NBA Offseason 2014

PizzamanIRL

Rumours that Dwyane Wade has opted out.

Paully D

PizzamanIRL wrote: »

Rumours that Dwyane Wade has opted out.

Bosh will obviously opt-out next which will mean they'll have about $55m in cap space to build again, that's frightening. The Heat will resign the three main players probably get to add a nice piece or two for them too.

LeBron seeking a max, or close to it, according to Woj. Only fair I suppose. It's mental that he wasn't making more than Bosh or Wade over the last few years. He'll get it and the others will take the necessary cut though.

God, I hate the Heat. :mad::pac:

Dublin Red Devil

It's true. MIAMI (AP) -- Dwyane Wade is joining LeBron James in free agency.

Wade told the Miami Heat on Saturday that he is opting out of the final two years on his contract

This essentially means He and James are staying in Miami. James taking less money then he would get elsewhere and Wade taking a pay cut to stay aswell

Nuri Sahin

Lowry is going to end up with them now if you believe the rumours

Also, rumours they're interested in Gortat too.

Paully D

Nuri Sahin wrote: »

Lowry is going to end up with them now if you believe the rumours

Also, rumours they're interested in Gortat too.

It wouldn't surprise me at all.

Aside from LeBron who's reportedly looking for a max which is more than fair, when you have some very good players who seemingly don't care all that much about money any more it's extremely difficult to compete with.

Phoenix Park

Ah balls - even though we knew this was coming. LeBron has made Wade a lot of money IMO. Wade had next to no option, regardless of his age and injuries. He would have looked ridiculous if he hadn't done this with LeBron piling on the pressure early, albeit with a friendly smile.
Still sucks.

GoldFour4

Man that would be a filthy good team. Lowry at the pint with wade the other guard. Then you have Napier In a sixth man role. Bosh James and gortat the big men. Gortat is an giant giant improvement on any big man they've had before with the big three. Will be interesting to see can they get him. Worth noting that he's familiar with florida as he began his career there with the magic. He didn't live Orlando cause of the Howard situation but there won't be any pressure on him in miami.

It would also take pressure off Greg oden. Some peopke were expecting him to perform at all star level with the heat which was totally unrealistic.

Paully D

I was just messing around on Twitter there and had a look at LeBron's profile.

He doesn't tweet all that much and when he does it's usually some sort of commercial thing so it's easy to see tweets about other, non-business things over a long period of time. What I did notice was that he mentions Napier a lot in comparison to anything/anyone else, even a similar amount to his wife and kids actually :pac:

He really seems to love the kids game. Do they know each other somehow or have some sort or relationship off the court, or does he just genuinely like him as a player? I'm going to be intrigued to see how Napier does at the NBA level now.

padraig_f

Jason Kidd in talks to run Bucks' basketball operations
after failed power play with Nets

Kidd doesn't seem like a very smart guy.

ButtersSuki

padraig_f wrote: »

Jason Kidd in talks to run Bucks' basketball operations
after failed power play with Nets

Kidd doesn't seem like a very smart guy.

The missus made me watch Basketball Wives a few years back. Kidd's ex was on it, she did not have a single good word to say about him. Now granted, you were only getting one side, but some of the stuff was very, very bad.

As for his playing/coaching etc., like the article says, there's always something with Kidd and he never seems to leave anywhere on good terms. He was lucky not to be fired last year after Brookly's start.

ButtersSuki

Miami with Lowry and Gortat and the big 2 and a half would be a series upgrade to that team. I seriously hope this does not come to fruition.

padraig_f

ButtersSuki wrote: »

Miami with Lowry and Gortat and the big 2 and a half would be a series upgrade to that team. I seriously hope this does not come to fruition.

I thought Lowry was awesome in this playoffs, didn't think the Heat would be able to afford him, thought he'd get around $10m/year as a free agent. Interesting to see if the Heat make that much space, or he signs for less (hopefully neither).

Re: Wade opt-out, I guess that means Lebron is staying, and negotiations went something like Lebron saying 'if you guys don't opt out and sign for less, I'm off'.

Nuri Sahin

Jason Kidd is heading out of Brooklyn to.... Milwaukee.

