ESPN reports
The Milwaukee Bucks will sign veteran guard Jerry Stackhouse to a contract for the rest of the season, according to NBA front-office sources.
Sources told ESPN.com that Stackhouse is expected to formally sign with the Bucks on Monday or possibly Tuesday after the Martin Luther King holiday.
Meh. Not an inspiring signing.
I don’t like the idea of Stackhouse playing a considerable role at this stage in his career. Read the rest of this entry »
Brian Windhorst reported
“I’m sure there are going to be some teams that take a very hard look at me,” Ilgauskas said before the Cavs took on the Denver Nuggets to begin their five-game Western trip Friday night.
“Because so many teams are trying to dump salary, I know the talks are going to pick up.”
The contract
So by trading for a player like Ilgauskas, who makes $11.5 million this season, for a player with a long contract can save a team tens of millions in the future. In Ilgauskas’ case, the offer is potentially even sweeter than normal. Read the rest of this entry »
ESPN reports
Believe it or not, sources say Philadelphia has not completely ruled out a McGrady-for-Andre Iguodala deal, if only because if the losing continues, Sixers ownership may order a fire sale.
Talks between the two teams have taken place but they have not reached the serious stage. Philadelphia hinted at a package of Iguodala and Samuel Dalembert for McGrady. But while Houston loves Iguodala’s talent, it’s not sure such a deal would make it a legitimate championship contender. To take back the four years, $57 million remaining on Iguodala’s contract after this season, Houston has to be convinced it would become an immediate title contender once Yao Ming returns next season. Read the rest of this entry »
Jessica Camerato (WEII.com) has a good article/interview with Rajon Rondo where Rondo describes the art of passing
Dynamic dunking duo: The chemistry on the court between Rondo and Kevin Garnett makes alley-oops look effortless. But as Rondo explains, it takes a certain kind of player to pull off the dunk.
“Everybody can’t do it. There are guys in the league that can do it, but it may be four or five things — you’ve got to have the athleticism, perceptiveness, the setup, knowing when to do it, you’ve got to be a good player. Part of the reason why [Garnett] gets so many lobs is because people fear him getting the ball. If he gets the ball, he’s going to score, so they try to deny him the ball. He has great coordination, great timing. When he spins out, he loses track of the ball, so after he turns around he has to go up and find the ball and then find the rim. It’s not as easy as it looks. He does a great job at it.” Read the rest of this entry »
Very good article over at the Atlanta Journal Constitutional by Steve Hummer
Here is a different view of the Mike Woodson-Josh Smith dynamic, often cast as a cola-meets-paint-shaker kind of relationship.
Yes, coach and player have had their blow-ups over the last five-plus seasons. They are, after all, two emotional sorts whose fortunes are married. So why not behave like any other couple?
But as Woodson has told his young star and now tells us, there always has been a baseline of affection beneath the turmoil.
Go over to the coach’s house — hypothetically, this is not an actual invitation. Peek into his office. Know what you’ll find? Read the rest of this entry »
RealGM has the press release
After experiencing some discomfort during his recently-accelerated rehabilitation program, Clippers’ forward Blake Griffin was examined Tuesday afternoon by Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles.As a result of that examination, it has been determined that the healing in his left patella area has not improved to the expected required level. Griffin will undergo a surgical procedure in the near future, with a recovery prognosis of four to six months. Team personnel will be made available to the media. Further details will be made available as events develop. Read the rest of this entry »
ESPN reports
Utah general manager Kevin O’Connor loudly insisted Monday that those of us who presume that the Jazz will do anything they can to get under the luxury-tax line between now and June 30 have it way wrong.
The Dallas Mavericks got the same message when they tested Utah’s resolve early last week.
The Mavs made a long-shot attempt to convince Utah to part with Carlos Boozer by proposing an all-about-money trade that would have provided the Jazz with another sizable chunk of payroll relief to follow up the significant savings from their recent swap with Oklahoma City, ESPN.com has learned.
Yet sources close to the situation say that the Jazz weren’t about to be tempted. Read the rest of this entry »
Sam Smith reports on the Chris Bosh sweepstakes (good piece on Chet Walker and the 67 Sixers at the top of the article)
Is that eight or nine teams now trading for Chris Bosh? Sixteen?
The latest was speculation over the weekend about the Lakers, which followed speculation last week about Houston. We know the Bulls’ interest, and Miami’s has been no secret.
Dallas has been mentioned prominently since Bosh is from there, and I’ve heard rumblings about the Celtics to try to begin to retool without going to the bottom like they did at the end of the Bird/McHale/Parish era. And since Danny Ainge, now GM, was part of that he may know best what happened when you let your stars play it out. Read the rest of this entry »
Michael Redd left the Lakers-Bucks game late in the first half with an injury to his left knee. The same he injured last season.
First Update
A Michael Redd update
Bucks guard Michael Redd left the game in Los Angeles on Sunday night with left knee soreness and had to be helped off the court.
Redd was scheduled to have a magnetic resonance imaging exam in Phoenix on Monday morning, and his playing status was to be updated later in the day.
Redd has struggled with injuries to his left knee during the past 12 months. He suffered torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in the knee during a game last Jan. 24 at the Bradley Center, and he missed the remainder of the season.
He underwent surgery for that injury in early March last year but was able to return in time for training camp. Read the rest of this entry »
Yahoo Sports reports
The New Orleans Hornets have traded center Hilton Armstrong and cash to the Sacramento Kings in a salary-clearing move, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The deal removes Hilton’s $2.8 million salary from the Hornets’ payroll, leaving them only a little more than $500,000 over the luxury-tax threshold. The Kings will send the Hornets a future, conditional second-round pick.
Excellent trade by the New Orleans Hornets.
Hilton Armstrong is not a rotation caliber player, and his loss does not effect the Hornets playoff chances. The value gained from the salary dump outweighs his value as a player. Read the rest of this entry »
