Washington Wizards Blog – Page 49 – NBA Blog

Nuggets offer $50 million contract to JaVale McGee

The Nuggets continue to pursue restricted free-agent center JaVale McGee, who has a five-year, $50 million offer on the table, a source said. But McGee’s representatives don’t appear to be in a hurry to get a deal done and will continue to negotiate.

The Nuggets can match any offer another NBA team would make to McGee, 24.

In the 20 regular-season games he played for the Nuggets last season, the 7-footer averaged 10.3 points and 5.8 rebounds and made five starts.

— Reported by Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post

Wizards re-sign Cartier Martin

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has re-signed forward/guard Cartier Martin. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released.

“Cartier has been with our team for parts of the past three seasons and he has always made a positive contribution both on the court and in the locker room,” said Grunfeld. “In addition to his three-point shooting touch, he is a good defender and gives us another solid veteran to help solidify our bench.”

Martin averaged a career-high 9.3 points to go along with 3.4 rebounds while shooting .440 from the field and .387 from three-point range in 17 games (two starts) with the Wizards last season. He was originally signed to consecutive 10-day contracts by the team (on March 28 and April 8, respectively) before being signed for the remainder of the season on April 18. Martin topped 20 points twice for the Wizards last season (including a career-high 22 points in an April 21 win at Miami) and scored in double figures six times.

Martin holds career averages of 5.0 points and 1.9 rebounds while shooting .371 from three-point range in 120 games between Washington, Charlotte and Golden State. The 6-7 product of Kansas State had previously appeared for the Wizards in both the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons and has averaged 5.4 points and 2.0 rebounds in 77 games as a member of the team.

Wizards hire Don Newman as assistant coach

The Washington Wizards announced today that Don Newman will join Randy Wittman’s staff as an assistant coach.

Newman brings more than 20 years of coaching experience to the Wizards’ staff, including the past seven seasons as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs. During his successful tenure with the Spurs, Newman worked under Gregg Popovich and helped lead San Antonio to a pair of NBA Championships (2005 and 2007), a pair of Western Conference championships (2005 and 2007) and five Division titles (2005, 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2012). In each of Newman’s seven seasons on the bench, the Spurs won 50 or more games, including a 50-16 mark last season en route to a Southwest Division title.

“Don is an outstanding coach and a great addition to our staff,” said Wizards Head Coach Randy Wittman. “He brings championship experience from his time with the Spurs and has been very successful in every stop of his career.”

Newman originally joined the NBA as an assistant coach with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1999. In his four seasons with the Bucks, Milwaukee made three playoff appearances and won the Central Division title in the 2000-01 season. Newman served as an assistant with the New Jersey during the 2003-04 season, in which the Nets captured the Atlantic Division title and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. He also served as an assistant for USA Basketball during the 2002 World Championships.

Newman spent 10 years in college basketball prior to his time in the NBA. He served as a head coach with Sacramento State (1992-97) and was named the interim head coach at Arizona State in 1997, leading the Sun Devils to an 18-14 record and a trip to the NIT Tournament. Newman also had stints as an assistant coach with Oregon and Washington State.

Newman played three seasons of basketball at the University of Idaho (after spending his freshman year at LSU) and was originally drafted by two NBA teams. After being selected by Indiana in the fourth round of the 1979 Draft (as a junior eligible selection), he was selected by Boston in the third round of the 1980 Draft. He played three seasons in the CBA (for the Montana Golden Nuggets where George Karl was his head coach) and also played seven seasons in the CFL. He was invited to training camp with both the Seattle Seahawks and the New York Jets.

Rashard Lewis to meet with Miami Heat

The Miami Heat had a 10-time All-Star visit Thursday in free-agent guard Ray Allen. This weekend, they will be playing host to a two-time All-Star.

Colin Bryant, one of the agents for Rashard Lewis, confirmed the free-agent forward will be taking a look at the Heat. He said Lewis is intrigued by the possibility of joining them.

“They’re a championship team and a great organization, and I think he’d fit well with them,’’ Bryant said. “It would definitely be a great overall situation.’’

The Heat on Thursday entertained Allen, who has played the last five seasons with Boston. The most they can offer Allen is the $3.09 million taxpayer exception for next season, which is what they’ve done. The total offer is for $9.53 million over three years.

— Reported by Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida

Hornets trade Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza to Wizards for Rashard Lewis

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has acquired forwards Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza from the New Orleans Hornets in exchange for forward Rashard Lewis and the 46th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.

“We are pleased to add two more solid pieces as we continue to build our roster with a balance of proven veterans and the core of young talent that we have developed,” said Grunfeld. “Emeka’s defensive presence and rebounding ability will combine with Trevor’s versatility to add new dimensions to our frontcourt, and both players fit in very well with the type of team-first culture that we have been working to establish.”

“First, we want to thank Emeka and Trevor for their service on and off the court for our organization. Both of those gentlemen are good players and better people that will be missed,” General Manager Dell Demps said. “We are rebuilding our team and this is one step in our new direction. This trade will provide an opportunity for our young players to develop and create flexibility to add to our core group moving forward.”

According to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, “Okafor is due $28 million over the next two seasons. Although Lewis is one of the highest paid players in the league, he has one-year remaining on his contract at that $23.7 million. Sources say the Hornets and Lewis are working on a buyout and Lewis likely won’t play for the team this season… Ariza has two years remaining on his existing contract, which includes a player option in 2013-14 that would pay him $7.7 million if he exercise the option.”

According to ESPN.com, “The move, meanwhile, sheds two long-term contracts from the Hornets’ payroll while opening up minutes, through Okafor’s departure, for Kentucky star Anthony Davis, who almost assuredly will be selected No. 1 overall by New Orleans in next Thursday’s draft. The Hornets, sources say, are planning to waive Lewis before July 1 to slice roughly $10 million off the $24 million that he is owed in 2012-13. With the resultant financial flexibility, New Orleans is confident in its ability to re-sign restricted free agent Eric Gordon this summer to ensure it doesn’t lose the best player it received in exchange for face-of-the-franchise Chris Paul in December.”

Okafor (6-10, 255) holds career averages of 12.7 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks while shooting .517 from the field in 511 career games over eight seasons between Charlotte and New Orleans. The former second overall pick was named the NBA’s Rookie of the Year in 2005 and was one of three players (joining Tim Duncan and Dwight Howard) to average a double-double from 2004-05 to 2008-09. He has averaged at least 10 points, nine rebounds and 1.5 blocks in seven of his eight NBA seasons and has shot at least 53 percent from the field in the last six consecutive seasons. Okafor averaged 9.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.0 blocks while shooting .533 from the field in 27 games for the Hornets last season.

Ariza (6-8, 210) holds career averages of 9.0 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 steals in 499 games over eight seasons with New York, Orlando, L.A. Lakers, Houston and New Orleans. Over the last three seasons, he has averaged 12.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals while shooting .323 from three-point range with the Rockets and Hornets. Ariza helped lead the Lakers to the 2009 NBA Championship, contributing 11.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals while shooting .476 from beyond the arc in 23 games (all starts) during their title run. Last season, he averaged 10.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.7 steals while shooting .333 from three-point range in 41 games for the Hornets.

Lewis averaged 9.6 points and 4.9 rebounds in 60 games for the Wizards. He was originally acquired from the Orlando Magic in exchange for Gilbert Arenas on Dec. 18, 2010. The Wizards originally acquired the 46th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft from Dallas along with Ronny Turiaf, a 2013 second round pick and cash considerations from New York in a three-team deal on Dec. 10, 2011.

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Nene provided big boost for Wizards

The 6′-11″ center showed why he got a huge contract from Denver prior to last season, scoring 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in his debut as the Wizards beat New Jersey in mid-March.

After missing 10 games in early April, Nene returned from injury to help the Wizards go on that six-game winning streak to close out the season.

Nene and Wizards’ point guard John Wall had some solid moments executing the two-man game, including a brilliant pick-and-roll that resulted in Nene getting a great pass from Wall for the game-winning layup at the buzzer over Miami late in the season.

