June 23, 2011 – Page 2 – NBA Blog

Mike Brown buying huge Anaheim Hills house

Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register reports:

New Lakers coach Mike Brown was definitely listening when Vanessa Bryant was breaking down the ins and outs of Orange County for him.

Brown and his star player Kobe Bryant will be fellow Orange County residents. Brown is buying a house in Anaheim Hills — and it’s a lot of house at 9,500 square feet — and will brave the commute from the intersection of the 91 and 55 freeways to El Segundo for practice and downtown Los Angeles for games.

According to Google Maps, that’ll be 45 minutes to practice without traffic (but an hour and 20 minutes with traffic) and 43 minutes to Staples without traffic (but an hour and 40 minutes with traffic.)

Celtics center Jermaine O’Neal will keep playing

Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald reports:

Few players deliberate more over the pros and cons of surgery than Jermaine O’Neal, who after undergoing knee surgery last January has decided to take a more holistic approach with the torn ligament in his left wrist.

O’Neal, who went through the playoffs with the wrist injury, has decided to forgo surgery in favor of rehabilitation, according to Danny Ainge. The Celtics president said yesterday that O’Neal, attempting to take advantage of the team’s resources before players are locked out on July 1, has been a regular at the workout facility in Waltham.

“He has every intention of coming back,” Ainge said of the only true center on his team’s roster. “He has every desire to play, and didn’t like the way it finished this year, and doesn’t want to end his career on that type of note. He wants to be a much greater contributor.

“He chose not to have surgery.”

Rumor: Thunder open to trading Eric Maynor

Chad Ford of ESPN reports:

Is Thunder point guard Eric Maynor worth a lottery pick? Sources say the Thunder have been quietly gauging interest in Maynor over the last few days in an attempt to move up into the top half of the draft. They’ve spoken to the Kings (No. 7) and Bobcats (No. 9) in particular in the last few days.

Maynor was the 20th pick in the 2009 draft, which was one of the most loaded point guard drafts ever.

Sixers have discussed Andre Iguodala trades

Kate Fagan of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports:

In recent weeks, the Sixers have discussed trades involving swingman Andre Iguodala with both the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers, along with various other teams, but have yet to find a deal they deem worthy of execution.

Two factors seem to be slowing the Sixers’ willingness to deal Iguodala: the impending change in ownership and the impending lockout.

A little more than two weeks ago, news broke that Comcast-Spectacor was in serious discussions to sell the team to a group led by New York investor Joshua Harris. Although the deal is not yet official, many league sources have conveyed the belief that the Sixers front office is in a bit of a holding pattern until the new ownership officially takes the reins.

During a meeting with reporters after Tuesday’s final predraft workout at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Sixers president Rod Thorn said it’s business as usual for the basketball side, although Thorn also said that nothing was imminent with any trades.

Tony Parker hopes to stay with Spurs

Marc. J. Spears of Yahoo reports:

Tony Parker reiterated Wednesday that he hopes to remain with the San Antonio Spurs – even if the choice isn’t up to him.

The Spurs have had discussions about trading Parker for a high pick in Thursday’s NBA draft, Yahoo! Sports reported Tuesday. The Toronto Raptors and Sacramento Kings, who hold the fifth and seventh picks, respectively, have talked to the Spurs about Parker. One league source said the chances of the Spurs reaching a deal with the Kings isn’t likely.

Spurs guard George Hill also has drawn some trade interest from teams with picks in the middle of the lottery.

Parker said he hopes to finish his career in San Antonio.

“I just hope I stay in San Antonio,” said Parker, who is in town for Steve Nash’s charity soccer game. “I love it in San Antonio. I’ve had some great years in San Antonio. I just re-signed four years and I hope I can stay there.”