http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/4484 Recent articles about Ryan Gomes en-us Options are dwindling for both teams and free agents as teams continue to make moves. Here is what is going on around the league today: Josh Childress has indeed left the Hawks to play in Greece. The Journal Constitution is reporting that Childress has agreed to a a three-year, fully guaranteed contract worth far more than the $20 million originally proposed. It will remain to be seen how this affects NBA free agency in the future. Any player not getting what they want can flaunt a European contract at their team and will have to be taken seriously. But, there are still many players who want to be in the NBA even if they are making far less than they could in Europe. Josh Smith, the Hawks' other big free agent, was wined and dined by the Sixers and then they signed Brand. Then, he was wined and dined by the Clippers before they got Camby. Now, the only team under the cap that could offer him more than the MLE is the Grizzlies but they are in cost cutting mode. So, it seems that Josh Smith is stuck with the Hawks unless they can work a sign and trade with someone. Sources say that the Hawks are offering Smith a six-year deal worth $60 million. The Journal Constitution is reporting that this isn't true, however and that the Hawks have never offered anything near that. The San Antonio Spurs re-signed 36 year old Kurt Thomas on Tuesday. Thomas joined the Spurs last season in the trade that sent Brent Barry and Francisco Elson. In a rather fishy move, Barry was released by the Sonics and went back to the Spurs to join new teammate Kurt Thomas. Thomas' return could put in question the return of Robert Horry and Michael Finley's to the Spurs. When the Nets acquired Keyon Dooling, Marcus Williams vowed to fight for his job as the Nets' point guard. He may be fighting for his job, but not with the Nets as they traded him to the Warriors for a future first-round pick. The Warriors are going to give Williams a chance to start along side of Monta Ellis, who is more of a shooting guard than a point. First Camby was traded to the Clippers for a second round pick and now Williams traded for a first round pick. Must be nice to be under the cap and able to pick up players for peanuts (and draft picks). The Warriors pick has plenty of strings attached, though. The pick is lottery protected for 2011. If it goes to 2012, the pick is protected 1-11. It's protected 1-10 for 2013. If they still haven't received the pick by 2013, the Nets get second-round picks in 2013 and 2015. ESPN reports that Detroit has offered to trade Chauncey Billups and Tayshaun Prince twice this off season already. The first time was to try to pry Carmelo Anthony away from Denver. The second offer was to Houston for Tracy McGrady. Both offers were rejected. With the rumors that Detroit is considering making a bid for Artest they could be making a 3rd attempt to trade Billups and Prince. There seems to be some smoke here and there may be some fire behind it. It would be interesting to see the crowd react to Ron Ron being introduced to the Palace crowd for the first time as a Piston. Talk about mixed emotions. Personally I wouldn't want Artest for anything. The guy has been a cancer and a distraction everywhere he has gone. Ryan Gomes is such a classy person. The Star Tribune reports that Gomes is participating in the Wolves' summer promotional caravan. He doesn't have a deal with the Wolves but is on their promotional tour. "I made a commitment at the end of the season to do this," Gomes said from Mankato. "They (the team) asked me if I'd like to do this and I'm a community guy, so I said yes. I don't know where I'm going to be yet. I made a commitment and stuck with it." Gomes is looking for the full MLE but chances of getting it are dwindling. It seems unlikely that the Wolves wouldn't match anything less. I would really like to have him back in Celtics Green but all the Celtics could offer is half the MLE and unless Danny has incriminating pictures of McHale, the Wolves would probably match any offer we could afford to give. At this point in his career, he is looking for some security and possibly accepting the qualifying offer and then seeing what he can get as an unrestricted free agent next season could be his best move. As hard as Gomes works, his value should only improve. Mark Bartelstein has said that several teams, including the Celtics have inquired about his client, Devean George. In his interview on WEEI, Danny said that he hasn't had any talks with George. So, either Bartelstein is floating rumors to try to get other teams to make an offer before another team snaps him up or Danny is not wanting to tip his hand. I remember Danny being interviewed on WEEI