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Quick East thoughts

The season is approaching, folks. Training camps open in around one week (I’m in Prague right now, haven’t looked at a calendar in a while. Tuesday I’m off to hang out in Berlin for a week, then about 8 days in Amsterdam. I’ll be back in New York City right around the start of preseason.)

In the east, the Celtics remain the best of the conference, though I wonder if Ray Allen will drop off a bit this season. They also need to improve their bench.

The Pistons bring back last year’s team, with Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups a year older.

The Magic still need to improve their backcourt.

The Cavaliers add scoring punch with the addition of point guard Mo Williams, but it’s still the LeBron James show with a supporting cast that will have to work very hard to carry their weight.

The Wizards must once again play without Gilbert Arenas for a while, though even with him they’re a lower-level playoff team.

The Raptors have to hope Jermaine O’Neal regains former All-Star form; it’ll be tough.

The 76ers added a star by signing power forward Elton Brand, and that should definitely raise them in conference standings.

The Hawks aren’t locks to return to the playoffs, but it’s good they kept Josh Smith.

The Bucks improved on paper, adding a pass-first point guard in Luke Ridnour, but more importantly, a legit good forward in SF Richard Jefferson.

The Knicks have the same talented yet flawed roster, but a new coach. Can Mike D’Antoni work miracles?

The Nets are rebuilding and aside from Vince Carter and young Devin Harris, everyone on the team who matters is young and in development.

The Bulls have the same team as the last few seasons, though Ben Gordon remains unsigned. Will they play like the good Bulls from two years ago, or the disappointing ones from last season? Flip a coin, because they’re capable of going either way.

The Bobcats have nice swingmen in Jason Richardson and Gerald Wallace, plus Emeka Okafor, but everyone else is young and in development.

The Heat could make a leap in the standings now that Dwyane Wade is healthy, plus Shawn Marion needs a new contract, and Michael Beasley doesn’t like losing. The supporting cast is still extremely weak, though.

The Pacers always do a bit better than expected. The bad news is, almost nothing is ever expected. Danny Granger, Mike Dunleavey and TJ Ford are very nice players, though. They may surprise a little, but not a lot.

I’ll share quick West thoughts tomorrow. Right now I’m off to hike up to the Prague castle. I’ll be right here in about an hour.

–Jeff

13 training camp signings reported here

Brad Ames of Priority Sports informs InsideHoops.com editor Jeff Lenchiner that the following players will be in the following training camps:

Eddie Gill: New Jersey

Trey Johnson: Phoenix

Ronald Dupree: Cleveland

Frank Robinson: Atlanta

Linton Johnson: Washington

Antywane Robinson: Philadelphia

Jared Reiner: Philadelphia.

Britton Johnsen: Utah

Matt Freije: Milwaukee

Luke Jackson: Portland

Rob Kurz: Golden State

Chris Alexander: Oklahoma City

Darryl Watkins: San Antonio

Fan Poll Results: 8 East playoff teams

InsideHoops.com ran a poll for the last week asking fans to pick the eight Eastern conference teams they feel will make the playoffs in 2008-09.

The voting for the first four teams was pretty close, with the Celtics (592 votes), Cavaliers (588), Pistons (582) and Magic (578) taking the home-court seeds.

The Raptors (504) came in 5th, though from our experience Toronto fans, being very enthusiastic, tend to bump their team up slightly higher than tends to be expected. Though, if new Raptor Jermaine O’Neal can stay healthy and play anything like his old former All-Star self, this is a very reasonable prediction.

One vote later, coming in 6th, was the 76ers (503), who played better than expected last season and now add star power forward Elton Brand, who is returning from injury, to their mix.

The Wizards (459) came in 7th. They welcome a healthy Gilbert Arenas back.

And now, a dropoff.

Fans feel that last year’s #8 seed, the Hawks, won’t do as well in 2008-09. Rather than pick them to return to the playoffs, fans went with the Heat (294 votes). This is reasonable. Miami welcomes a healthy Dwayne Wade back, alongside Shawn Marion, who needs a contract, and superkid rookie Michael Beasley. The supporting cast is still weak, but slightly improved from last year.

The Bulls (195) finished 9th, just outside the playoff seedings. The Hawks (180) were 10th.

Here are the complete final results:

1) Celtics 592 votes
2) Cavs 588 votes
3) Pistons 582 votes
4) Magic 578 votes
5) Raptors 504 votes
6) Sixers 503 votes
7) Wizards 459 votes
8) Heat 294 votes
—
9) Bulls 195 votes
10) Hawks 180 votes
11) Bucks 83 votes
12) Nets 68 votes
13) Knicks 53 votes
14) Pacers 53 votes
15) Bobcats 43 votes

Cavs sign Lorenzen Wright

The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed veteran center Lorenzen Wright to a contract, Cavaliers General Manager Danny Ferry announced today. Per team and league policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Wright, 32, played 13 games last season with the Atlanta Hawks and five games with the Sacramento Kings. The 6-foot-11, 255 pound center was drafted by the L.A. Clippers with the seventh overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft and has played in 761 career games (445 starts) with averages of 8.1 points and 6.5 rebounds in 24.2 minutes per game.

