Uncategorized Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Biyombo, Joseph, Celtics, Hinkie

May 22nd, 2016 at 9:48am CST by Arthur Hill

Bismack Biyombo‘s free agency stock is rising after a 26-rebound, four-block performance Saturday night, relates Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com. Biyombo, who added seven points as Toronto topped Cleveland in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals, is taking advantage of increased playing time since starting center Jonas Valanciunas was sidelined with a badly sprained ankle. After Saturday’s game, Raptors coach Dwane Casey compared Biyombo to a rebounding legend. “He reminds me of a guy like [Dennis] Rodman going for the rebounds,” Casey said. “He knows where the ball is coming off, he has a sense of where it’s coming off, and he does a good job doing that.” Biyombo has a $3MM player option for next season, but much larger offers will almost certainly be waiting if he decides to opt out.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Another key to Saturday’s win was backup point guard Cory Joseph, writes Chris O’Leary of The Toronto Star. Joseph contributed 14 points, five rebounds and three assists as starter Kyle Lowry got into early foul trouble. It’s what the Raptors were hoping for when they signed the former Spur to a four-year, $30MM deal last summer in an effort to improve their bench.
All the focus is on the Celtics’ third overall pick, but the team has two more selections in the first round, notes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. Boston owns the rights to Dallas’ pick at No. 16, along with its own choice at No. 23, giving team officials a wide range of players to scout for draft night. “The higher the draft pick, you just have a better chance,” said Austin Ainge, Boston’s director of player personnel. “There’s going to be really good players available at 16. There’s going to be really good players available at 23. It’s just harder to identify in that range.”
Getting the top pick in the draft validated former GM Sam Hinkie’s approach, but the Sixers will benefit from replacing him, contends Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Berger admits that Hinkie, who resigned last month, left behind a bright future in Philadelphia. But he also points out that Hinkie damaged the team’s reputation with free agents through three years of losing, the second-round picks he accumulated have produced very little talent and the roughly $50MM in cap room the Sixers possess is undervalued because the escalating salary cap means virtually every team will have money to spend this summer.

And-Ones: Bender, Anderson, Trimble, Hollins

May 20th, 2016 at 2:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Dragan Bender’s buyout with Maccabi Tel Aviv is just $1.3MM, which shouldn’t be an obstacle for the team that drafts him, reports Jonathan Givony of The Vertical. Bender, who is projected as a top 10 pick, signed a seven-year contract with the team in 2014 that included a clause requiring a buyout that is twice the amount that NBA teams are permitted to offer. That means whoever drafts Bender will pay $650K to Maccabi Tel Aviv, and Bender will contribute the rest out of his rookie contract. Givony called the buyout figure “relatively small” for a player who is expected to be drafted so high.

There’s more news from around the basketball world:

Kings swingman James Anderson wants to leave the NBA and play in Europe, tweets international journalist David Pick. He mentions Barcelona, Real Madrid and Fenerbahce as possible destinations for Anderson, who opted out of his contract with Sacramento on Wednesday.
Maryland point guard Melo Trimble is getting close to a decision on whether to stay in the draft or return to school, writes Charles F. Gardner of The Journal Sentinel. Trimble, whose draft stock fell as his production slipped during the latter part of his sophomore season, said he has benefited from the NBA’s new rule allowing underclassmen to pull out of the draft by May 25th if they don’t hire agents. After working out for the Bucks on Wednesday, Trimble said he is “leaning toward” his final decision. “At this workout I really found my confidence, just out there playing, being myself,” he said. “And to see [Bucks coach] Jason Kidd on the sideline was just a morale booster. You want to show what you can do best.”
The Nets stand to save some money if Lionel Hollins becomes an assistant coach with the Rockets, according to NetsDaily (Twitter link). Hollins is being considered as an assistant if the Rockets hire Stephen Silas as their head coach, and whatever Houston pays Hollins would lessen the amount that Brooklyn still owes him.
Nando De Colo, who played two seasons with the Spurs and Raptors, is free to return to the NBA next season, writes Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops. The French star, who led CSKA Moscow to the Euroleague Final, will become a free agent this summer. “We will talk with Nando de Colo after the end of the season,” said team president Andrey Vatutin. “He knows how much we want to keep him in Europe and in Moscow and we will do what we must. Beyond that the point is 100% what he thinks and what feels more like a challenge. The answer to this question belongs to the player.”