another time as the trade deadline approached when he said that the Celtics had nothing in the works and nothing even close. Four hours later, the Celtics traded for Wally Szczerbiak. So, you can't trust what an agent says or what Danny tells you for that matter. The News Herald reports that Bartelstein is also in talks with the Cavs concerning George. Now that the Celtics have signed House and Allen, Danny says that he is taking some time off. He may make another deal, or he may roll the dice with the team we have. The Celtics lost Pollard, PJ Brown, Cassell and Posey. The Celtics have 2 promising rookies who could fill in the blanks. Gabe Pruitt should be able to fill in at the Point along with House. Tony, if healthy, can replace Posey's defense. Giddens and Walker may get a chance to prove themselves. Danny may go with what we have now and then save space to pick up someone if there is a need later on. The Charlotte Observer reports that negotiations with Emeka Okafor are at an impasse. He has one more year left and if they don't agree on an extension, he can walk after next season as an unrestricted free agent. Rather than let him walk for nothing next season, the Bobcats may try to arrange a sign and trade. Some possibilities for a sign and trade swap are Shawn Marion, Anderson Varejao, Andris Biedrins, Al Harrington, and Luol Deng. Delonte West is still unsigned. The News Herald reports that the Cavs want to sign him but that they aren't close to an agreement at this point. Other teams are interested but have been scared off by his restricted tag, figuring that since the Cavs do want him, they will just match any offer made. Daniel Gibson signed a 5 year contract with the Cavs that starts at $3.7 million and West is looking for more since he is the starting PG and Gibson is the back up. Of course, if they can't reach an agreement, Delonte could just accept the Cavs' qualifying offer of $2.76 million, play out the year, and the become an unrestricted free agent next year. That could be good or bad for him. If he has a great year, he will demand even more money next season. If he continues to be nagged with little injuries and struggles, then as a restricted free agent, he may not get as much as he would now. It's a gamble that may or may not pay off. The Express News is reporting that it appears that Robert Horry's days with the Spurs are over. Big Shot Bob has won 7 rings in his 16 seasons in the league. He has said that he wants to play another season in the league but the Spurs don't seem inclined to bring him back. Unless he gets an offer from another team, he may be forced to retire. Could Big Shot Bob be the next aging veteran to come on board the Celtics? Danny loves these guys who seem to be on their last legs but who have tremendous experience and can help a team in little ways. Horry fits the profile. The Portland Trail Blazers signed first-round pick Nicolas Batum on Tuesday. Batum was actually drafted by Houston with the 25th overall pick and then traded to the Blazers for two draft picks. This brings the team's roster to 14 players. They still have not made a decision on whether to sign Petteri Koponen. They don't feel he is ready for the NBA this season, but if they don't sign him now, he will likely sign a long term contract in Europe. If they sign him, he could spend some time in the D-League and accelerate his development. The Clippers signed Golden State forward Kelenna Azubuike (8.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg) to a three-year, $9.3 million offer sheet last week and the Warriors have until Friday to match the offer, but according to sources they won't match it because they signed forward Maurice Evans to a three-year, $6.4 million deal. We are about to enter into the quiet (read completely dead) part of the season for Celtics fans. Danny is going to take some time off. He lost one free agent and brought back 2 others. He still has to deal with the Celtics 2 draft picks and possibly pick up another free agent or even make a minor trade. But keep in mind, it wasn't until the end of August that Danny signed Posey last season and so he may wait until the dust settles to make another move. Reports are that Bill Walker is working hard to come back from the knee surgery and depending on how he looks, Danny may not make another move. If ready to contribute, Walker could be the back up at the 3 that the Celtics still need. I like the kid and think he could prove to be the steal of the draft. