June 2012 – Page 19 – NBA Blog

Lottery team may have made Dion Waiters a draft promise

The intrigue here at the NBA pre-draft combine involved Syracuse guard Dion Waiters essentially going underground once he completed the weights-and-measures process.

Waiters, a 6-4 combo guard with a knack for making pressure jump shots, suddenly cancelled workouts and interviews, setting off speculation he’s been made a promise by a team with a lottery pick.

Toronto Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo (8th pick) confirmed as much to the Toronto Star, saying, “His agent has told me there’s a promise to another team.”

Certainly everyone has the right to decide what’s in his best interest, but it’s curious that a player seemingly outside the top five wouldn’t want as much exposure as possible.

— Reported by Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer

Jared Sullinger familiar with feeling like underdog

Asked if he might be a draft sleeper, Jared Sullinger’s face broke into a sly smile. If the Ohio State forward was prepared for anything during the NBA draft combine, it was this question.

“I could be,” Sullinger said. “A lot of people have been sleeping on me, and it’s kind of fun. All my life I’ve kind of been known as the underdog.

“People said I wasn’t going to be able to play at the college level, and I did. Some people said I wasn’t going to be able to play at the high school level; some people said I was too overweight to play at the middle school level. I’m used to it.”

Doubts might recede now that Sullinger appears to measure up. He officially stood 6-foot-9 in shoes, and his wingspan of 7-1 1/4 and his standing reach of 8-11 were comparable to the centers in the combine pool. The latter number was just an inch shy of presumptive No. 1 pick Anthony Davis’ reach.

— Reported by Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune

Royce White handling his anxiety issue

Royce White knows he has an anxiety issue. He’s fully aware that these feelings have taken him from a top-10 prospect to a late first-rounder and are trying to take hold of his body every time he faces a situation outside of his control.

Still, the Iowa State forward spent time at the NBA combine addressing his fellow prospects. He knows what he deals with and can’t imagine how other prospects are prepared to go through similar issues on their first job interviews.

“I believe that having anxiety is the same as having cancer or heart disease,” White said. “It’s not a character issue. If you talk about character, it’s a whole different ballgame. I’m ready to openly talk about all of those associations, and I feel for those who aren’t.”

Interviews are the most important part of the combine. The top prospects don’t participate in on-court drills, like a top-notch high school student testing out of college courses.

— Reported by Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle

Jared Sullinger tired of the critics

Ever since middle school, Jared Sullinger has heard the same criticisms about his game: Too fat, too slow, too short, can’t jump, no foot speed and on and on and on. Now that he’s hearing all about it again at the NBA combine, Sullinger has had enough.

“Everybody is overanalyzing my game,” he said. “I’m always the bad guy in every gym. Everybody says I can’t do this or that, everybody points out all the negative things I do. There’s a lot of positives I think I do, but that’s not for me to discuss.”

Sullinger met Thursday night with the Cavaliers, who brought General Manager Chris Grant, assistant GMs Michael Blackstone and David Griffin, scouting director Trent Redden, pro player personnel director Wes Wilcox and recent front-office addition Zydrunas Ilgauskas to Chicago for the combine. He also met with representatives from the Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns, Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks. Sullinger said he wasn’t sure where he was headed for workouts or who was on the list, but he is sure he’ll succeed in the NBA despite all the criticisms. He is projected to go anywhere from seventh to the middle of the first round, which is lower than he would have gone last season in a draft that wasn’t nearly as deep.

— Reported by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal

Settlement reached in suit against Warriors, Monta Ellis

A former Golden State Warriors employee has reached a settlement in a sexual harassment lawsuit against the team and former Warriors guard Monta Ellis that alleged Ellis sent her unwanted texts that included a photo of his genitals.

Erika Smith, a former community relations director for the Warriors, and the team settled out of court last month, her lawyer said Friday.

Attorney Burt Boltuch said he is not allowed to discuss specifics of the settlement. Boltuch said discussions with the Warriors’ attorneys began shortly after Ellis was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in March.