Sixers Notes: Embiid, Workout, Carlesimo, Brown

May 20th, 2016 at 1:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

Don’t expect to see Sixers center Joel Embiid in this year’s summer league, writes Tom Moore of Calkins Media. Moore said a source called Embiid’s participation “unlikely,” even though new GM Bryan Colangelo mentioned it as a possibility late last month. Embiid underwent bone graft surgery on his right foot last August, and the source said summer league action isn’t “practical” at this point. The Sixers don’t want to take any chance that Embiid might suffer a setback before next season begins. Embiid expects to begin playing two-on-two games this week and is optimistic that he will be ready for opening night.

There’s more out of Philadelphia:

The Sixers are holding a predraft workout today with St. Joseph’s Isaiah Miles, Baylor’s Taurean Prince, Wichita State’s Fred VanVleet, Columbia’s Maodo Lo, San Diego State’s Winston Shepard and Clemson’s Jaron Blossomgame, Moore writes in the same story.
If top assistant Mike D’Antoni lands the head coaching job in Houston, P.J. Carlesimo would be a potential choice to replace him on the Sixers’ bench, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The 66-year-old last coached with the Nets in 2013.
Sixers coach Brett Brown says the team isn’t leaning toward Ben Simmons, Brandon Ingram or anyone else as the No. 1 pick in the draft, tweets Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com. “This is a massive decision,” Brown said. “It comes with a lot of responsibility. It will receive the time that is required.”
Brown’s connections with Simmons’ family date back to 1988 when he was an assistant coach with the Melbourne Tigers, writes Henry Abbott of ESPN.com. “Each of the teams in Australia were allowed to have two American imports,” Brown said Thursday on ESPN’s TrueHoop podcast. “And one of the American imports we had was a player named David Simmons, from Harlem, New York — who is Ben Simmons’ father. The cheerleader — you can’t make this stuff up — the cheerleader that was the head cheerleader of that team ended up marrying David Simmons, our import, who I coached for five years with Lindsay Gaze, and had Ben Simmons, their son.”
Colangelo is looking forward to another shot at the No. 1 pick after taking Andrea Bargnani first overall in 2006, relays Dave Feschuk of The Toronto Star. “There’s no comparison of the draft classes [of 2006 and 2016],” said Colangelo, who was GM of the Raptors at the time. “Going into that [2006] draft, there was no consensus No. 1 pick. I think this year, if you poll league-wide, there are two consensus No. 1 picks.”

Heat Notes: Bosh, Dragic, Wade, Deng

May 20th, 2016 at 9:59am CST by Arthur Hill

The Heat are expecting Chris Bosh to be available next season, according to Dan Le Batard of ESPN. The 13-year veteran hasn’t played since the All-Star break when doctors discovered blood clots in his left calf, but Le Batard said on his radio show that both sides are optimistic. “I just got a text saying that Bosh should be able to play next season,” the host said. “So the Heat expect Bosh to be able to play next season. … What I’m telling you is that Bosh is committed to getting back, and the Heat are hopeful that that can be so.” Dan Feldman of NBCSports.com notes that the text came after Le Batard talked about the possibility of Bosh being forced into retirement, so Feldman speculates it came from someone with inside knowledge of the situation.

There’s more news out of Miami:

The Heat are limited in making deals for draft picks because they have used all their tradable cash for this season, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Not only can they not buy a pick, but Winderman points out that 60 percent of their roster is headed toward free agency, so none of those players can be traded. He says Miami’s best shot is to find a team that is interested in trading a pick for Josh McRoberts and that has the cap space or exception to fit him on its roster. McRoberts will make $5,782,450 next season.
Goran Dragic says Heat players will try to convince free agent center Hassan Whiteside to stay in Miami, tweets Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. “We all want him here,” Dragic said. .. “Hopefully he sees that.”
Dwyane Wade is hoping for a “quick and easy” experience in free agency this summer, Lieser tweets. Wade, who signed a one-year, $20MM deal last offseason, said he wants a “smooth” negotiating process.
With only about $40MM to spend and Whiteside and Wade as top priorities, the Heat may not be able to afford free agent combo forward Luol Deng, writes Manny Navarro of The Miami Herald. At a little more than $10.15MM, Deng turned out to be a bargain for Miami as he assumed a greater role after Bosh was sidelined. “Going forward obviously I would love to be here,” Deng said. “It’s something that we will sit down and discuss. I can’t really say one bad thing about being here. I enjoyed my time. The one thing that I know about here is that it’s an organization that wants to win and an organization that will support the players and what they do, whether it’s on the court or off the court.”