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 09:51:04 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294294 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294294 In the Zzone reports that the Nets' free agent Bostjan Nachbar will be heading to Europe. According to legaue sources, Nachbar will sign with Dynamo Moscow in Russia. Another of the Nets' free agents, Nenad Krstic has also received offers to play overseas but would prefer to remain in the NBA. The Nets may be looking for a sign and trade with him. Not everyone is chomping at the bit for a big payday overseas. Will Bynum left lucrative offers overseas for a shot at making it to an NBA team. He played with the Pistons summer league team hoping to stick with the team as their No. 3 point guard. Bynum's gamble paid off and has agreed to a multi-year deal with Detroit. Bynum was signed by the Celtics in 2005 after he played with their summer league team. It was Bynum's signing that he and Tony Allen were celebrating when Tony was charged with assault in that night club shooting. The first of the Pistons' three second-round picks in last month's NBA draft, Walter Sharpe, is expected to sign a two-year deal as well. The Nuggets are looking to continue their cost cutting spree. After giving away Marcus Camby for a second round draft pick, word is that the Nuggets would trade Allen Iverson, Kenyon Martin or Nene, if anybody wanted them. Iverson has the most trade value with an expiring $20.84 million contract, he would be valuable to a team looking to clear salary-cap room for next summer. If the Nuggets, like every other team in the league, want to try to clear cap space for the summer of 2010, when LeBron and several other key stars will be free agents, then it might make sense for them to give away Iverson for nothing, as they did with Camby. The Knicks are have a new GM and a new coach. Isiah Thomas has been banished to NBA Siberia or something like that, but the Knicks still are struggling. They had the 6th pick in the draft and chose 19-year-old Danilo Gallinari. In his lone Summer League game for the Knicks, Gallinari went scoreless in the first 2½ quarters and then had an impressive seven minutes in the second half when he scored 14 points. After suffering a back injury in their game against Cleveland, he missed the final 4 games. The NY Post raises the issue that Gallinari's summer league makes the Knicks question whether he'll be durable enough to withstand the NBA's physical pounding for 82 games. A European source said Gallinari had various hamstring and knee problems in Italy, but a Knicks source said that was "growing pains." Ok, if they say so. Mark Bartlestein, who was instrumental in getting James Posey a big payday in New Orleans, is also Eddie House's agent and coincidentally, he is also the agent for Devean George, who has been linked to the Celtics in rumors lately. After the Celtics re-signed his client Eddie House, Bartelstein said the Celtics are interested in another of his free-agent clients: forward Devean George. Eric Pincus, a contributor to Hoopsworld for the Lakers and Clippers had this to say about George on the CelticStuff list: I know George well – he's athletic – can shoot – and is a better than average defender. He's not a particularly bright basketball player though – doesn't have a great handle – and can't do much more than spot up. He also gets hurt a lot – and doesn't play through pain well – especially because the core of his game is athleticism – when that's hampered he can be quite useless. I am not a big fan of signing him. He proved what kind of a team player he is when he almost blocked the trade for Jason Kidd. I would have much rather had Matt Barnes. I am sure that Danny knows what he is doing though and we'll have to see what he has up his sleeve. The Star Tribune is reporting that the Timberwolves have agreed to a multi-year contract with Sebastian Telfair. Telfair is another one of those players with potential and when he finally gets his head right will be a player. The Wolves now have 2 point guards on the roster in Randy Foye and Telfair. Still unsigned is Ryan Gomes who reportedly is seeking the full MLE. It seems that either he will have to go elsewhere or settle for less. It sure would be nice if he would agree to half the MLE in order to come back to Boston. He would be a great fit for the Celtics. Some have speculated that Josh Childress is waving the offer in Greece in front of the Hawks as a bargaining chip. However, Childress and his advisory team, including his agents are in Greece meeting with officials from Olympiakos. It's doubtful that the entire group would have gone all the way to Greece simply to dupe the Hawks. He is seriously considering signing there. The Pacers had a couple of decisions after making a big splash with the Jermaine O'Neal trade. They need help in the frontcourt, it won't be from 7'0" center David Harrison. Team officials said last week they are going in a different direction and have no interest in re-signing Harrison. Shawne Williams has had some problems