“All I can say is that the matter is dismissed,” Boltuch said Friday. “Ms. Smith is looking to move on with her career.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

Grizzlies owner says there are no plans to trade Rudy Gay

Reports persist that the Griz are shopping Gay to shed payroll and acquire a draft pick in the lottery. But Griz owner Michael Heisley says that just isn’t the case.

“We’re not looking to trade Rudy Gay,” Heisley said. “We’re not shopping him around. Period. Do we sit around and say ‘What if we traded Rudy, who could we get?’ No. Right now, Rudy is part of the future of this team.”

Gay, 25, will be the team’s second-highest paid player next season. His $16.4 million salary for the 2012-13 season is slightly less than the $16.5 million that power forward Zach Randolph will earn. Gay is owed about $53.6 million over the next three seasons after signing an $84 million contract as a restricted free agent in 2010.

— Reported by Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal

Taj Gibson wants to stay with Bulls

The Chicago Bulls front office has been outspoken over the past year about their desire to keep Taj Gibson on the roster.

The feeling is mutual.

Gibson, who will become a restricted free agent at the end of next season, knows the Bulls have a lot of other decisions to make before they get down to hammering out an extension, but he would like to lock something up which would make him a Bull for a long time to come.

“Really, it doesn’t matter (when it happens),” Gibson told ESPNChicago.com Thursday afternoon. “I told (general manager) Gar (Forman) and (vice president John Paxson) how committed I am to just being with the Bulls. It’s not a thought in my head to leave Chicago because I love playing for the Bulls.

“I love wearing the Bulls logo across my chest. So that’s the last thing I’m thinking about right now. Right now, I’m just thinking about next year. Just come in and figure out how I can try to help the team better and just let the chips fall in place. A lot of guys tend to worry about that stuff, but I know I have a good agent in Mark Bartelstein and I have a lot of faith in what he does and I know I have a lot of faith in the Bulls organization so I’m just relaxing and practicing.

“I believe my future is here. Either mid-July or next year (for an extension), just have to be patient and just wait and see.”

— Reported by Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago

Hornets options include trading Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza

Although the upcoming NBA draft is deep in talent, Hornets General Manager Dell Demps hasn’t ruled out the possibility of trading the team’s second lottery pick. “Yes, we will if it makes sense,’’ said Demps.

The Hornets have the 10th pick in the draft June 28, as well as the No. 1 overall selection, which the team is expected use on Kentucky power forward Anthony Davis.

“There’s been some teams that have put young guys around a top pick,” Demps said. “Some of the other teams have put veterans around the pick. Some have been successful both ways. I think we’re just going to look at what is best for our situation.’’

To improve the roster around Davis, the Hornets could try to explore a deal that would include trading either center Emeka Okafor or small forward Trevor Ariza, along with the 10th pick. That would clear salary cap space to possibly pursue more veteran help in free agency.

— Reported by John Reid of the New Orleans Times Picayune

Knicks guard Iman Shumpert recovery on schedule

Knicks guard Iman Shumpert knows you need to walk before you can run.

Shumpert, one of the NBA’s elite perimeter defenders, has not started walking, but still says his recovery from a torn ACL suffered during the Eastern Conference quarterfinals is “going good.”

“They say I’m right on target with everything, I’ll be walking next week,” Shumpert told The Post. “I’m being really optimistic about it, really happy about it, hopefully it picks up soon.”

Shumpert emerged as a key contributor to a Knicks team that made the postseason for a second consecutive year, and despite being expected to miss at least a month next season, Shumpert said he’s looking forward to getting back on the floor.

— Reported by Anthony Sulla-Heffinger of the New York Post

Kings may not offer Tyreke Evans a contract extension

The team’s leading scorer is guard Marcus Thornton, who has three years left on his contract and is due approximately $24 million.

Tyreke Evans was the Rookie of the Year in the 2009-10 season. But heading into his fourth season, the Kings are not expected to offer him a contract extension, though he will be eligible for one this offseason.

John Salmons had one of the worst seasons of his career in 2011-12 before being benched. After that, he started showing flashes of the player the Kings traded for last June.

The Kings also have Francisco Garcia and Travis Outlaw under contract and still could re-sign Terrence Williams.

Even with all the players on the wing, none in the group is an established star and all could be challenged for his spot.

— Reported by Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee