Inside Hoops – Page 1276 – NBA Blog

Greg Oden says he has an old body

Oden, 25, will fly to Miami at 6 a.m. Monday and immediately begin on-court work with the Heat, plus agility drills and more.

“My knee’s good,” he said. “I’m able to walk, jump, run. … It’s been a while. It’s been a long road. … I got an old body. My body is not going to be what it was when I was 18. When I was 18, I was able to run all day and jump over people. I can’t do that now. It’s just not going to happen. But I’m going to play as hard as I can and I’m going to try to jump over people and I’m going to try to run all day. If my body lets me, I’ll do it.”

He added: “My body is going to do what it can. If somehow it says no, then it says no. But I’m not even worried about that. I’m just going to go play and not even think about it…. I’m beyond excited. It’s been such a long road…. I know it’s going to be a long process.”

Reported by Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald

Sixers offer coaching job to Brett Brown

The Philadelphia 76ers should be one of the league’s worst teams this upcoming season. The roster lacks talent. It’s packed with bench-level players. The greatest coach in the world could run the team next season and they’d still struggle. As a result, many coaches may hesitate before taking such a job.

Still, somebody’s got to do it.

Barring a snag in negotiations, Brett Brown will become the 76ers’ next head coach. The team has offered the job to the San Antonio Spurs assistant, according to sources. The two sides were working on a contract to bring the 52-year-old to Philadelphia.

If he accepts, Brown will become the team’s eighth head coach since Larry Brown resigned after the 2002-03 season.

The news comes as no surprise. Brett Brown for some time has been the candidate the Sixers coveted to replace Doug Collins, who resigned on April 18.

The New York Daily News reported during the June 27 NBA draft that the Sixers had decided to hire Brown. General manager Sam Hinkie later denied the report. Then on July 31, a league source told The Inquirer that Brown was the preferred candidate for the job.

Brown takes over a team that finished 34-48 this past season and appears to be seriously rebuilding.

Reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer

Even if the team does struggle as expected, we’ll still be watching rookies Nerlens Noel (when healthy enough to play) and Michael Carter-Williams to see how they develop.

Greg Oden happy to join LeBron in ring quest

Lots of people gave up on always-injured center Greg Oden. But after all his struggles, nobody knows what his future will be like. Perhaps he’ll finally stay healthy and have a solid career. It could happen. And if it does, it’ll begin in probably the best place possible, on the roster of the NBA champion Miami Heat.

“My body’s just getting used to playing again,” Oden said. “My knees do feel good. I’m able to walk. I’m running, jumping. I’m doing everything.

“It’s going to maintenance for the rest of my life. I’ve got to warm up to warm up and then play. I understand that now.”

So, why Miami? San Antonio, Cleveland, Dallas, New Orleans, Sacramento and Atlanta all showed interest. That smile reappeared, frustration and disappointment a distant memory, before Oden answered.

“My friends told me, ‘If you take out the possibility of getting hurt again, what other choice is there?'” Oden said. “If I take out the possibility of getting hurt, why would I not play with the champs?

“If LeBron decides to get another ring, I get one too, now.”

Reported by the Associated Press

The Oden story will be something to watch in 2013-14.

David Lee reflects back on the Knicks

Like others, Lee wonders what would have happened had the Knicks valued him as a budding star, had they valued the young members of the 2008-09 cast instead of dismantling a club that got off to the Knicks’ first winning start in ages with a 6-3 start. The club was 6-5 when the axe dropped on Nov. 21 and Crawford, Randolph and Tim Thomas were shipped.

For all their myriad maneuverings since 2008, the Knicks have captured one playoff series. As they enter 2013-14 with a revised 14-man roster, it could be the final season before starting all over again — if Carmelo Anthony bolts. The Knicks are considered in many circles no better than the fifth-best team in the East, which could mean another first-round exit.

“It is interesting to look back, to see if we went another way in the win column if they kept guys together,” Lee said. “I look back at my career here and there’s nothing but positive memories. It was a little bit out of my control, the winning and losing. The first couple of years, I was a backup guy, then when I was captain of the team the last couple of years, we started breaking down the team.

“I don’t want to say I was underappreciated,” Lee added. “The Knicks took a chance, and part of getting Amar’e was to use it as bridge to get a guy like LeBron and Carmelo. They got that done. Amare’s a heckuva player. It’s unfortunate what’s happened with some of his injuries. Hopefully he gets healthy because I know how much he loves the game and loves being in New York.”

Reported by Marc Berman of the New York Post

Lakers assistant Johnny Davis says team needs to become a real unit

Recently hired as an assistant to Lakers Coach Mike D’Antoni, Johnny Davis hopes to help the Lakers become more of a bonded unit.

“The key is that we really and truly and sincerely have to be a team,” said Davis said to Mike Trudell of Lakers.com on Thursday. “Not just a collective of guys wearing the same color uniform, but truly a team so when you are practicing or doing anything, you don’t want to let your teammate down.”

