Category: General NBA insight

The Nuggets cut Chris “Birdman” Andersen and signed in his place free agent Anthony Randolph,a source said Tuesday. The team used the NBA’s amnesty clause to waive Andersen, a source said.

Randolph,a power forward and center, averaged 7.4 points and 3.6 rebounds in 34 games for the Minnesota Timberwolves last season. He made five starts. Over four NBA seasons,including stops with the New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors,he has averaged 17.6 minutes,8.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.

— Reported by the Denver Post
http://m.denverpost.com/denverpost/pm_14463/contentdetail.htm

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has waived forward Andray Blatche and has designated him as the team’s amnesty player. Under the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, the amnesty provision allows the Wizards to remove the remainder of Blatche’s contract from the team’s salary cap.

“Andray did not figure into our future plans, and using the amnesty provision is a mutually beneficial opportunity for us to part ways,” said Grunfeld. “We will be able to continue to develop our core group of young players, blend in the solid veterans we have acquired and maintain financial flexibility while Andray will be able to get a fresh start with another team. We wish him the best moving forward.”

Blatche averaged 9.9 points and 5.4 rebounds in 409 career games with the Wizards. He was originally acquired as second round selection (49 th overall) in the 2005 NBA Draft.

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has signed restricted free-agent forward Nicolas Batum to an offer sheet. Under the terms of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Portland Trail Blazers will have three days to match Minnesota’s offer. The deadline for Portland to match the offer sheet is Wednesday, July 18 at 11:59 p.m. EDT. Reports have said the deal could be worth around $46 million over four years, but that is not confirmed.

Batum, a 6-8 forward from France, was originally selected with the 25th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Houston Rockets. Portland acquired his rights in a draft-night trade in exchange for the draft rights to Darrell Arthur and Joey Dorsey. In his four seasons with the Blazers, Batum has averaged 10.2 points and 3.9 rebounds in 255 games (202 starts). He averaged a career-high 13.9 points per game and 4.6 rebounds per game in 2011-12, while also establishing career bests with 90 steals and 60 blocked shots. The 23-year-old has career shooting averages of 46.0 percent from the field, 37.2 percent from three-point range and 83.6 percent from the free throw line. Batum scored a career-high 33 points on Feb. 4 vs. Denver, and set a Portland single-game record with nine three-pointers. He also tallied 33 points on Feb. 14 vs. Washington. Batum played professionally in France for four years before coming to the NBA.

What was expected became official Sunday, when it was announced the Phoenix Suns had won the amnesty wire auction for Scola’s services.

Scola, 32, won’t become a free agent. The Spurs, like all other teams whose payroll exceeds the salary cap, never had a shot to even offer him a contract.

(And before Spurs fans get any more ideas, Phoenix is now prohibited from trading Scola until July 1 of next year).

None of this is surprising to those of us who were paying attention. Under the NBA’s amnesty rules, only teams under the salary cap were allowed to bid on Scola during the waiver process.

The only way for him to become a true free agent would be for every team permitted to bid on Scola to shockingly decline to do so.

— Reported by Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News Blog
http://blog.mysanantonio.com/spursnation/2012/07/15/no-surprise-spurs-dont-get-shot-at-scola-now-a-sun/

Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving experienced a right hand fracture during today’s morning practice after slapping the padding on the wall at the practice site. X-rays taken in Las Vegas at Spring Valley Hospital confirmed the fracture. He will return to Cleveland and be evaluated Sunday at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health by Cavaliers Head Team Physician Dr. Richard Parker and Dr. Thomas Graham.

His preliminary projection is to be ready for the start of training camp in late September, but his official status and timeline for return to play will be updated following his exam in Cleveland.

The Houston Rockets want Jeremy Lin back,and they’re hoping to see him throw a few post passes to Dwight Howard.

Lin has signed an offer sheet with Houston,according to a person with direct knowledge of the move. The person spoke to The Associated Press on Friday night on condition of anonymity because the agreement with the New York Knicks’ point guard was not announced.

Another person familiar with the negotiations says it’s a three-year deal worth about $25 million. The person,who spoke on condition of anonymity because the terms had not been announced,says the third year is worth about $15 million.

Lin is a restricted free agent and New York is expected to match Houston’s offer within the required three days.

— Reported by Chris Duncan of the Associated Press

The Toronto Raptors and the representative for veteran guard Jose Calderon are working together to try to find a new home for Calderon via trade.

After ESPN.com reported Thursday that Calderon would welcome a trade after the arrival of Kyle Lowry to become the Raptors’ new starting point guard, agent Mark Bartelstein confirmed Thursday night that he and Raptors president and general manager Bryan Colangelo are “working together” to try to find a workable trade.

“There’s a little bit of a logjam there in the backcourt now,” Bartelstein said. “Bryan and I are talking and we’re putting our heads together to see what we can do to find a solution.”

Sources close to the situation say Calderon, while undeniably attached to the city of Toronto after spending his entire six-year NBA career there, is hoping the Raptors can find a trade home for him now that it’s been made clear the Raptors have no plans to release the Spaniard through the NBA’s amnesty clause.

— Reported by Marc Stein of ESPN.com
http://espn.go.com/dallas/nba/story/_/id/8162133/sources-toronto-raptors-jose-calderon-welcome-trade

InsideHoops.com is live in Las Vegas for tonight’s Team USA vs Dominican Republic exhibiton game.

It’s just a tuneup for the USA, but every minute on the court together matters, as team chemistry must be quickly developed for the upcoming Olympics in London.

Here is a photo of the game:

The Sacramento Kings today re-signed forward Jason Thompson to a multi-year contract, according to Vice President of Basketball Operations Wayne Cooper. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed.

“We’re happy to have Jason back with the team,” said Cooper. “We’re looking forward to having him once again play an integral role in our young frontcourt. He works extremely hard and his leadership is invaluable.”

The Indiana Pacers announced Thursday they have acquired 6-11, 230-pound center Ian Mahinmi from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones.

“This trade was an effort to shore up positions as part of our front court,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Donnie Walsh. “We feel Ian will do a wonderful job being in our rotation. Our priority during the moratorium was to keep our own guys and shore up our bench. I feel like we are making strides in that direction.”

Mahinmi is a four-year veteran of the NBA, having played for both the Mavericks and the San Antonio Spurs. In his career he has played 149 games and has averages of 4.4 points and 3.1 rebounds per game, including the 2011-12 season with the Mavericks where he averaged 5.8 ppg and 4.7 rpg.

Born in Rouen, France, the 26-year-old Mahinmi was a first-round pick of the San Antonio Spurs (28 th overall) in the 2005 NBA Draft. He played two seasons with the Spurs before signing with the Mavericks in July 2010.

Collison, a fourth-year player out of UCLA, was acquired (along with James Posey) by the Pacers on August 11, 2010, from New Orleans as part of a four-team trade that sent Troy Murphy to New Jersey. In his two seasons with the Pacers he averaged 11.9 points and 4.96 assists per game. Jones, a 6-6, 210-pound guard/forward was signed by the Pacers on July 14, 2009; and in his three seasons with the Pacers he averaged 7.6 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

“We will miss the contributions that Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones made to the Pacers and feel that they will be valuable members of the Mavericks,” said Walsh. “We hope this is a good trade for both teams.”