBA career for another year, so Parker’s statement looks like a reiteration of that.
Parker prefaces his remark by mentioning that Duncan and Ginobili are under contract for next season, so while the point guard is no doubt close to his long-time teammates, he could merely be making an assumption based on their deals with the Spurs. Still, Duncan has a player option for next season, so that’s led to inherent uncertainty. Parker may also merely be attempting to encourage Duncan and Ginobili to return. Gregg Popovich suggested nearly a year ago that he’d retire from coaching whenever Duncan does, so the Big Fundamental’s decision could have an earth-shattering effect on Parker and the rest of the Spurs.
Duncan turns 38 in three weeks, while Ginobili will be 37 in July. Both remain productive players, and the Spurs are as strong as ever, having compiled the league’s best record this season and a 19-game winning streak that ended Thursday night against the Thunder. Parker, Duncan and Ginobili have been teammates since the 2002/03 season, though Parker, who’ll turn 32 in May, is the youngest of the trio by far, and he recently said he plans to play five or six more seasons in the NBA.
Spurs Sign Damion James To 10-Day Deal
THURSDAY, 10:13am: The deal is official, the team announced.
WEDNESDAY, 1:59pm: The Spurs are set to sign former first-round pick Damion James to a 10-day contract, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Nuggets brought him to preseason camp on a non-guaranteed deal, and while he seemed to play Jordan Hamilton to a draw, Denver opted to cut him and keep Hamilton’s guaranteed contract instead. James has spent most of the season in the D-League, splitting time between the Bakersfield Jam and his current team, the Texas Legends, which is the one-to-one affiliate of the Mavs.
The Mark Bartelstein client reportedly drew interest from other NBA teams soon after the Nuggets let him go, but no team had been identified as a suitor. His last official NBA action came last season on a 10-day contract with the Nets, the only team for which he’s played a regular season game. He started nine games for the team as a rookie in 2010/11, but he broke his right foot, and persistent trouble with that foot derailed his career. He appeared in only 34 games on his rookie scale contract.
The Spurs have been carrying an open roster spot, so they don’t need to make a corresponding move before their deal with James becomes official. The 26-year-old has been averaging 21.1 points and 11.3 rebounds in 14 games since joining the Texas Legends, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him get significant minutes in a couple of games for the Spurs as they rest players in preparation for the postseason.
And-Ones: Williams, Carmelo, Leonard, Isiah
Jazz forward Marvin Williams hasn’t had any discussions with management about his future, writes Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. However, Falk reminds that Utah rejected a deadline deal that would have sent Williams out in an exchange for a first round pick, hoping that the 6’9 forward would eventually re-sign this summer. Williams is finishing up the final year of a deal that will pay him $7.5MM this season, and based on glowing approbation from his teammates and coaches recently, it’d appear that Utah remains strongly interested in keeping him for the long-term.
Here are more of tonight’s miscellaneous news and notes:
- Carmelo Anthony finally had his first conversation with Phil Jackson before the Knicks‘ loss to the Lakers on Tuesday, though the 29-year-old forward tells Newsday’s Al Iannazzone that it was nothing more than small talk: “He told me to get ready, go out there and play, try to finish the season off strong, that’s it…We didn’t really talk about too much. Talked about him being in New York, him coming back out to L.A., the weather. Just generic. We really didn’t talk about nothing.”
- There’s an argument to be made that Kawhi Leonard is the most valuable player on the league’s best team, writes Sam Amick of USA today, who also thinks it’s safe to assume that securing Leonard’s services will be a top priority for the Spurs this summer. The 6’7 forward will be eligible for a contract extension in July.
- Isiah Thomas neither confirmed nor denied an interest in taking a job with the Pistons in the near future, but he did intimate his strong loyalty to the franchise: “My heart has never left this organization…I don’t think you will find a person on this earth that loves the Pistons more than I do” (Eric Lacy of MLive.com reports).
- Bill Laimbeer was also asked about a potential role with the Pistons but declined comment.
- At the recommendation of a Los Angeles-based ankle specialist, Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova will sit out the remainder of the 2013/14 season (Twitter links via the team’s official Twitter account).
- Some may contend that Taj Gibson is a strong candidate to win the Sixth Man of the Year title, but Sam Smith of Bulls.com argues that the Bulls forward exemplifies the NBA’s Most Improved award.
- Former 76ers swingman Rodney Carney is headed to Lebanon to play for Al Riyadi Beirut, reports Enea Trapani of Sportando.
Spurs First-Rounder To Stay Overseas In 2014/15
Spurs 2013 first-round draft pick Livio Jean-Charles will remain with French team Asvel Villeurbanne next season, according to Tony Parker, the Spurs point guard who owns part of Asvel, as Catch-and-Shoot reports (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). The 20-year-old forward hasn’t played this season because of a knee injury.
San Antonio took Jean-Charles with the 28th overall pick last year after an impressive performance in the Nike Hoop Summit in which he competed against many of this year’s premiere draft prospects, including Jabari Parker, Julius Randle and Noah Vonleh. Still, the 6’9″ forward put up underwhelming numbers with Asvel in 2012/13, notching just 3.3 points in 14.0 minutes per game.
The extra year overseas isn’t altogether surprising, given that the injury kept him from using this season to improve his game. If he had signed this summer, the Spurs would have given him a rookie scale contract worth the equivalent of what this year’s 28th overall pick is set to receive. There might be some degree of pressure for the Spurs to sign Jean-Charles in the summer of 2015, the last year he’d be subject to the rookie scale. Still, he’d be unlikely to command more money unless he shows significant improvement in his game, and Parker, who’s buying a majority stake in Asvel, probably wouldn’t attach an exorbitant buyout to Jean-Charles’ deal with the French team.