off the court in the past year and the Pacers would like to rid themselves of Williams and his problems, but Pacers president Larry Bird says that he doesn't believe in buying out contracts, an issue that has arisen in regard to Williams and Jamaal Tinsley. So, if they want to rid themselves of yet another player with baggage, it will have to be via a trade. Seems that Larry should have tacked Williams on to O'Neal and shipped him off to Canada. If nothing comes up in the physical that Matt Barnes is completing today, he will be signing a veteran's minimum one year contract with the Suns today. I still say he would have been a nice fit with the Celtics. Finally, this rumor is pretty mind blowing. The SacBee is reporting that Detroit may be putting together a package for Ron Artest. Now wouldn't the Detroit fans just love having Billy Ron Ron there? After that brawl, Artest has been pretty much a villain in the Palace. This is one I'll have to see to believe. Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:45:06 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/293819 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/293819 AZ Central is reporting that Matt Barnes is scheduled to arrive in Phoenix Monday, expecting to sign a one-year veteran's minimum deal with the Suns after completing a physical. I was really hoping Danny would make an offer to Barnes as he would be a great replacement for Posey. It seems as though one free agent after another is being signed and the Celtics have yet to make a move to fill the empty spots on the bench. I just don't get Danny not having made a minimum offer to this guy already. Maybe he should give him a call real quick and make an offer. Xtra Sports has a couple of interesting rumors on their website. First is that the Celtics have approached the Lakers concerning a trade for Trevor Ariza. Scal's salary fits. I wonder if they are looking for a glue guy since Turiaf left. Along with the inquiries about Ariza, they report that the Celtics are talking to Orlando's Maurice Evans, the Warriors' Matt Barnes, and the Wolves' Ryan Gomes. Word is that Gomes is looking for a 2 year contract for the full MLE. The Celtics may offer that, but since Gomes is restricted, the Wolves will probably match. I like the idea of getting Barnes. I think he would be a great fit for the team but probably won't come cheap. Also according to Xtra Sports, rumors are flying around that the Lakers are trying to clear roster space in order to make a major trade to acquire Rasheed Wallace from Detroit or Ron Artest from Sacramento. They didn't match Turiaf's offer and that may clear the way for the trade for Artest. With the Nets deal for Dooling almost final, Marcus Williams is the odd man out and the Nets would like to trade him. They are said to be looking to package Williams and one of their other young players, such as forwards Josh Boone or Sean Williams, for a veteran. They still have eight players on their roster with two years' or less experience in the league. Maybe the Nets would like Scal back. What better player to guide their youngsters. Sean Williams and Marcus Williams would be nice additions to the Celtics. Come on, New Jersey, you need a glue guy like Scal and now he can bring championship experience (sort of) to your team. Atlanta Hawks free-agent forward Josh Childress is strongly considering a three-year, $20 million offer from Greek powerhouse Olympiakos, several league sources said Sunday night. Childress flew to Greece late Sunday and is scheduled to meet with Olympiakos officials on Monday. Childress has been frustrated with the Hawks who have refused to make a sign-and-trade deal for Childress with another team. One source reports that there's a better than a 50-50 chance he'll sign with Olympiakos. News is breaking that the Celtics have agreed to terms with two of their own free agents, Tony Allen and Eddie House. Both have agreed to 2 year deals. The Celtics used Tony's Bird rights but needed approximately half of the M LE to secure House. This pretty much eliminates the possibility of bringing Ryan Gomes back to Boston as he is seeking a deal close to the full MLE. Mon, 21 Jul 2008 09:42:39 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/293177 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/293177 Rotoworld.com is a great resource for breaking news, but I often disagree with their NBA analysis. So here are a few examples of how my fantasy basketball opinions differ from Rotoworld's (I will continue to update the original post over the summer). My intentions are not to simply badmouth Rotoworld's fantasy hoops content, but to point out the differences between their analysis and mine. I should first thank them, because if it wasn't for an email that they sent me 5 years