Author: Inside Hoops

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Cavs offered Nets Wally for Vince

The Bergen Record (Dave D’Alessandro) reports:  The Nets may seem to be in the process of blowing up their roster, but if they truly wanted to experience a true demolition job, they had their chance Wednesday night. As they were putting some of the finishing touches on the Richard Jefferson-Yi Jianlian deal, the Nets received a call from the Cleveland Cavaliers, who offered them Wally Szczerbiak and his expiring, $13.2 million salary for Vince Carter. According to two Eastern Conference executives, who asked for anonymity so as not to spill Rod Thorn’s secrets, the Nets considered it — but not for very long.

Raptors may not keep Delfino

The Toronto Star (Doug Smith) reports: The one player who seems to be on his way out is restricted free agent Carlos Delfino. Because of financial constraints, and the desire to give coach Sam Mitchell a chance to establish a regular rotation, Delfino doesn’t appear to have a future with the Raptors. And because of those same issues, it’s unlikely Toronto would entertain a sign-and-trade proposition for Delfino, who may end up heading to Europe, where he’s sure to command a greater salary than he’ll get in the NBA.

Nets happy with Draft

The New York Post (Fred Kerber) reports:  The Nets are nowhere near a finished product, but in one draft night containing a very significant trade, the Nets addressed most of their often-glaring needs. In short, they liked their draft. Team president Rod Thorn and general manager Kiki Vandeweghe drafted 7-foot center Brook Lopez for size and toughness, 6-10 forward Ryan Anderson for shooting and 6-6½ swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts for scoring and depth. That was after they landed 7-0 big upside project Yi Jianlian and 6-6 veteran Bobby Simmons from Milwaukee for Richard Jefferson. With the $22 million they will save, (Jefferson is due $42.4 over three years, Simmons gets $20.4 over two) the Nets can make a spirited run in 2010 at free agent LeBron James.

Knicks rookie Danilo Gallinari to wear jersey no.8

The New York Post (Marc Berman) reports: In wearing jersey No. 8 for Armani Jeans Milan, Knicks rookie Danilo Gallinari had a legacy to fulfill. A former Italian League point guard star, Mike D’Antoni, also wore 8 for Milan. “Mike D’Antoni’s a legend in Milan,” the 6-foot-10 Italian Stallion said yesterday during a press briefing at the Knicks’ practice facility. “So playing in Milan with that number, there’s some pressure about that.” Gallinari can’t begin to know the pressure awaiting him now. The 19-year-old, 6-10 forward will wear No. 8 for the Knicks, not to honor his favorite player Kobe Bryant, but because his birthday is Aug. 8, 1988 (8/8/88).

Nets extend qualifying offer to Nenad Krstic

The New Jersey Nets have extended a qualifying offer to restricted free agent Nenad Krstic, Nets President Rod Thorn announced today.  The qualifying offer allows the Nets to retain the right of first refusal in regards to Krstic.  As a restricted free agent, Krstic is able to sign an offer sheet with any team, however the Nets will have the right to match the offer.

Krstic, a four-year NBA veteran from Serbia, was the Nets’ first round selection (24th overall) in the 2002 NBA Draft.  Since joining the Nets in 2004, Krstic has played 226 games over four seasons with New Jersey, posting averages of 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds.  In 2007-08, Krstic appeared in 45 games, averaging 6.6 points and 4.4 rebounds.

Nuggets make qualifying offer to J.R. Smith

The Denver Nuggets have made a qualifying offer to restricted free agent J.R. Smith, Nuggets Vice President of Basketball Operations Mark Warkentien announced today. Per team policy, terms of the offer were not released.

In accordance with the league’s collective bargaining agreement, in order for a team to retain its right of first refusal with respect to a restricted free agent, the team must tender the player a qualifying offer prior to June 30. A restricted free agent may sign an offer sheet with any team, but is subject to a right of first refusal with the team for which the player last played.

Smith, 6-6, 220, has averaged 12.6 ppg while shooting .396 (306-772) from three-point range in his two seasons with the Nuggets since being acquired in a trade with Chicago on July 20, 2006. This past season, he averaged 12.3 ppg in 19.2 minutes in 74 regular season contests and 18.3 ppg in 27.0 minutes in four playoff games.

Kidney issue causes Darrell Arthur drop

Kansas forward Darrell Arthur sat and sat, finally selected no.27 in the first round by the Hornets. (A trade may send him to the Blazers soon.)

An alleged kidney issue caused his drop, according to ESPN and some other outlets. Arthur was not going to be a top pick but he was expected to go in the teens.

I asked Arthur after he was selected how it felt sitting and waiting and he seemed level-headed and calm about it.

