NBA News Blog – Page 727 – NBA Blog

DeAndre Jordan leaving Clippers to sign with Mavericks

Now this is a big one. Center DeAndre Jordan, he of massive hops, free throw struggles and impressive defensive ability, is leaving the Los Angeles Clippers and joining the Dallas Mavericks. Nobody expected this. Jordan fits in well on the Clippers, catching lobs from Chris Paul and having limited responsibility on offense while being part of a winning squad. But the Mavs offered monster money, and big DeAndre is reportedly accepting it. Here’s the Fort Worth Star-Telegram blog reporting:

Following a sluggish performance on the opening day of free agency, the Mavs rolled up their collective sleeves and have bounced back in a very big way.

First, early Friday morning, the Mavs convinced Portland Trail Blazers shooting guard Wesley Matthews to agree in principle to a four-year free agent contract. Then, on Friday afternoon the Mavs beat the odds again and secured a verbal agreement from Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, who accepted a four-year, $81 million contract from the Mavs.

Thus, Jordan becomes the first marquee player – aka a big fish — from another team to sign a free agent contract with the Mavs in the team’s illustrious 35-year history.

Wooed aggressively by the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Clippers and Mavs, Jordan had narrowed his choices down to the Mavs and Clippers. And after mulling over what the Mavs and Clippers had to offer, Jordan decided he wanted to jump-start the rest of his career in Dallas.

Richard Jefferson staying with Mavs

Here’s ESPN Dallas reporting that veteran small forward Richard Jefferson, whose NBA career is winding down, will stick with the Mavericks next season:

Small forward Richard Jefferson has agreed to return to the Dallas Mavericks on a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum, a source said.

Jefferson celebrated DeAndre Jordan’s decision to come to Dallas at a Manhattan Beach, Calif., bar Friday with a group including Mavs owner Mark Cuban and small forward Chandler Parsons.

In a video sent by Cuban on CyberDust, he laughed and asked Jefferson if he knew where he’d play next season. Jefferson joked: “We’ll see!”

Nets agree to deals with Thomas Robinson and Shane Larkin

The Brooklyn Nets are upgrading their bench with a couple of nice supporting-cast players. Here’s the New York Post reporting:

The Nets continued to act on their mission to get younger and more athletic, agreeing to two-year free-agent deals Thursday with Thomas Robinson and Shane Larkin, according to league sources.

Both deals come with player options for the second year, as the Nets continue to reshape their roster following their most important moves of the summer — re-signing Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young.

Robinson will earn the veteran’s minimum next season, while Larkin – who spent last season with the Knicks – will make roughly $1.4 million.

Blazers set to add Ed Davis

Trail Blazers set to add forward Ed Davis

At this point, there’s no reason to think that LaMarcus Aldridge will be back with the Portland Trail Blazers. They’ve added several big-men, and have now reportedly agreed to a deal with Ed Davis. Here’s the Oregonian reporting:

Unrestricted free agent Ed Davis has verbally agreed to sign a 3-year, $20 million free agent contract with the Blazers, according to Yahoo Sports. The deal will not become official until the NBA free agent moratorium ends on July 9.

Davis, 6-foot-10 and 240 pounds, averaged 8.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game and shot 60 percent from the field last season for the Los Angles Lakers. The No. 13 pick of the 2010 NBA draft, who is 26 and entering his sixth NBA season, is a skillful rebounder and effective interior scorer who adds even more athleticism to the Blazers’ evolving roster.

After striking out on Greg Monroe, Davis’ signing was a must for the Blazers, who are still waiting to hear if All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge plans to return to Portland.

Pacers, Monta Ellis agree to deal

Pacers, Monta Ellis agree to deal

The Indiana Pacers are about to add a lot of scoring to their backcourt. Will it be efficient scoring? We’ll see. Here’s the Indianapolis Star reporting:

Free agent guard Monta Ellis and the Indiana Pacers have agreed to a four-year deal worth $44 million on Thursday, a league source confirmed.

The deal also gives Ellis, 29, a player option in the fourth year, the source confirmed. Chris Broussard of ESPN was first to report the agreement. The Pacers reportedly beat out several other teams interested in Ellis, who has averaged 19.3 points and 4.8 assists over his 10-year career…

On Wednesday, Ellis and his wife arrived in Indianapolis and later in the night, met with Pacers executives Larry Bird, Kevin Pritchard and head coach Frank Vogel.

Bucks, Greg Monroe agree to deal

Bucks, Greg Monroe agree to deal

Here’s the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporting on the Bucks, who are adding a whole bunch of offense to their frontcourt:

The Milwaukee Bucks have agreed to terms on a maximum contract with free-agent center Greg Monroe, a league source indicated Thursday.

The deal will be worth an estimated $50 millon over three years, with the third year a player option, the source said.

The Bucks will be able to sign Monroe with available cap space and will sign Khris Middleton over the cap using Larry Bird rights, which allow teams to exceed the cap to re-sign their own free agents. The Bucks agreed with Middleton Wednesday on a five-year, $70 million deal.

