Brand To The Bench?

Kate Fagan reports

It’s not a 100 percent, but if you read between the lines, it seems probable that Sixers coach Eddie Jordan might go with a different starting lineup on Wednesday night against the Charlotte Bobcats. And it seems power forward Elton Brand will be out of the lineup. There are a few options for who might be in (all speculation, really, on what the changed lineup might be).

But we just spoke to Jordan. When the Sixers lifted the curtain on practice, they were running through 5-on-0 sets and Brand was working with the second team, Jason Smith with the first team. Rodney Carney was also with the first team, Willie Green with the second. It’s tough to tell exactly what this stuff means because it might have been the first time all practice Brand was with the second team, so we had to ask Brand and Jordan.

Grizzlies Sign Tinsley

Ron Tillery of the Memphis Commercial reports

Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace oversees a team that is shaky at the point and has little to no leadership in the locker room.

The hope is that veteran floor general Jamaal Tinsley provides an upgrade in both of those areas.

Leadership? Tinsley? Oh-oh! The article continues

“We just felt that (Tinsley’s) experience and playmaking ability could be of benefit to us,” Wallace said. “So we reached out to him. … He’s an accomplished playmaker. We felt that it was a chance to buy some insurance at that position.”

Dalembert Trade Rumour

Interesting side deal that the Bobcats could have chosen instead

Charlotte had offer to trade Raja Bell and Vladimir Radmanovich to Philly for Sam Dalembert, but chose Stephen Jackson deal, source tells Y!

I like Dalembert more than most people and think some team could get him in a good deal … but I don’t have much love for the idea of Dalembert playing alongside Tyson Chandler on a team that is already the worst in the league offensively.

Still, it was very interesting to see what type of deal the Sixers were being offered and that it appears it was given mediocre-to-strong consideration.

Grizzlies Waive Iverson

ESPN reports

The Allen Iverson experiment with the Memphis Grizzlies is over.Memphis announced Monday that the team has ended its one-year contract with the 10-time All-Star and former league MVP in what it called a mutual agreement. Iverson was not placed on waivers by the 6 p.m. ET deadline on Monday so is expected to be waived on Tuesday, a league source told ESPN.com’s Chris Sheridan.

Under the agreement, Iverson will receive only a fraction of the $3 million he was scheduled to earn. If he clears waivers, he will become an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday night.

Cavs Can Sign And Trade Wally

ESPN reports

ESPN.com reported earlier Monday that one scenario Cleveland and Golden State discussed would have involved the signing-and-trading of ex-Cavaliers forward Wally Szczerbiak — most likely packaged with troubled guard Delonte West — in a deal for Jackson.

Szczerbiak is a free agent after the Cavs elected not to re-sign him and recently underwent minor knee surgery. But the 32-year-old has not ruled out trying to make a comeback this season and would appear to be fully eligible to be plugged into a deal by the Cavs in a manner similar to Dallas’ signing-and-trading of Keith Van Horn in February 2008 in the Mavericks’ complicated trade to re-acquire Jason Kidd.

Captain Jack To Charlotte

Trade

Charlotte Bobcats receive: Stephen Jackson + Acie Law

Golden State Warriors receive: Raja Bell + Vladamir Radmanovic

Source

Marc Stein reports

Disgruntled Golden State Warriors forward Stephen Jackson is about to make a fresh start with a new team.

The Warriors completed a deal Monday that sends Jackson and guard Acie Law to the Bobcats in exchange for veteran swingmen Raja Bell and Vladimir Radmanovic.

The trade will be announced Monday.

Outlaw Injured

The Oregonian reports

Trail Blazers forward Travis Outlaw has a stress fracture in the fifth metatarsal in his left foot, suffered in the first quarter of the Blazers game at Charlotte.

Outlaw, who played only 50 seconds, suffered the injury 20 seconds after he checked into the game. Television replays show that Outlaw apparently suffered the injury when he tried to close the distance between himself and Charlotte forward Gerald Wallace. When Wallace started to drive, Outlaw put on the brakes, and the force of the stop caused the injury. Wallace drove past Outlaw for a layin.

X-Rays revealed a stress fracture of the fifth metatarsal – the small bone on top of the foot near the small toe. It is the same injury, to the same foot, that teammate Martell Webster endured last season.

Andrew Bynum Producing

I haven’t been watching the Lakers play much here in the early goings (not the prettiest basketball around with Gasol is out) … I was watching the fourth quarter of the Rockets-Lakers game last night and I was surprised to hear what type of numbers Bynum has been producing.

• Games — 8
• Minutes per game — 39.3
• Rebounds per game — 11.9
• Field Goal percentage — 59.6%
• True Shooting percentage –62.7%
• Points per game — 20.8
• Blocks per game — 1.88

2010: Joe Johnson

The Hawks have 8 wins and 2 losses in their first 10 games with a margin of victory of eight points per game.

The Hawks early success in the regular season is a bad sign for any teams who were hoping to tempt Joe Johnson away from Atlanta next summer. The Hawks are looking like a 55+ win team right now and they still have enough youth/potential to improve further. It will be hard for teams to offer a better situation than the one Atlanta is offering.

Secondly, with Atlanta winning the Hawks front office will reluctant to let Joe leave. Questions over whether a player is max contract worthy, or how many years you want to commit to a player, those questions have a habit of dying down when teams are winning.

Okafor Trade Rumour

Sam Amick reports

A source with knowledge of the situation says the Kings are discussing a trade with New Orleans that would send Kenny Thomas to the Hornets and bring center Emeka Okafor to Sacramento.

The deal would be ideal for the Hornets, as Thomas’ expiring contract worth $8.7 million is just the kind of contract that would trim their enormous payroll. The question, of course, is whether the Kings see Okafor as a big man solution worth the five years and $62.5 million left on his deal.

No deal is imminent and this is merely a discussion between the two sides at this point.

Thoughts

I don’t believe there’s any truth to the rumour.