Latest On Jeff Hornacek, Knicks

May 20th, 2016 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Knicks president Phil Jackson was “blown away” by Jeff Hornacek in Monday’s job interview, but only after Jackson couldn’t sell anyone on keeping interim coach Kurt Rambis, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Berman reports Jackson made the final decision to hire Hornacek, who is still finalizing contract details with the team.

In selecting Hornacek, Jackson ignored cries from the media and fans to pick up former Indiana coach Frank Vogel, who was hired Thursday by Orlando, or ex-Cleveland coach David Blatt, who was the preferred choice of GM Steve Mills. Hornacek reportedly got a strong recommendation from Golden State coach Steve Kerr, who is close with Jackson.

Berman says Jackson was influenced by criticism of Rambis from inside and outside the organization. Mills wasn’t sold on Rambis, nor were Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis, with Anthony expressing his views through the media. Other players also voiced reservations in their exit interviews about keeping Rambis. Owner James Dolan wasn’t on board either, though he was letting Jackson make the final choice, and Jackson reportedly had his own questions about Rambis’ leadership skills.

Anthony supports the hiring of Hornacek and likes the move away from the triangle, Berman writes in a separate piece. Anthony believes Porzingis will have a larger role in the new offense and thinks that will benefit the Knicks in the long run. He would have also been happy with Blatt, according to Berman.

Berman speculates that Rambis could be retained as an assistant coach with Hornacek, who was his former teammate in Phoenix, or he could join Jackson in the front office.

Jackson has liked Hornacek since his playing days, but didn’t contact his representatives until two weeks after the search began. Jackson’s first choice, according to Berman, was new Lakers coach Luke Walton, whom he talked with two days after launching the search.

In bypassing Rambis, Berman believes Jackson may have paved the way for an easier exit from the Knicks. Jackson has an opt-out clause to leave the organization after next season, and many believe he will head back to the Lakers to reunite with fiancee Jeanie Buss. Berman writes that Jackson might have felt an obligation to stay in New York and oversee Rambis if he had been the choice, but that pressure is now gone.

And-Ones: Lakers, Shaw, Brown

May 19th, 2016 at 10:46pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Lakers were able to keep their 2016 first-rounder when they landed the No.2 overall pick in Tuesday’s lottery. The team still owes Philadelphia and Orlando a first round pick each and Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders breaks down the possible pick exchanges in a series of tweets. Los Angeles sends its 2017 first-rounder to Philly if it falls outside the top-3. If the Sixers get the 2017 pick, then the Magic receive the Lakers’ unprotected 2019 selection. If it doesn’t convey in 2017, then the Lakers send their 2018 unprotected pick to Philly and they wouldn’t owe Orlando a first-rounder at all. Instead, the Magic would receive a 2017 second-rounder and a 2018 second-rounder. Los Angeles is in this predicament because of its 2012 trade for Dwight Howard and its 2012 trade for Steve Nash.

Here are some notes on the upcoming draft:

The Lakers have offered Brian Shaw a spot on their coaching staff, but the former Nuggets coach is still weighing his options, reports Bill Oram of The Los Angeles Daily News.
Jaylen Brown, who’s a projected top-10 pick, won’t sign an agent. Instead, he will use the NBPA to advise him on his rookie deal, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets.
Memphis’ Dedric Lawson has withdrawn from the draft, as his father tells Gary Parrish of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
Abdul-Malik Abu will withdraw from the draft and return to NC State, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Jalen Moore will withdraw from the draft and return to Utah State, Goodman tweets.
The Bucks have worked out Tim Quarterman, Anthony Barber, Melo Trimble, Ron Baker, Anthony Gill and Devin Williams, per the team’s website.