“Lorenzen brings us valuable size and experience and adds depth to our front court,” Ferry said. “We think he’s a good fit for us and look forward to him joining our team.”

The 12-year veteran has appeared in 15 postseason games (11 starts) and averaged 7.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.2 minutes per game.

Web viewing of NBA games may soon exist

The Oklahoman (Mel Bracht) reports: Say you’re working late and can’t make it to the Ford Center to watch Oklahoma City’s new NBA team play its game that night. Instead, you log on to your computer and watch streaming video of the team’s game broadcast. Sound far-fetched? Not if the NBA has its way. The league is aggresively promoting three new Internet elements — video streaming in home markets, interactive TV and video-on-demand — for the upcoming season. Ed Desser, a media consultant for Oklahoma City’s team, said many details have yet to be worked out, and didn’t expect the team to offer the Internet elements anytime soon.

Hawks sign Flip Murray

Seeking to add additional depth to its backcourt, the Atlanta Hawks General Manager Rick Sund announced today that the club has signed free agent guard Ronald “Flip” Murray to a contract. Per team policy, no other details were released.

“By signing Flip, it provides us with another experienced player who has the ability to play multiple positions for us,” said Sund. “Because of his versatility, he will be a valuable asset for us as a reserve, and we look forward to the contributions he’ll bring this season.”

A 6-3, 197-pound combo (point/shooting) guard, Murray is a six-year veteran who last played for the Indiana Pacers. He saw action in 23 games after he was signed a mid-season free agent (March 1) following his release from the Detroit Pistons, and he averaged 11.0 points and 3.5 assists (.425 FG%, .389 3FG%, .754 FT%) in those contests.

He started the final 15 games at point guard for the Pacers last season during their playoff push (Indiana went 10-5 during that stretch), and he averaged 11.0 ppg (.439 FG%, .450 3FG%, .703 FT%) in his 17 overall starts with Indiana.

In a season-and-a-half with the Pistons (88 games, 2006-07 and ’07-08), Murray tallied 6.9 ppg and 2.9 apg (.406 FG%, .694 FT%).

He brings career marks of 9.3 points, 2.4 assists and 2.0 rebounds to the Hawks, having played for five teams (Milwaukee, Seattle, Cleveland, Detroit and Indiana) over his six seasons. In addition, Murray has played in 29 postseason games with totals of 5.1 ppg, 2.0 rpg and 1.4 apg.

The NCAA Division II Player of the Year during his senior season at Shaw University, Murray was selected in the second round of the 2002 Draft by the Bucks. He saw limited action as a rookie and was traded during that year (along with Ray Allen, Kevin Ollie and a conditional 2003 first-round pick) to the Sonics (for Gary Payton and Desmond Mason), where he developed into a scoring threat one year later (2003-04) while subbing for Allen who missed 26 games due to injury. Murray turned in 12.4 ppg, 2.5 rpg and 2.5 apg in 82 contests (18 starts) and connected on .425 FG% and .715 FT%.

He spent two more seasons with the Sonics before being traded to the Cavaliers during the 2005-06 campaign, and he scored 13.5 points in 28 games in helping Cleveland reach the playoffs. He recorded his career-best playoff numbers that year, with 8.1 ppg, 3.2 rpg and 1.6 apg.

Hawks sign Thomas Gardner and Othello Hunter

Atlanta has added some fringe bench talent. Both of the following players will have to fight very hard to stay in the league. Here’s the news:

The Atlanta Hawks have signed free agents Thomas Gardner and Othello Hunter to contracts, it was announced today by General Manager Rick Sund. Per team policy, terms of the agreements were not disclosed.

“Both players played well in our mini-camp and summer league,” said Sund. “Thomas is a solid shooter with range, who has the ability to score in bunches. Othello is an athletic power forward who runs the floor really well.”

A 6-5 guard, Gardner averaged a team-high 16.3 ppg (sixth in the tourney), along with 2.5 rpg, 1.5 apg and 1.5 spg during the Rocky Mountain Revue, hitting .480 FGs (.467 3FGs) and .750 FTs. The Missouri product played in four games last season with the Chicago Bulls, averaging 5.3 ppg and 1.0 rpg.

During the 2006-07 campaign, Gardner saw action in Belgium with Verviers-Pepinster, and helped lead the club to the Belgian Cup semifinals. He played three seasons at Mizzou, tallying 19.7 ppg as a junior for the Tigers. Thomas Earl Gardner was born February 8, 1985 in Portland, Oregon.

