OKC Thunder Blog – Page 72 – NBA Blog

Union plans player meetings as NBA lockout drags on with no progress

Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated reports:

There will be labor-related meetings in the near future.

They just aren’t the kind that typically lead to collective bargaining progress.

According to sources close to the situation, the National Basketball Players Association is planning a series of player sessions in as many as six cities over “the next month or so,” as a way to help with its planning during the lockout and update players on the state of negotiations with the NBA. Unless things unexpectedly change, there won’t be much to report on that front.

While mid-level staffers from both sides met on Friday to finalize the numbers related to basketball-related income (BRI) for the 2010-11 season, no negotiating sessions involving commissioner David Stern or NBPA executive director Billy Hunter have been scheduled. Sources said the BRI numbers were not finalized Friday and more similar sessions are forthcoming to that end, but the union is focused on fortifying from within rather than exchanging proposals with the owners, who are pushing for a hard salary cap as part of a drastic overhaul to the current system.

InsideHoops.com editor says: Basically, the two sides are considering their various options and possible proposal changes, amongst themselves. There’s no way of knowing if either side plans to make any changes the next time they make offers to each other, when they do eventually meet again. I’m just guessing here but it sounds like the earliest the NBA lockout could even possibly end is early August. But that’s not expected, because it sounds like both sides remain pretty far apart.

Thunder still have hope for center Cole Aldrich

Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman reports:

The Thunder dealt two first-round picks to trade up to snag Aldrich at No. 11 in the 2010 draft, and the organization hasn’t put Aldrich on any sort of timetable for when he should sprout. If anything, though, Mohammed’s presence should speed Aldrich’s development rather than delay it.

But because Aldrich was limited to 18 games and only 7.9 average minutes in his rookie season, it becomes easy to view Mohammed’s return as a detriment. A better way of looking at Mohammed’s re-signing, however, is to focus on the impact he can have on a young player.

There is no guarantee that Mohammed remains ahead of Aldrich in the rotation. It’s possible Aldrich bumps Mohammed next season and becomes the full-time backup center to Kendrick Perkins. But even if Aldrich doesn’t crack the rotation, he’ll have Perkins and Mohammed, as well as Nick Collison, to learn from in practice.

And Aldrich has proved to be a willing learner.

“He’s a humble guy, he works hard and he can play,” Perkins said. “I think he’s going to provide some good minutes for us next year. He’s just got to be ready. One thing I’ve learned about Coach (Scott) Brooks is he’s not just going to give you minutes. He’s going to have to come in and earn his minutes.”

Aldrich has dedicated this summer to sharpening his skills. He said his main goal is “just to get better.”

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Serge Ibaka nationalized by Spain, ready to play European championship

The AP reports:

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka has been granted Spanish nationality on Friday, clearing the way for him to help Spain defend its European championship this summer.

“Spain is a country that has given me a lot,” Ibaka said after Spain’s Council of Ministers approved his petition for nationality. “It will be an honor to give Spain back all that it has given me on the court.”

The 21-year-old was born in the Republic of Congo but played for Spanish clubs for three years before moving to the NBA in 2009. According to Spanish media reports, he maintains a residence in Barcelona.

Ibaka must swear loyalty to the Spanish crown and constitution to complete the nationalization process before he can team with Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol and brother Marc of the Memphis Grizzlies in a formidable front court for Spain.

InsideHoops.com editor says: This likely isn’t lockout-related. He was probably doing this anyway.

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NBA says NYTimes.com blog was based on inaccurate info

The following is an official release from the NBA:

The information from Forbes that serves as the basis for this article is inaccurate and we do not know how they do their calculations. Forbes does not have the financial data for our teams and the magazine’s estimates do not reflect reality.

Precisely to avoid this issue, the NBA and its teams shared their complete league and team audited financials as well as our state and Federal tax returns with the Players Union. Those financials demonstrate the substantial and indisputable losses the league has incurred over the past several years.

The analysis that was posted this afternoon has several significant factual inaccuracies, including:

“(The NBA) is a fundamentally healthy and profitable business”

• The league lost money every year of the just expiring CBA. During these years, the league has never had positive Net Income, EBITDA or Operating Income.

“Many of the purported losses result from an unusual accounting treatment related to depreciation and amortization when a team is sold.”

• We use the conventional and generally accepted accounting (GAAP) approach and include in our financial reporting the depreciation of the capital expenditures made in the normal course of business by the teams as they are a substantial and necessary cost of doing business.

We do not include purchase price amortization from when a team is sold or under any circumstances in any of our reported losses. Put simply, none of the league losses are related to team purchase or sale accounting.

“Another trick…moving income from the team’s balance sheet to that of a related business like a cable network…”

• All revenues included in Basketball Related Income (“BRI”) and reported in our financial statements have been audited by an accounting firm jointly engaged by the players’ union and the league. They include basketball revenues reported on related entities’ books.

“Ticket revenues… are up 22% compared to 1999-2000 season”

• Ticket revenues have increased 12% over the 10 year period, not the 22% reported.

“17 teams lost money according to Forbes … Most of these losses were small…”

• Forbes’ claim is inaccurate. In 2009-10, 23 teams had net income losses. The losses were in no way “small” as 11 teams lost more than $20M each on a net income basis.

“The profits made by the Knicks, Bulls and Lakers alone would be enough to cover the losses of all 17 unprofitable teams.”

• The Knicks, Bulls and Lakers combined net income for 2009-10 does not cover the losses of the 23 unprofitable teams. Our net loss for that year, including the gains from the seven profitable teams, was -$340 million.

“Forbes’s estimates — a $183 million profit for the NBA in 2009-10, and those issued by the league, which claim a $370M loss…”

• Forbes’s data is inaccurate. Our losses for 2009-10 were -$340 million, not -$370 million as the article states.

“The leaked financial statements for one team, the New Orleans Hornets, closely matched the Forbes data…”

• This is not an accurate statement as operating income in the latest Forbes data (2009-10) is $5M greater than what is reported in the Hornets audited financials.

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Serge Ibaka would consider playing in Europe during lockout

Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman reports:

Thunder forward Serge Ibaka is considering playing in Europe if the NBA’s lockout drags on.

While vacationing in Spain, Ibaka recently told a radio station that he would be open to returning to Spain, where he played for two seasons prior to officially joining the Thunder.

“If there is a lockout, and there are not many complications to play in the CBA, I would like to return here to play,” Ibaka is quoted as saying.

Ibaka is the latest in a long line of NBA players who have expressed an interest in playing overseas in the event of a prolonged lockout. Former Thunder center Nenad Krstic, who was traded to Boston at the deadline, recently signed a deal with CSKA Moscow in Russia. But Krstic’s contract had expired.

InsideHoops.com editor says: It’s safe to say that almost every player in the league “would consider” playing somewhere overseas if the lockout was to go on for an extended period of time. I expect lots of articles like this to emerge over the next week or two. Pretty logical for players to consider all their options. But of course, almost all of them would prefer for the NBA to be in its usual active state.

Celtics extend qualifying offer to Jeff Green

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have extended a qualifying offer to forward Jeff Green, making him a restricted free agent. The qualifying offer allows the Celtics to match any off he receives from another team.

Green, a 6’9” forward, averaged 13.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 32.4 minutes per game split between Oklahoma City and Boston during the 2010-11 season. In his 26 games with the Celtics, Green shot 48.5 percent from the field. The fourth year pro also shot 43.4 percent from three-point territory in nine games during the playoffs. In his first Celtic start against the Wizards on April 11, Green recorded 20 points and a career-high tying 15 rebounds. Green, a member of the 2008 All-Rookie First Team, has posted career averages of 13.9 points and 5.5 rebounds in 315 games.

OKC Thunder sign Nazr Mohammed to contract extension

The Oklahoma City Thunder have signed center Nazr Mohammed to a contract extension, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti. We’ll post contract details here later on Wednesday.

“We are pleased to be able to keep Nazr in the Thunder family,” said Presti. “He is a valuable part of our organization both on and off the floor. His professionalism, experience, and on-court play have had a positive impact on our young and evolving roster.”

Mohammed (6-10, 250) owns career averages of 6.9 points, 5.4 rebounds in 17.9 minutes in 771 career NBA games. He appeared in 24 games (seven starts) for the Thunder after being acquired from the Bobcats on February 24th. Mohammed averaged 6.9 points and 4.8 rebounds in 17.9 minutes per game with Oklahoma City.

Originally selected in the first round (29th overall) of the 1998 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz, Mohammed has appeared in 58 NBA Playoff games during his 13-year career. Mohammed’s career has been highlighted by winning two NCAA Championships (University of Kentucky 1996 and 1998) and an NBA Championship (San Antonio Spurs, 2005).

OKC Thunder exercise options on Harden, Ibaka, Maynor, Mullens and Aldrich

The Oklahoma City Thunder has exercised contract options on five players Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today.

The Thunder exercised its fourth-year options on guard James Harden, forward Serge Ibaka, guard Eric Maynor and center Byron Mullens, as well as its third-year option on center Cole Aldrich.

Harden, who was selected third overall by the Thunder in the 2009 NBA Draft, averaged 12.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game in his second season. Harden appeared in all 82 games for the Thunder and was selected to the 2011 T-Mobile Rookie Challenge and Youth Jam Sophomore Team.

Ibaka, the 24th overall selection in the 2008 NBA Draft, appeared in all 82 games (44 starts) for the Thunder during the 2010-11 season. The Republic of Congo native averaged 9.9 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.4 blocks (3rd in the NBA) per contest.

Maynor, who was acquired by the Thunder via trade on December 22, 2009, appeared in all 82 games for the team this season. The VCU product averaged 4.2 points and 2.9 assists in 14.6 minutes per game.

Mullens, the 24th overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft, appeared in 13 games for the Thunder during the 2010-11 season. Mullens made 14 appearances (14 starts) for the Tulsa 66ers, the Thunder’s D-League affiliate, where he averaged 14.9 points and 6.8 rebounds in 27.7 minutes per contest.

Aldrich, the 11th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, appeared in 18 games for the Thunder. The Kansas product appeared in 21 games (21 starts) for the Tulsa 66ers where he averaged 10.3 points and 8.6 rebounds in 29.3 minutes per game.

OKC Thunder extend qualifying offer to Daequan Cook

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has extended a qualifying offer to guard Daequan Cook, making him a restricted free agent.

Cook appeared in 43 games in his first season with the Thunder. The Ohio State product averaged 5.6 points and 1.7 rebounds in 13.9 minutes per contest. Cook, who ranked 11th in the NBA in three-point field goal shooting, made 65 of 154 three-point attempts (.422) this season.

Rumor: Thunder open to trading Eric Maynor

Chad Ford of ESPN reports:

Is Thunder point guard Eric Maynor worth a lottery pick? Sources say the Thunder have been quietly gauging interest in Maynor over the last few days in an attempt to move up into the top half of the draft. They’ve spoken to the Kings (No. 7) and Bobcats (No. 9) in particular in the last few days.

Maynor was the 20th pick in the 2009 draft, which was one of the most loaded point guard drafts ever.