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/06/29/report-nets-done-with-jason-kidd-discussing-compensation-with-bucks-for-hiring-him-away/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

D2D

Nuri Sahin wrote: »

Jason Kidd is heading out of Brooklyn to.... Milwaukee.

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/06/29/report-nets-done-with-jason-kidd-discussing-compensation-with-bucks-for-hiring-him-away/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Hello..............Bucks

Paully D

Who in the name of Christ would let Jason Kidd run their basketball operations?

Some franchises will just always be one and done playoff teams at best regardless and this is proving why the Bucks are one of those teams.

ButtersSuki

Nuri Sahin wrote: »

Jason Kidd is heading out of Brooklyn to.... Milwaukee.

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/06/29/report-nets-done-with-jason-kidd-discussing-compensation-with-bucks-for-hiring-him-away/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Ade, you're a betting man, what odds do you reckon we'd get for Kidd trying to play hide the salami with Mallory before Christmas?

Paully D

Suns going all-out for a Melo/LeBron double team, per Woj. It's a waste of time as LeBron won't be leaving Miami and likely wouldn't want to face the amount of competition the Western Conference brings, but interesting nonetheless:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/suns-to-pursue-lebron-james--carmelo-anthony-with-offer-for-them-to-play-together-163546302.html

Armed with an offer that no else in the NBA can make – a chance to partner with Carmelo Anthony on an instant championship contender – the Phoenix Suns are planning an aggressive pursuit of LeBron James on Tuesday, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

Suns officials understand the bid will be something of a long shot, but are determined to get a meeting with James to convince him how the possibilities of two full max contracts, a roster stocked with talented, young players and the chance to pick the superstar free-agent partner of his choice ought to make Phoenix one of his most appealing suitors.

Phoenix is determined to emerge as a legitimate destination for James and Anthony, who have privately shared an affinity for playing with each other in the NBA. Salary-cap structures make it prohibitive for teams elsewhere to fit these two stars together without completely gutting a roster, but Phoenix's general manager Ryan McDonough has constructed a far different reality to sell them in potential meetings next week, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The Suns have $33.5 million in salary-cap space and could shed the next $10 million needed to sign James and Anthony to maximum contracts without unloading the young core of guards Eric Bledsoe and Goran Dragic and center Miles Plumlee that pushed the franchise to 48 victories in the Western Conference last season.

The Suns drafted North Carolina State's T.J. Warren, a scoring forward, Syracuse guard Tyler Ennis and Serbian scorer Bogdan Bogdanovich in the first round of Thursday's NBA draft.

Within hours of free agency starting on Tuesday, James ($20.7 million) and Anthony ($22.4 million) have max contract starting salaries that are easily reachable for the Suns. The Suns' flexibility allows for James to pick any free agent – this summer or next – for himself. It could be Anthony or Chris Bosh this summer, Kevin Love next summer.

The Suns have three first-round draft picks in 2015, and the picks could help the shape the roster with deals for veteran players, or infuse more young talent – or both – based on whatever intrigues the best player on the planet.

For now, the Suns are like everyone else in the NBA, including Houston and Cleveland: hoping against hope James will pause before recommitting to a deal with the Heat and truly bring an open mind to free agency. So far, James' representatives have been cautious on promising meetings with teams, and Heat president Pat Riley has been working on new deals with the reps for the four players who've opted-out of Miami – James, Bosh, Dwyane Wade and Udonis Haslem – sources said.

The Suns are banking on James' basketball acumen and business intelligence to see the roster, financial flexibility that could sustain the Suns' success for years. Phoenix officials believe the best chance to get Anthony away from his preferred free-agent destinations – Chicago and Houston – will be to turn James' attention toward the Suns, and get Anthony on board with his one true chance to play with James, sources said.

The Suns plan to pursue meetings with James and Anthony – or Bosh, if that's the direction that interests James. James' agent Rich Paul also represents Bledsoe, who is a restricted free agent this summer. Phoenix plans to aggressively pursue re-signing Bledsoe or match any offer sheet for him, sources said.

Because of Paul's relationship with Bledsoe and James, the Suns know the agent has a more intimate understanding of Phoenix's potential appeal than most. Paul knows the Suns are the fifth-winningest franchise in NBA history, that owner Robert Sarver has gone into the luxury tax three times in recent years, that Phoenix has long been a preferred residence of thirtysomething stars with families.

Most of all, the Suns understand Paul has a keen knowledge of how James' international brand and marketing appeal transcends media markets. James doesn't need New York or Los Angeles or Miami to push product – only winning. That's the sell of the Suns, just as it will be the Rockets and Cavaliers, too.

McDonough engineered a transformation of the Suns, earning himself runner-up honors to Spurs general manager R.C. Buford in the voting for NBA Executive of the Year. Along with coach Jeff Hornacek, Sarver believes he can sell James and Anthony on one of the best young executive-coaching partnerships in the NBA. For now, the Suns wait with everyone else. They want a meeting on Tuesday, want a chance to tell a story to the planet's best player. The message will be unmistakable: If LeBron James wants to play with the biggest co-star available in free agency – along with a supporting cast of playmakers in a warm climate – the Suns have a story to tell him.

GoldFour4

Yeah it'll never be pulled off but it would be an awesome team. It gives Lebron leverage to get the most he can for himself with Miami though and put's pressure on Wade and Bosh to take less. This whole offseason is essentially all win for LBJ.

Paully D

From CBS:

This was posted on the Real GM forum 48 hours before the New York Post broke the story.

stuba

Reports saying Mirotic is Bulls bound.

D2D

Woj:
Toronto has traded John Salmons to Atlanta for Lou Williams and Bebe Nugiera, source tells Yahoo

Nuri Sahin

Yours truly bonding with Josh Huestis on Twitter. Bezzies loike :pac:

Speaking of OKC, they've apparently bought out Tibor Pleiss' Contract, and he'll be playing for them next season. Bigs galore.

Nuri Sahin

Meanwhile, in Cleveland.....................

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOl61QKVKs4

D2D

Nuri Sahin wrote: »

Meanwhile, in Cleveland.....................

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOl61QKVKs4

That was 1 of the highlights of that press conference... the others were not hearing any questions being asked to Wiggins, no one realising that Joe Harris wasn't there and a chat about a car being parked illegally outside before the press conference started and the mics were live

For Forks Sake

padraig_f wrote: »

Jason Kidd in talks to run Bucks' basketball operations
after failed power play with Nets

Kidd doesn't seem like a very smart guy.

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/writer/ken-berger/24601611/kidd-to-coach-bucks-nets-get-two-second-round-picks

Seems he's gotten the gig. I think its an awful call by Milwaukee . Should make for comedy if nothing else

GoldFour4

Even Woj had a go for how disrespectful this was by Kidd. He's gonna be a coach teams wanna go that extra mile to beat. Not what Bucks need when they want to rebuild. He'll be gone from the league in 3 years, guaranteed.

Dublin Red Devil

I can't see the Bucks really making much progress. Yes they have Parker, and he will help, But there is a reason they lost 67 times last season, Their roster is terrible. The 76ers had a terrible season too but they are in a much better position with the players they have to improve as a team next season

Dublin Red Devil

News from ESPN, Brian Windhorst

Lebron James will except nothing less than the maximum $22.2 million he can receive next season.

http://espn.go.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/story/_/id/11156634/lebron-james-miami-heat-wants-maximum-salary

GoldFour4

Dublin Red Devil wrote: »

News from ESPN, Brian Windhorst

Lebron James will except nothing less than the maximum $22.2 million he can receive next season.

http://espn.go.com/nba/truehoop/miamiheat/story/_/id/11156634/lebron-james-miami-heat-wants-maximum-salary

I think we can all agree it's what he deserves.

Paully D

I know he has made his stance clear and I can somewhat understand his reasoning, but I really wish Derrick Rose would help the Bulls to recruit. I think his refusal to do so could make top free agents (i.e., Melo) a bit put off as it gives off the vibe of "this is my team and I don't want you around."

When you're on a $100m for five years and have (though not his fault) barely seen the court in two of those, surely sitting in on a meeting with a top free agent isn't that much of a sacrifice to make? The most frustrating thing is that the Bulls need to get someone like Melo on board or Rose just isn't going to beat Miami. He should be begging him to come to Chicago FFS.

You know for sure that Kobe will be all over Melo when they meet, as will Dirk and Chandler when he goes to Dallas and Howard and Haren (no D :pac:) in Houston. It might just be something small like that which swings his decision.