Arthur also said that recent tests revealed his kidney is not an issue, and then remarked that word of the good results must not have spread.

Roundup of first 15 picks

Raw, unedited blog live from NBA draft by InsideHoops.com editor Jeff Lenchiner.

Fans booed David Stern when he came out. Stern responds by breakdancing and telling them that it’s ON. No, not really. But that would be cool.

Fans also booed being told that the Bulls are up first and have five minutes to make their selection.

During the wait some fans started chanting ‘OJ Mayo.’

Pick 1 in the first round: Bulls take Derrick Rose, as expected. So will Chicago now try to trade Kirk Hinrich? If so, they still need a legit shooting guard. Ben Gordon is unsigned and better off the bench.

Pick #2: Heat take Michael Beasley, as expected. So he can play small forward, Shawn Marion can keep doing his undersized power forward thing, and Dwyane Wade gets some help.

Pick #3: Wolves take OJ Mayo, as expected. He is a new building block alongside Al Jefferson

All good, logical picks so far.

Pick #4: Sonics take guard Russell Westbrook. So will they trade him to the Clippers? Or keep him and trade Luke Ridnour or Earl Watson?

Pick #5: Grizzlies pick Kevin Love. Now Mike Miller and Rudy Gay have a big guy worth giving the ball to. Love can bang and be a true power forward yet hit from outside when open.

Pick #6: The Knicks take Danilo Gallinari. Fans boo, VERY loudly, for a long time. They wanted Jerryd Bayless. Some fans start chanting ‘USA’ – clearly not fans of overseas talent, which has not met expectations. And in the interview after being drafted he seemed unphased by the boos and said it’s part of the game. He also smartly didn’t offer an explanation as to how he is different from other international players.

Pick #7: Clippers took Eric Gordon. They really needed a point guard – Eric is a scorer and shooting guard – but they must have felt that he was the best overall talent available. They did also need a two so this does make sense.

Pick #8: The Bucks took Joe Alexander, a small forward with insane hops. They just traded for Richard Jefferson, though. Perhaps Joe wil pretend to be a power forward for limited stretches.

Pick #9: The Bobcats, led by new coach Larry Brown, apparently do not believe Raymond Felton is their point guard of the future, because they took tiny, scoring floor general DJ Augustin.

Pick #10: The Nets got a fairly decent steal with Brook Lopez, who said he will bring energy and toughness to the Nets. He admitted to be pretty surprised that the Nets took him, especially since he didn’t work out for them.

Pick #11: The Pacers are expected to trade for TJ Ford soon, and now they have drafted Jerryd Bayless, a scorer who is the size of a point guard but has the game of a scoring two-guard.

Pick #12: The Kings need size and took Jason Thompson, who a few weeks ago was not considered a lock to go first round. He had good workouts.

Pick #13: The Blazers have shooting guard star Brandon Roy and they have drafted shooting guard Brandon Rush. Will they use Roy at the point? Rush can play undersized small forward but only for stretches. And will Martell Webster be traded?

Pick #14: The Warriors took Anthony Randolph, a lanky forward who is still refining his game. I guess he is a Don Nelson type of player. Or something. He is talented though.

Pick #15: The Suns take Robin Lopez, a big man role player who can back Shaq up and bump into people and stuff.

Nets trade Richard Jefferson to Bucks

The New Jersey Nets have acquired forwards Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for forward Richard Jefferson, Nets President Rod Thorn announced today.

InsideHoops.com reaction: This is wild. The Nets clearly want to rebuild for the future, and they have parted ways with RJ’s contract. Is Vince Carter the next to go? Yi Jianlian hasn’t proven anything yet — of course, he’s just entering his second year, so that isn’t saying much. Bobby Simmons got a decent contract from the Bucks and then disappointed them. On paper, as of this minute, the Nets will miss the playoffs again next season. As for the Bucks, this is a good move for them. They have talent up front with Andrew Bogut. Charlie Villanueva is pretty good, though probably best as the main forward off the bench. Though, he’s good enough to start in some situations. The Bucks backcourt of Mo Williams and Michael Redd was disappointing last year, but the additional of RJ will make them better. On paper, Milwaukee now has a pretty decent 1-3, and center. If they can solidify that power forward spot they could make a bit of noise. And by that I mean be a lower playoff seed in the East. Which isn’t that special. But it’s a step in the right direction.

“We feel that Yi can be a very special player,” said Thorn. “He is a 20-year old seven footer who shoots the ball extremely well, and he is an excellent addition to our frontcourt. Bobby Simmons is a veteran NBA player who has averaged 10 points for his career, and should be a rotation player for us.”