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And-Ones: Ilyasova, Embiid, Jackson

March 16th, 2014 at 10:01pm CST by Zachary Links

Bucks big man Ersan Ilyasova admits that he was frustrated by being involved in trade talk around the deadline but he says that he still sees himself with Milwaukee in the long run, writes Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders.  “When you go through a season like this and your name comes up [in rumors] it is a little frustrating,” Ilyasova said. “But I still feel myself as part of this franchise. I’m hopeful we can find the right pieces for the team so we can play much better because we really need it. I want to be part of a playoff team and that’s what I’m looking forward to, [the franchise] building a better team – a playoff team.”

  • One NBA scout told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter) that Kansas’ Joel Embiid is the “only potential franchise player” in the 2014 draft.  Meanwhile, Spears believes that Duke’s Jabari Parker will prove to be one as well.
  • If Phil Jackson hopes to emulate Pat Riley‘s success with the Heat, he must be an active and visible face of the Knicks organization, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
  • There’s a long list of coaches who have moved on to the front office and they’ve had mixed results, write USA Today Sports’ Jeff Zillgitt and Sam Amick.  Of course, Jackson hopes to follow the path of Riley, Danny Ainge, and Red Auerbach rather than the likes of Isiah Thomas.
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Ramon Sessions Interested In Bobcats Reunion

March 16th, 2014 at 3:19pm CST by Zachary Links

Bucks guard Ramon Sessions says that he would love to be a member of the Bobcats again if they’d be interested in signing him this summer, tweets Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.  Charlotte traded Sessions to Milwaukee at the trade deadline along with Jeff Adrien in a deal that brought them Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour.

Sessions, 28 next month, recently told Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders that he felt “blindsided” by the February deal.  Meanwhile, he told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo back in 2012 that the reason he opted out of his contract with the Lakers and signed with Charlotte in the first place was so that he’d have some career stability.  However, it sounds like there are no hard feelings between the veteran guard and the Bobcats.

Sessions is making $5MM in the final year of his contract and while Milwaukee isn’t playing for much at this stage of the season, the veteran has been playing well over the past few weeks.  In 12 games for the Bucks, Sessions has been averaging 12.8 PPG, 3.4 APG, and 2.8 RPG in 25 minutes per contest.  Between the two clubs, Sessions has averages of 10.9 PPG, 3.7 APG, and 2.3 RPG in 24 minutes per game (15.6 PER).

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And-Ones: Harden, Collins, Daye, Williams

March 15th, 2014 at 12:35pm CST by Cray Allred

In a series of tweets, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders says there was more to the Thunder‘s decision to trade James Harden before last season than money concerns. Coming off their Finals loss, Harden wanted an increased role on the team, believing himself to be the superstar talent we now know he is. Kyler says Harden wanted to stay, but the Thunder didn’t want to change their roster dynamics to accommodate his wishes. Here’s more from around the league:

  • Jason Collins is happy stay with the Nets for the rest of the season, he tells Roderick Boone of Newsday. “Thank you to the Nets organization, coaches and players,” Collins said.“Our team is playing really well right now and I’m glad to continue to be here.” 
  • The Spurs have assigned Austin Daye to their D-League affiliate per a team release.
  • After showing promise in some extended playing time with the Raptors, Ed Davis has struggled to see many minutes with the Grizzlies, writes Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun. The lack of playing time has come because of a crowded frontcourt in Memphis, not a lack of skill on Davis’s part, says coach Dave Joerger. “It’s tough and he’s a similar style to the guys that are at that position,” said Joerger. “What his athleticism is, is a different look for us. But it’s tough with Marc [Gasol] and Zach [Randolph] in front of him.”
  • Derrick Williams has been debated as a “true” small forward or power forward since coming into the league, but Kings coach Michael Malone tells Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee that Williams’ versatility is a good thing. “You go back to his days at Arizona, when he was the No. 2 pick, he played a lot of four (power forward),” Malone said. “I see in the NBA if a bigger guy is guarding him, he can take that guy out on the perimeter. If you play him at the small forward, you can post him up some. He’s got that versatility and athleticism that is very attractive. The league is getting a lot smaller it seems, and I think Derrick’s versatility is a real advantage when you play him at the four.”  If small forward Rudy Gay picks up his $19.3MM player option in Sacramento for next season, Williams will likely have to establish his ability to thrive at the power forward spot.
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And-Ones: Embiid, Union, White, Hairston

March 13th, 2014 at 5:55pm CST by Zachary Links

With only three games on the docket on Thursday evening, let’s begin to sort through all that is going on around the Association tonight:

  • Sean Deveney of the Sporting News asked executives about Joel Embiid’s back injury and what it will do to his stock come draft time.  “Obviously he has a ton of talent and he is as promising a big man as you can imagine,” one GM said. “But the back is going to be a question mark, and every team is going to want their doctors to look at whatever information there is now, and whatever comes out of the medical testing at the combine.“
  • In a piece for ESPN.com, agent Jeff Schwartz opined that the process for the union’s executive director search must change.  In his view, there has been a lack of transparency in the search since day one and he notes that even though there are said to be two finalists for the position, the union has yet to publicly acknowledge them.
  • Royce White‘s stint with the Reno Bighorns was “a positive experience” for both White and the club, despite him not posting impressive numbers there, a source tells Gino Pilato of D-League Digest (on Twitter).
  • While P.J. Hairston concedes it has been an adjustment, you can count him among the D-League advocates as well, writes SI.com’s Chris Mannix. The former Tar Heel, banished from North Carolina in December, hit the ground running with the Texas Legends and has all the makings of a first round pick this June.
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Southwest Rumors: Miller, Harris, D-League

March 13th, 2014 at 1:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

Here’s the latest out of the Southwest Division..

  • Grizzlies swingman Mike Miller will be a free agent at season’s end, but he calls the experience of playing with Marc Gasol “an absolute pleasure,” just as he found it was playing with brother and fellow soon-to-be free agent Pau Gasol. Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling has more from Miller, who expresses his affection for the Heat, a team he can’t sign with until 2015/16 under the terms of last season’s amnesty waiver.
  • Mavericks guard Devin Harris, making the minimum salary, is looking like one of the best values in the league right now, writes ESPNDallas.com’s Tim MacMahon.  Factoring in finances, production, and impact for a probable playoff team, D.J. Augustin of the Bulls is the only backup point guard who could make a strong case for being a better value, MacMahon opines.  Harris is averaging 8.0 points and 4.0 assists in 18.6 minutes per game while serving as the Mavs’ best backcourt defender.
  • The Pelicans and Grizzlies are seeking one-to-one D-League affiliates for next season, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Kyler reiterates an earlier report that the Magic are looking for the same.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

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And-Ones: LeBron, Embiid, Diawara, Johnson

March 10th, 2014 at 9:47pm CST by Zachary Links

There has been some chatter that former GM Chris Grant could have been the key to bringing LeBron James back to the Cavs but that is nothing more than a tall tale, writes
Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio. If Grant had a grand plan to bring LeBron back to Cleveland, Amico surmises, then he probably would have made that known to owner Dan Gilbert . Here’s tonight’s look around the Association..

  • Top draft prospect Joel Embiid will miss the Big 12 Tournament thanks to a back injury and at least one GM believes that it’s now a three-horse race for the No. 1 pick, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
  • Yakhouba Diawara officially parted ways with French team Gravelines-Dunkerque, writes Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.  The French forward was averaging 11.9 PPG and 3.5 RPG in Pro A and 12.9 PPG in Eurocup.  The four-year NBA veteran last appeared in the league with the Heat in 2010.
  • Undrafted forward Karron Johnson has signed a contract in the NBA D-League, a source tells Shams Charania of RealGM (on Twitter).  Johnson, a product of Shaw University (Division II), left his Polish team last week.
  • Thanks to the tremendous play of Al Jefferson, the extraordinary coaching of Steve Clifford, and the impressive development of Kemba Walker, the Bobcats have positioned themselves in the playoff hunt, writes Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders.
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Team Facebook/Twitter/RSS

March 6th, 2014 at 2:19pm CST by Chuck Myron

If you want to keep tabs on all the stories and updates at Hoops Rumors, you can follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, or subscribe to our feed through your RSS reader of choice. If you prefer to receive only news about your favorite NBA team, we still have you covered. You can even get updates only when teams make a move, with our Transactions-only Twitter and RSS feed. Below are links to our Facebook, Twitter, and RSS pages and feeds for all 30 teams.

Atlantic

Central

Southeast

Southwest

Northwest

Pacific

Transactions only: Twitter / RSS

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Poll: Should Lakers Keep Brooks?

March 4th, 2014 at 7:59pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Since a very productive rookie season with the Nets a little under two years ago, MarShon Brooks has had a difficult time establishing a niche in the NBA to say the least. Following a 2011/12 campaign in which he averaged 29.4 MPG and posted 12.6 PPG, the former Providence guard saw his minutes dip to just 12.5 per game in 2012/13. After being dealt to Boston in the offseason, Brooks saw no more than 7.3 MPG in Brad Stevens’ rotation; a deal to the Warriors after 10 games with the Celtics yielded a paltry 2.1 minute average in seven contests. However, a deadline deal which sent Brooks packing for Los Angeles has brought forth a return to NBA relevance.

Coincidentally, Brooks’ Lakers debut came against Boston less than two weeks ago, and the 6’5 guard made his presence felt, scoring 14 points on 7-for-11 shooting in 23 minutes. Two nights after notching 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting in 20 minutes against Memphis, Brooks went 9-for-13 from the field en route to 23 points in 26 minutes against Sacramento. Through six games in L.A., the former first-round pick is averaging 12.6 PPG while shooting 51.8% from the field and an uncanny 88.9% from long distance. While those percentages are derived from a small sample size and will arguably move back toward the direction of his career averages sooner or later (44.2% and 32.7% respectively), it’d be difficult to dismiss his production or the idea that he is picking up where he left off in New Jersey a few years ago.

On the flip side, there are a few sobering points worth considering. For one, the Lakers aren’t remotely within playoff contention at this stage as far as this season is concerned, and one may argue that Brooks is enjoying numbers on a team without too many expectations right now. Secondly, the team has plenty of wing players to consider, including Jodie Meeks, Kent Bazemore, and Nick Young, who appears to have a mutual interest with the franchise in staying put for the long-term. Also, with ample cap space this summer and potentially in 2015 (depending on who the team adds this summer), it’s understandable to contend that a higher priority should be placed on preserving as much flexibility as possible for much more worthwhile targets, whether via free agency or trade.

Brooks is slated to hit unrestricted free agency this summer after the Celtics declined his team option for 2014/15. As it stands, the Lakers only have three guaranteed contracts on the books for next season, and will undoubtedly face an offseason of key roster decisions. Considering all this, should the Lakers re-sign Brooks after this season?

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2013/14 NBA Reverse Standings

March 3rd, 2014 at 10:39am CST by Chuck Myron

For the third straight year, Hoops Rumors is maintaining a feature that allows you to keep an eye on how the summer’s draft order will play out. Throughout the season, our 2013/14 NBA reverse standings, which list the NBA’s 30 teams from worst to first, are updated daily to reflect the outcomes of the games from the previous day.

These reverse standings take into account playoff teams in each conference, so they’re essentially a reflection of what this year’s draft order would look like with no changes to lottery position. Traded picks are also included via footnotes, so, for instance, the note next to Minnesota’s pick indicates that it will be sent to Phoenix if it doesn’t fall within the top eight. Given those conditions, the Timberwolves probably wouldn’t mind seeing the regular season end today, since their pick is currently projected to land 13th overall.

With a little more than six weeks to go in the regular season, draft position is starting to become paramount for many teams, and unlike last year, when there were no legit blue chip prospects to dream about, there’s a lot at stake. This year’s draft class figures to include Jabari Parker, Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid, Julius Randle, Dante Exum, and Marcus Smart. The general consensus among draft experts is that any one of those players, and perhaps others, would have had been selected first overall if they’d been available in 2013. So, it’s worth getting excited if your favorite team has a shot to land a top pick.

Our reverse standings feature can be found at anytime on our right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features.” It’s a great resource not just for monitoring a team’s draft position, but also for keeping an eye on whether or not traded picks with protection will be changing hands this year. Be sure to check back often!

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10-Day Contract Tracker

February 27th, 2014 at 3:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

The week since the trade deadline has been a busy one, and that’s reflected in the heavy volume of 10-day signings. There have been 11 such deals in the past seven days, and more are rumored to be coming as the buyout market continues to take shape.

The bulk of the signings that take place in the NBA between now and April will be of the 10-day variety, and we’ll keep on top of all of them. Hoops Rumors has created a database that allows you to track every 10-day signing all season long. It includes information on every 10-day contract signed since the 2006/07 season, giving you a chance to identify trends regarding your favorite teams and players. The search filters in the database make it easy to sort by team, player and year. You can even see whether a player and team signed a second 10-day contract, and if the short-term deals led to an agreement that covered the rest of the season.

For instance, if you want to see how many 10-day deals Cartier Martin has signed over the course of his career, you can find that information here. Similarly, if you want to see all the 10-day contracts the Knicks have signed in recent years, you can do so here.

A link to our 10-day contract tracker can be found at any time in the Tools menu at the top of the page, or in the right sidebar. We’ll be keeping it up to date for the rest of the season, so be sure to check back to keep tabs on the latest signings.

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