And-Ones: Dunn, Sanders, Calipari, Blatt

May 18th, 2016 at 5:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

Representatives for Providence’s Kris Dunn don’t want him to go to a team with a young point guard already in place and may refuse to release his medical records to the Celtics and Suns, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Speaking on a draft lottery special, Wojnarowski said Dunn’s agents did not submit him for a physical at last week’s draft combine, which would have made his records accessible to everyone. Dunn has undergone two surgical procedures on his right shoulder, and teams may be reluctant to draft him if they are unsure of his current physical status. Dunn has been projected as a possible No. 3 pick, but his camp apparently doesn’t want him to compete for playing time with Isaiah Thomas and Marcus Smart in Boston or Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight in Phoenix. The Celtics own the third selection in next month’s draft, while the Suns pick fourth.

There’s more news from around the basketball world:

Rutgers freshman point guard Corey Sanders will withdraw from the draft and return to school, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. There’s little chance that Sanders would have been drafted, as Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress has him ranked 73rd among NCAA freshmen and ESPN’s Chad Ford doesn’t have him listed among his top 100 prospects.
Kentucky coach John Calipari, whose name has been floated for several NBA openings, plans to stay with the Wildcats for the rest of his career, he said in a message on his website. Calipari was considered a candidate for the Nets job after they fired Lionel Hollins in January, and the Kings reportedly spoke to him about taking over for George Karl last summer.
Spanish power FC Barcelona is interested in former Cavaliers coach David Blatt, according to El Mundo Deportivo (hat tip to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Blatt recently talked with the Rockets, Kings, Knicks and Lakers about their coaching jobs.
Twenty-four teams will compete in the Las Vegas Summer League July 8th-18th, the NBA announced today in a press release. The Spurs, coached by Becky Hammon, are the defending champions.

Southwest Notes: Grizzlies, Anderson, Terry

May 18th, 2016 at 4:09pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Grizzlies spoke with at least two candidates today as their search for a new coach heats up. Heat assistant David Fizdale came to Memphis for an interview, tweets Marc J. Spears of ESPN.com., as did Portland assistant Nate Tibbetts, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal (Twitter link). Both had been previously named as candidates for the job.

Spurs assistant James Borrego impressed Grizzlies officials during his interview earlier this week, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Memphis has also held interviews with Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, Hornets assistant Patrick Ewing and recently fired Pacers coach Frank Vogel (Twitter link). The Grizzlies have significant interest in Vogel, according to ESPN, but so does Orlando (Twitter link).

There’s more out of the Southwest Division:

Pelicans free agent Ryan Anderson says he was nearly traded to Cleveland at the deadline, relays Brett Dawson of The Advocate. Appearing on “The Vertical Podcast,” Anderson contends the Cavaliers were trying to work out a deal for him before they picked up Channing Frye from Orlando. “There was a very last-minute phone call that I could have gone to Cleveland,” Anderson said. “I would be playing for the Cavs right now.” Anderson said he didn’t ask the Pelicans to trade him because he wants to have the option in free agency of staying in New Orleans. Anderson’s last experience as a free agent came in 2012 when he was restricted and Orlando swung a deal to send him to the Pelicans. This time, he likes the feeling of being in complete control. “I want to enjoy this process and see where New Orleans is at this summer,” Anderson said. “I want to see where, I don’t know, Houston is at or Sacramento or Washington.”
The Spurs could be interested in power forward Thomas Robinson if he opts out of his deal with the Nets, according to Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News. Robinson would give up a little more than $980K by opting out, but he stands to make much more on the open market with the expected jump in the salary cap. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has talked about the need to rebuild the bench with younger players, and the 25-year-old Robinson, a former teammate of LaMarcus Aldridge in Portland, could be a possibility.
Rockets point guard Jason Terry thinks Dwight Howard would be a “great fit” with the Mavericks, but only if he adapts to coach Rick Carlisle, according to The Dallas Morning News. “Whatever [Howard’s] role is, he would have to be the one to buy in first, and then you go from there,” Terry said on ESPN Radio’s Cowlishaw and Mosley show. “But he and Dirk [Nowitzki] together? That’s a powerful combination.” The 38-year-old Terry adds that he hopes to play one more season before retiring.