ago, I wouldn't be here today. You see, I purchased Rotoworld's "Fantasy Basketball Draft Guide" in 2003, and was very disappointed with their "expert" analysis and stat projections. I sent them an email citing examples of projections that did not seem very logical to me, and they responded by saying something like: Clearly, you are knowledgeable and experienced in fantasy basketball, but our draft guides are geared towards more novice players. I was extremely offended by that email. Why would someone sell a guide (of ANY kind) without putting maximum effort into it in hopes that even the most experienced person could gain some kind of knowledge or insight from it? Since that day, I've been on a mission to create my own Fantasy Basketball Draft Guide to the best of my ability. Over the last 5 years, I've won over $15,000 playing fantasy basketball, which is no easy feat considering the lack of high-stakes hoops leagues. After years of keeping my rankings and projections to myself, I released my first comprehensive Draft Guide last year on 82games.com, to much acclaim (see below). So before you purchase Rotoworld's 2008 NBA Draft Guide, perhaps you should take note of the differences between Rotoworld and RotoEvil. My 1st update includes differences of opinion regarding: Kevin Love & Minnesota's frontcourt, David Lee's trade prospects, Jason Williams' fantasy value, Brandon Rush's player comparisons, and whether or not Chris Duhon is really an NBA player. Click on the link to compare for yourself! Thu, 17 Jul 2008 20:07:28 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291945 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291945 The big story is that James Posey, who was one of the most coveted free agents is now off the market. The Hornets were willing to give Posey what he asked for, and that is a 4 year, $25 million contract. The Celtics weren't willing to go that 4th year. Now that Posey is off the market, there may be more signings as the teams who were holding out and hoping to land Posey will now go to plan B and look to make a deal. This does seem to make both Chris Andersen and Janero Pargo a bit more available with their MLE wrapped up in Posey, the most they can offer is the league minimum. At least Posey didn't go to the Lakers. I don't think I could have stomached seeing him hugging Kobe before every game. With Posey off the table, the Celtics may attempt to re-sign one of their own free agents, Tony Allen. Allen's agent, Mike Higgins, said yesterday he expects the Celtics to make his client an offer. The Celtics also have swingmen J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker, both of whom are unsigned and although there were rumors that the Celtics might try to stash Walker overseas for a year, the loss of Posey may give him an opportunity to contribute right away. Ainge said that one player wouldn't replace Posey but rather that he would be replaced by committee and that he didn't have a free agent in mind. "We go to the next options," said Ainge, who might consider adding another big man. "We're not going to sign one player that is going to replace James Posey. We're going to do it in a different way and different fashion. We are going to reallocate our dollars in different ways." That big man may be Chris Andersen, who the Celtics showed interest in earlier. Andersen has been mentioned in rumors that Denver may be interested as well. I would love to have the Birdman in Boston. Bill Ingram of Hoopsworld reported that the Boston Celtics offered James Posey in a sign-and-trade deal to try to land land Billy Ron Artest. I don't know how much I believe that because this same Bill Ingram reported on Monday that Posey would be announcing his signing in 24 hours and was expected to re-sign with the Celtics. On the other hand, Danny made a run at Posey when the Pacers were trying to trade him and may try to get in on the bidding for him now that the Kings seem ready to move him again. The Mavs and Lakers are both making a pitch for him but to get him, it would seem that any team would have to take Kenny Thomas and his contract as well and I don't think the Celtics would want to do that. After weeks of saying that he was deciding between Boston and Phoenix and then skipping out on a physical in Miami on Monday, and going back to saying that it was between Boston and Phoenix, Tyronn Lue signed a one year contract with the Milwaukee Bucks worth between 2 and 2.5 million. The Celtics and Suns were both offering one year minimum contracts and the Bucks obviously were willing to offer more. So, the Celtics lost 2 free agents at the top of their list on the same day. This could get depressing. With their top free agent target off the market, the Suns are looking elsewhere for point guard help. Reports