Hunter, an undrafted rookie big man from Ohio State, put up 13.2 ppg, a team-best 6.2 rpg, 2.0 apg and 1.2 spg in five Hawks summer league contests. He played in 76 career games for the Buckeyes, averaging 7.8 ppg and 5.5 rpg (.583 FG%). Nearly half of his 415 career rebounds were on the offensive glass (178).

He finished second in the Big Ten in field goal percentage as a senior (.596), and equaled the seventh-best single-season mark in OSU history. Tegba Othello Hunter was born May 28, 1986 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

“We saw Thomas play last year, and monitored him with the Bulls and overseas,” said Hawks’ Assistant GM/Director of Player Personnel David Pendergraft. “He was one of the first guys we invited to our summer program, and he really performed well. He’s a shot maker who can add a spark off our bench.”

“We really liked the progression Othello has made, from Ohio State to Portsmouth to Orlando, and continuing in our mini-camp and summer league,” Pendergraft said. “His competitiveness, athleticism and professionalism have impressed us, and if he continues to advance, he has a chance to be an asset to our organization.”

Atlanta Hawks 2008-09 season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting www.hawks.com or calling 1-866-715-1500. The Hawks, a member of the National Basketball Association since 1949, play in the Southeast Division, along with the Charlotte Bobcats, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic and Washington Wizards.

Hawks match offer and re-sign Josh Smith

As expected, Atlanta Hawks General Manager Rick Sund announced tonight that the club has retained forward Josh Smith and matched the offer sheet of the Memphis Grizzlies, which according to several newspapers was approximately a five-year, $58 million contract.

The offer is a good value for the ultra-versatile, still-improving Smith.

It was a tough market for free agency, though the same can be said for almost every season. Each year, only a few teams have enough space under the salary cap to make a big offer to a player that they aren’t re-signing from their own team. And for the last week or two now, the Grizzlies were the only team to make a real offer to any of the select-few remaining restricted free agents.

The really good unrestricted free agents all signed deals earlier on in the free agency period.

“Tonight, the Hawks organization received an offer sheet from the Memphis Grizzlies for Josh Smith,” said Sund. “We are happy to announce that we will match their offer sheet. Ownership, management and the team are happy to have Josh return as a member of the Hawks. We look forward to training camp in October and we will continue to look at additional opportunities to improve our roster.”

Smith, whom the Hawks drafted with the 17th pick overall in the first round of the 2004 NBA Draft, has finished second in the NBA in blocks per game in each of the past two years and averaged team-highs in blocks per game (2.80) and steals per game (1.57), while also ranking second on the Hawks in points per game (17.2), rebounds per game (8.2) and assists per game (3.4) in 81 appearances last season.

The 22-year-old forward from Oak Hill Academy (VA) and College Park (GA) has averaged 13.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.5 blocks in 307 career games with the Hawks, and during last May’s first round series, Smith recorded 15.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.86 blocks in helping the eighth-seeded Hawks to a decisive seventh game in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs against the eventual NBA world champion Boston Celtics.

Grizzlies sign Josh Smith to offer sheet

Memphis Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced Friday that the club has signed restricted free agent Josh Smith to an offer sheet. Per team policy, terms of the offer sheet were not disclosed.

Under the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Atlanta Hawks will have seven days to match the Grizzlies’ offer to Smith, who has played all four years of his NBA career for the Hawks.

Smith, 22, has finished second in the NBA in blocks per game in each of the past two years and averaged team-highs in blocks per game (2.80) and steals per game (1.57) while also ranking second on the Hawks in points per game (17.2), rebounds per game (8.2) and assists per game (3.4) in 81 appearances last season.

The 6-9, 235-pound forward averaged 15.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.86 blocks in helping the eighth-seeded Hawks push the eventual NBA Champion Boston Celtics to a decisive seventh game in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The Sprite Rising Stars Slam Dunk Champion in 2005, Smith owns career averages of 13.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.5 blocks in 307 career games over four seasons with Atlanta, who drafted Smith 17th overall in the first round of the 2004 NBA Draft out of Oak Hill Academy (VA).

Expect Hawks to match Grizzlies offer sheet to Josh Smith

By Jeff: The Memphis Commercial-Appeal reported that the Grizzlies gave Hawks free agent forward Josh Smith an offer sheet, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that he actually signed it. The deal, according to the AJC, is for five years and $58 million.

If that’s all true, once it’s official, the Hawks will have 7 days to match the offer, and I’d say they will definitely do it.

The Grizzlies are smart for doing this. Smith and Rudy Gay would make a talented, extremely athletic and very exciting frontcourt. And they didn’t overpay. So, the Hawks can’t be too upset that they’ll be forced to match the offer, because it’s less than a player like Smith would hope to get for his first big, long-term contract.

The Hawks aren’t sold on Smith as a true franchise player to build around. They see him more of a super-versatile, ultra-talented supporting player, which is why they weren’t offering him a big contract. With that said, they should match the offer, and again, I expect that they will.

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