Eastern Notes: Heat, Vogel, Brooks, Olynyk

May 15th, 2016 at 8:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

Several Heat players had their minds on the future after today’s Game 7 loss at Toronto. The overall feeling is that most players want to return next season and they hope free agent center Hassan Whiteside is with them, tweets Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post. One exception could be Amar’e Stoudemire, who was unhappy with his playing time after signing a one-year deal with Miami as a free agent last summer (Twitter link). However, Stoudemire also felt the Heat had “great chemistry” and said, “I enjoyed the guys and I had the best time of my life with my teammates this season.” (Twitter link). Veteran Udonis Haslem, who has been with Miami for his entire 13-year career, understands he may have to find a new team to stay in the league next season. “There’s a business side to everything, so you never know,” Haslem said (Twitter link). Joe Johnson, who will be a free agent after joining the Heat in late February, said it’s too early to think about his next move (Twitter link). Chris Bosh, Goran Dragic, Justise Winslow and Josh McRoberts are the only Miami players with guaranteed deals for next season.

There’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Knicks are hoping to hire a coach in the next week or so, writes Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal. Frank Vogel, who met with team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills Wednesday in Los Angeles, is apparently a finalist for the job, along with David Blatt and interim coach Kurt Rambis. Vogel reportedly spent much of his interview making the case that the understands the triangle and would incorporate it into his offense.
The Bucks will interview Utah executive Justin Zanik and former Charlotte GM Rod Higgins for an open front office position, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Milwaukee is looking for someone to work with GM John Hammond (Twitter link).
New Wizards coach Scott Brooks traveled to Orlando this week for a meeting with Marcin Gortat, according to Keely Diven of CSNMidAtlantic. Brooks is hoping to establish a better relationship with his starting center than former coach Randy Wittman, who feuded publicly with Gortat.
Kelly Olynyk will have to undergo surgery soon on his injured right shoulder in order to be ready for the start of next season, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. Olynyk has been hoping he can help the Canadian national team qualify for the Summer Olympics, but with a five-month projected recovery time, he is already likely to miss at least some of the Celtics‘ training camp.

And-Ones: Spurs, Celtics, Sixers, Pistons, Nuggets

May 13th, 2016 at 9:00am CST by Chuck Myron

Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili aren’t certain whether they’ll retire, as Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com details, but they’re not the only Spurs liable to hang it up in the wake of the team’s playoff elimination Thursday night. Andre Miller has strongly considered retirement, though he, too, hasn’t made up his mind yet, as he told Marc Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link). San Antonio’s contract with the 40-year-old Miller expires at the end of next month while Duncan, also 40, and Ginobili, who turns 39 in July, have player options. David West also has a player option, and though he turns 36 over the offseason, the talk surrounding him isn’t of retirement but of the lack of regrets he has about sacrificing roughly $11MM to sign his two-year minimum-salary contract with San Antonio last summer, as Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio News-Express relays (Twitter links).

“It’s been a great experience,” West said of his season with the Spurs. “I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

See more from around the NBA:

The Celtics, Sixers, Pistons, Nuggets, Pacers and Trail Blazers all benefited this season from set-off rights, reducing their obligations to waived players who had guaranteed salary remaining on their contracts, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders details. Boston saved $620,306 from the money it owed David Lee because he signed a deal with the Mavs that paid more than $845,059, a figure equivalent to the one-year veteran’s minimum salary, Pincus writes. The Sixers saved $227,241 on JaVale McGee the same way. The Nuggets were spared $68,144 on Pablo Prigioni, the Pacers avoided paying $159,900 to Toney Douglas and the Trail Blazers shaved $327,064 from their bill for Mike Miller, according to Pincus. The Pistons saved $341,353 on Josh Smith, though that figure will be spread evenly over each season of the five-year obligation Detroit still has to him because the team used the stretch provision.
The Pistons also got cap relief for Aaron Gray, whom they owe $452,049 each season from 2015/16 through 2017/18, Pincus points out. Gray had to retire because of a heart condition, but a team can remove the cap hit for a player who had to retire because of a medical reason one year after his final game. Gray last played in 2014. Detroit still must pay the money to Gray, but it doesn’t count against the team’s cap, Pincus notes.
Agent Jason Glushon and the Wasserman agency mutually agreed to part ways, and Glushon will start his own agency, a source told Spears (Twitter link). Glushon has a short list of clients, with none more prominent than Hawks soon-to-be free agent Al Horford, who left Wasserman, Glushon and B.J. Armstrong to sign with Bill Duffy of BDA Sports last fall only to rejoin Wasserman a couple of months later. Jrue Holiday and Norman Powell are other Glushon clients.