Davis, who recently served as an assistant with the Toronto Raptors, was added to the Lakers staff in late July. Davis also has head coaching experience with the Orlando Magic, Memphis Grizzlies and Philadelphia 76ers. He also won an NBA title in 1977 as a point guard with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Reported by Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times (Blog)

Anthony Tolliver signing with Charlotte Bobcats

Charlotte Bobcats are signing Anthony Tolliver

Free-agent Anthony Tolliver, a 6-foot-8 forward with five seasons of NBA experience, has agreed to a one-year, veteran-minimum deal with the Charlotte Bobcats.

Tolliver, who played for the Atlanta Hawks last season, reportedly drew interest from a variety of teams, including the Chicago Bulls and Utah Jazz. He has a history with members of the Bobcats coaching staff, working with assistants Stephen Silas at Golden State and Bob Weiss in Atlanta last season.

Tolliver has played for the San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers, Warriors, Minnesota Timberwolves and Hawks. He has career averages of 6.1 points and 4.1 rebounds. His shooting is not particularly strong – 41.3 percent from the field.

Reported by Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer

A.J. Price still a free agent, willing to play overseas

When the Wizards locked up Eric Maynor at the start of free agency more than a month ago, it was a given that A.J. Price wouldn’t return.

Price, who had the best statistical season of his four-year career with 7.7 pints, 3.6 assists and 35% three-point shooting in Washington, surprisingly still is a free agent.

Reached this weekend by CSN Washington, Price concedes that he was prepared to linger on the market and said he wouldn’t rule out jumping abroad if the money is there. He made just less than $900,000 under the veteran minimum after spending his first three with the Indiana Pacers. He thinks his value should be greater.

“No, I’m not surprised,” he said of the Wizards not bringing him back after his only season here.

Reported by J. Michael of CSN Washington

Injury to Rajon Rondo helped spur Celtics decision to rebuild

In Paul Pierce’s mind, there were many factors that went into the dismantling of the Celtics roster this offseason. That chain reaction, however, may have started on Jan. 27, 2013. It was on that winter day — one where the Celtics dramatically defeated the Miami Heat in double overtime at TD Garden — that the team learned point guard Rajon Rondo would need surgery to repair a tear in his ACL, ending his season.

With time growing shorter with every passing game for the old Celtics core and with Rondo’s health uncertain for the upcoming year as he rehabs his knee, Pierce acknowledged that the injury was a big reason why he is now wearing a Brooklyn Nets uniform and not the one he wore for the past 15 years.

“It would be hard to contend,” Pierce told the Herald yesterday, the last day of his camp at Basketball City in the shadow of the Garden. “I saw the vision. I saw all that. As a player, I’m selfish. I want what’s going to be good for me and the team. But you’ve got to look at the management looking at what’s down the road. If it’s up to me I would want to rebuild to win a championship by bringing players in. They were looking at the future, down the line.

“Rajon might not be here for the beginning of the year or however long he takes, so it would be tough for us to be a contender or get in a position to contend. Everybody saw that and I think that helped the decision on both sides.”

Reported by Tom Layman of the Boston Herald

Sixers hope to make Brett Brown their next head coach

The Sixers continual coaching search might be coming to an end.

San Antonio Spurs assistant Brett Brown has been offered the Sixers head coaching position.

If he accepts, Brown, 52, will become the 24th head coach in franchise history, and will take over a team that has fully embraced a rebuilding phase.

While many are relieved that the team has finally selected someone to you know, coach the players, Brown remains relatively unknown to the average NBA fan.

His dexterity at player development was tagged as his calling-card throughout the Sixers search, but Brown brings a lot more than that to the Sixers’ bench.

Brown’s impressive basketball background began in high school. He attended South Portland High (in Maine) where he played for his father, New England Basketball Hall of Fame coach, Bob Brown.

Reported by Michael Kaskey-Blomain of Philly.com

Brown should bring a winning attitude to an organization expected to struggle. He learned from three premier coaches on three levels: his father, Bob Brown; Rick Pitino; and Gregg Popovich.

Brett Brown joined Popovich’s Spurs staff in July 2002 as an assistant coach/director of player development. He moved to the bench as an assistant coach before the 2006-07 season.

The Spurs have won three NBA titles during his tenure. They just missed out on a fourth, losing in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to the Miami Heat in June.

Reported by Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer

2015 NBA All-Star weekend location may be New York City

The 2015 NBA All-Star Game almost certainly will be played in New York. The only question remaining for the Knicks, Nets and the league is in which arena the game will be played.

Despite the sometimes rocky relationship between the two franchises, they are working with the league to jointly host All-Star Weekend, which would mark the first time the event would be held in the metropolitan area since it was played at Madison Square Garden in 1998…

The key stumbling block will be which state-of-the-art arena — the Nets’ new Barclays Center or the Knicks’ refurbished Madison Square Garden — will host the game.

It’s likely the solution will feature one building playing host to the Saturday night festivities, including the 3-point and Slam Dunk contests, while the other will host the game Sunday night.

Reported by Tim Bontemps of the New York Post