The Bucks beat out bids from the New York Knicks, Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Lakers to land Monroe, a 6-foot-11 center who averaged 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds last season for Detroit.

Knicks, Arron Afflalo agree to deal

Here’s ESPN New York reporting on the Knicks, who have founded a talented guard for their backcourt. Not a star, though. But a nice supporting player:

The New York Knicks and Arron Afflalo agreed to a two-year deal worth $16 million on Thursday, a source told ESPN.com’s Ramona Shelburne.

The agreement includes a player option for the second year of the deal, sources said, which could allow Afflalo to again test free agency after next season.

The deal with Afflalo is the Knicks’ first move in free agency but one that should help the struggling franchise, which is coming off a 17-65 season. And it comes at a reasonable cost considering all the money spent on the opening day of free agency Wednesday across the league.

Warriors make changes to basketball operations staff

The Golden State Warriors announced today changes within the team’s basketball operations staff, including the promotion of Larry Harris to director of player personnel, and the hiring of Lachlan Penfold as head of physical performance and sports medicine.

Harris, a longtime NBA executive with more than 25 years of front office experience, has served as a basketball consultant/scout for the Warriors for the last six seasons, working closely on college and pro scouting, draft preparation and free agency. Following a 19-year career with the Milwaukee Bucks that included stints as director of player personnel, director of scouting, assistant general manager and general manager, Harris joined the Warriors in 2008 as an assistant coach under Don Nelson before moving to the front office after one season on the bench.

Penfold joins the Warriors organization from his native Australia, where he most recently served as head of physical preparation for the Australian Men’s Sevens Rugby Union squad. With over 20 years of experience in the field of athletic performance, Penfold has held positions in a wide variety of sports, including personalized work with 80 Olympic athletes in five different Olympic Games. In this newly created role with Golden State, he will oversee the Warriors athletic training and strength & conditioning programs, working closely with the team’s coaching staff to promote optimal player performance.

Hornets hire Bruce Kreutzer as an assistant coach

The Charlotte Hornets announced today that the team has hired 38-year coaching veteran Bruce Kreutzer as an assistant coach on Head Coach Steve Clifford’s staff. Kreutzer, whose coaching experience includes stints at all levels of the sport from the professional ranks to high school, will focus much of his attention on working with the Hornets players’ shooting skills.

“I’m excited to add Bruce to our coaching staff,” said Clifford. “He is a veteran coach at all levels of the game and brings a tremendous amount of knowledge and teaching experience. He has a proven track record of helping players improve their shooting fundamentals, mechanics and ability.”

In 2006, Kreutzer joined former Hornets assistant coach and four-time NBA All-Star Mark Price to form the Mark Price Shooting Lab at the Suwanee Sports Academy, where he served as lead shooting instructor and player development coach. Kruetzer’s professional experience also includes serving as the head coach of the ABA’s Atlanta Vision (2006-2008), where the team won the Southern Division and made an Elite Eight appearance. He has also served as a shooting consultant for the NBA D-League (2008-2011) and the Philadelphia 76ers (2008-2010).

No stranger to the Charlotte area, Kreutzer served as an assistant coach at Queens University – reaching the NCAA Division II Final Four in 2003 – and UNC Charlotte, as well as head coach at Garinger High School. Garinger High School won the 4A Boys State High School Title in 1989 with Kreutzer at the helm. Kreutzer also served as head coach at Massanutten Military Academy (Woodstock, Va.), leading his team to a No. 9 ranking nationally in 2006 and developing more than 20 Division I college players during his tenure. In total, In total, Kreutzer has amassed more than 300 wins at the high school and prep levels.

Suns to add Tyson Chandler

Now this is big. Literally — because Tyson Chandler is really tall — and figuratively, because Chandler is good and as a defensive-minded center should bump the Suns up just enough to make more noise in the Western conference playoff race. The Suns still face a very uphill battle to qualify for the postseason in an incredibly difficult conference, but Chandler will be a very nice addition.

In this move, Phoenix is getting a nice, key piece. Here’s the Arizona Republic reporting:

The Suns wanted size, defense, rebounding and leadership and went for it in 32-year-old center Tyson Chandler.

The Suns kicked off free agency by setting on a five-year, $70 million contract with guard Brandon Knight, which matches Eric Bledsoe’s deal from September, and added Chandler to fortify their middle as they continued pursued of star free agent LaMarcus Aldridge.

Sources confirmed agreements for Knight and Chandler with ESPN.com reporting that Chandler’s deal will be worth $52 million over four years. The Suns entered free agency with $12 million of cap space but could create more space. They have $16.2 million in cap holds for Brandan Wright and Gerald Green and a $5.5 million trade exception from the Goran Dragic deal.

Chandler is a 14-year veteran who was the league’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2011-12.

The Dallas Mavericks, meanwhile, are in serious transition and face a lot of difficult decisions as Dirk Nowitzki’s career starts to wind down.