Wall credited the team’s late success to the arrival of Nene. Wall pointed to Nene’s locker room presence and leadership as a key factor for the team playing inspired basketball the final month of the season when the Wizards reeled off a season high 6-straight wins to close out the season.

— Reported by Frank Hanrahan of CSN Washington

Obama passes on making NBA Finals prediction

Asked by a television reporter from Reno, Nev., to predict a winner on Monday Obama demurred.

Obama, an avid basketball fan, said, quoting: “Both teams look terrific and I am looking forward to a good series. Hopefully, it will go to seven games. But I can’t make a prediction right now. They both look pretty tough.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

Wizards keep Randy Wittman as head coach

The Washington Wizards have decided head coach Randy Wittman will keep running the show.

Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that Wittman will return as the team’s head coach for the 2012-13 season.

“We are excited to bring Randy back as head coach and give him the opportunity to build on the positive momentum that the team showed under his leadership last season,” said Grunfeld. “We were very pleased with the development of our young players and the commitment to winning he instilled despite taking over the team under difficult circumstances.”

Wittman was originally named head coach of the Wizards on January 24, 2012, after Flip Saunders was relieved of his duties following the team’s 2-15 start. The Wizards finished 18-31 (.367) after Wittman took over the team and won eight of their final 10 games (including their last six in a row).

“I’m very appreciative of the opportunity that Mr. Leonsis and Ernie have given me and I’m thrilled to be returning to work with these players and this organization,” said Wittman. “I felt that we made significant progress throughout last season and we are all looking forward to having a full summer, training camp and season to continue to improve this team.”

Wittman continues his third stint as a head coach after leading both the Minnesota Timberwolves (2006-07 to 2008-09) and Cleveland Cavaliers (1999-2000 to 2000-01). He had served as the Wizards’ lead assistant since the 2009-10 season prior to being named head coach last season. Wittman began his coaching career as an assistant with Indiana before stops as an assistant coach in Dallas and Orlando.

Originally drafted by the Washington Bullets with the 22nd overall pick in the 1983 NBA Draft, Wittman played nine NBA seasons for Atlanta, Sacramento and Indiana before retiring in 1992 with a career average of 7.4 points per game while shooting .501 from the field in 543 games.

Wizards end season on 6-game winning streak

The Wizards ended the season on a six-game winning streak and recorded their most lopsided win in seven seasons, 104-70, over the Miami Heat at Verizon Center on Thursday night.

“All we’re doing is moving forward and looking to the future and I think the future looks good for us,” said President Ernie Grunfeld, who was rewarded with a contract extension this week.

After two years, the Wizards (20-46) finally recognized the error of investing their future in the careers of Andray Blatche, JaVale McGee and Young. Blatche was banished, while McGee and Young were sent packing to playoff teams because neither displayed the maturity or consistency to warrant lucrative long-term contracts when they hit free agency this summer. In return, the Wizards added veteran Brazilian big man Nene, whose arrival brought credibility to the locker room, a commitment to playing team basketball and an 7-4 record with him in uniform.

“You give anything a certain amount of time and options arise,” Wittman said. “It comes a point, with this team that’s so young, to add a guy with [Nene’s] experience and his ability was a good thing to do.”

— Reported by Michael Lee of the Washington Post

Wizards agree to new contract with President Ernie Grunfeld

The Washington Wizards announced today that they have agreed to a new contract with President Ernie Grunfeld.

“Ernie has led the charge to rebuild and change the direction of the Wizards and I’m pleased that we will continue to work together to improve upon what we’ve accomplished,” said Monumental Sports & Entertainment Majority Owner, Chairman and CEO Ted Leonsis. “In the process of almost completely turning over the team’s roster in the last two years, we have accumulated and developed young players and added veteran players while maintaining cap flexibility, all of which will help us build a competitive team going forward.”

“I’m excited to continue the process of rebuilding this team and excited about the direction that we’re headed,” said Grunfeld. “We’ve seen significant progress from our young players and positive contributions from our veterans that have us very optimistic about our future and very eager to take the next steps to continue to improve.”