are that they are interested in Sam Cassell, Shaun Livingston and Jason Williams. Williams is good friends with Suns center Shaquille O'Neal and Cassell is a former Sun. The Suns can only offer the league minimum and so are hoping that they will find a player willing to sign for the minimum. Not only have the Celtics not been able to land their free agent targets, they haven't been able to reach an agreement with their first round draft pick, JR Giddens. As a few more of the remaining first-round picks signed their three-year guaranteed deals yesterday, which for the most part are based on their draft position, J.R. Giddens remained unsigned with no resolution of the situation in sight. Danny Ainge said that they haven't had any conversations and that the Celtics are concentrating on other things right now like letting James Posey get away. Giddens has the same agent as Posey and House. He was also Mark Blount's agent. I really am getting to dislike this guy. On the day that they lost James Posey to New Orleans, the Celtics made the signing of Patrick O'Bryant official. O'Bryant, a 7'0", 249lbs center, has appeared in 40 career games for the Golden State Warriors posting averages of 1.7 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. O'Bryant is scheduled to meet the Boston media in Waltham on Thursday morning at The Sports Authority Training Center at HealthPoint at 11:30 a.m. One team that was hoping to land Posey made a move on Wednesday as the Cavs signed Daniel Gibson to a 5 year deal. With Gibson safely in the fold, the Cavs will turn their attention to trying to re-sign Delonte West and they hope to come to an agreement with him soon as well. Delonte is a restricted free agent so the Cavs could match any offer he might get from another team. The Raptors made another move as they announced Wednesday they have signed guard Roko Ukic to a three-year contract. Ukic was a second-round selection (41st overall) by the Raptors in the 2005 NBA Draft. Ukic, 6-foot-5, 210 pounds, played in Italy last season with Lottomatica Virtus Roma. He averaged career highs of 11.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals in 19 Euroleague contests. The Star Tribune reports that the Timberwolves have agreed to terms with restricted free agent Craig Smith. The Wolves have not yet signed restricted free agents Ryan Gomes and several teams have been pursuing Gomes. Teams such as Cleveland could intensify their pursuit now that Boston free agent James Posey has signed with New Orleans. Gomes' agent likely is eyeing the full mid-level exception of $5.6 million for next season. If Gomes signs with another team, the Wolves have seven days to match the offer or let Gomes go. Many Celtics fans have hopes of seeing Gomes in Celtics green again but it is doubtful that Danny will offer the full MLE to get him. The Rocky Mountain News is reporting that Marcus Camby was blindsided, distraught, disrespected and insulted by the trade that sent him from the Nuggets to the Clippers for a second round draft pick. The Nuggets are considering Chris Anderson as a replacement for Camby. Bull's restricted free agent Luol Deng's options are limited after the Clippers' trade for Marcus Camby. The Clippers with their cap space were considered a possibility for Deng, but Camby's salary will use up a large portion of that space. Only the Grizzlies have conserable cap space but are in cost cutting mode and are unlikely to look to sign a free agent for big bucks. This leaves three options for Deng: hit on a long-term extension with the Bulls, sign a one-year tender offer and become an unrestricted free agent in 2009, or convince the Bulls to execute a sign-and-trade. It was reported at the time that the hold up on a Kobe or a KG trade was the fact that the Bulls did not want to include Deng. If they can't come to an agreement, they may have passed up two big opportunities for nothing. According to a source close to Dallas, the Mavericks offered 14th year swingman Jerry Stackhouse and fourth-year forward Brandon Bass for Kings small forward Ron Artest. The Kings are not expected to entertain the offer if it doesn't include Dallas small forward Josh Howard, but the inquiry certainly reveals the level of the Mavs' interest. According to the source, Howard does not appear to be available. Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:43:40 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291641 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/291641 The League will announce the new salary cap numbers today and at midnight, free agents can begin signing with teams so tomorrow looks to be a busy day for free agent news, but for now, here is what is going on around the league. Paul Pierce spoke to the media from his basketball camp just around the corner from TD Banknorth Garden. He had this to say about the knee that he injured in game 1 of the Finals. Pierce said the knee is still sore, but is getting better, and noted that he's been treating his injury "like a sprain that normally takes three-four weeks." "I've still got some soreness in it, so hopefully it's nothing major requiring surgery," Pierce said. "I plan on getting in there this week, getting the treatmentand the MRI and making sure I take care of my body. I doubt if I need any surgery. It's getting better and better. I'm gonna get the MRI just to take the extra precaution but I don't see any surgery in my future and I just plan on getting treatment until it's all the way healed." Pierce also said that now that he has won the championship, he wants to do it again next season. He is planning to spend most of the summer in Boston to work out and prepare for next season. The Herald also reports that Pierce is pushing for the Celtics to do whatever it takes to sign James Posey. He also plans to speak to Posey in hopes to get him to come back to Boston. Pierce also plans to toss in some sentimentality when he speaks with Posey. "You know, I try to tell guys winning a championship with the Boston Celtics is not like winning a championship anywhere else," he said. "I think down the road you forget about certain championship teams, but those Boston teams never get forgotten." "When I talk to him, I'm going to let him know that - the significance of being a Boston Celtic even after basketball. Hopefully I can convince him to come back for whatever the offer we're giving him. I don't really know the offer that (director of basketball operations) Danny (Ainge) and them are talking about. I know it's less than the mid-level and I know there's teams out there probably trying to give him the mid-level." The Bulls are making Ben Gordon, who is a restricted free agent available and are looking for a sign and trade from someone for him. At first the thought was that Heinrich would be on the blocks with the arrival of Derrick Rose, but now it seems that Heinrich will play in the back court along with Rose. That makes Gordon the odd man out. I wonder if they need an energy guy who will be a good locker room guy and bring energy off the bench. If so, the Celtics have just the guy for them. Brian Scalabrine would be just the guy to keep their young guys in line. If the Sixers get their way, they could be one of the most improved players in the league. They have $11 million available to sign a free agent and with the new cap figures, it may be even more. Expect them to make a very lucrative offer to Josh Smith. The Hawks GM has said that he will match any offers, but if the Sixers offer is high enough, the owners may override that and let him go. It would be a mistake for the Hawks if they do because they have the makings of a very good young team and letting Smith go would set them back considerably. The Sixers on the other hand will land someone good with all that money. Trading Iverson was a very good move on their part. Yahoo is reporting that the Philadelphia 76ers have traded forwards Rodney Carney, Calvin Booth and a future No. 1 pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves to free as much as $2 million in additional salary cap space for the Sixers to offer Elton Brand or Josh Smith a deal that will bring one of the two coveted free to Philadelphia. Minnesota is sending Philadelphia its $2.8 million trade exception from the 2007 deal of Mark Blount to the Miami Heat. Cleveland has been very active in free agent talks. They have been rumored to be in talks with Corey Maggette, Monta Ellis, and James Posey who grew up in Cleveland. The Cavs owner is willing to pay the luxury tax and they are trying to prove to LeBron that they mean business by trying to bring in players to help him so that he doesn't bolt the team in 2010 when he becomes a free agent. They are also trying to re-sign Delonte West and Daniel Gibson. They are rumored to be looking into a possible deal with the Bobcats for Raymond Felton as well. Anthony Carter, the Nuggets free agent point guard has received calls from Orlando, New York and Golden State but has said that he will likely sign a deal with the Nuggets for the veteran's minimum. The Nuggets have eight players with guaranteed contracts totaling $78 million, which is already about $8 million over the projected luxury-tax threshold and will need to find free agents willing to sign for the league minimum to fill out the rest of their roster. The Celtics aren't far behind with 9 players under contract totaling $71 million. The Boston Score has an interesting take on Danny inviting Darius Miles to camp. We all remember when Reggie Lewis died, the league refused to give the Celtics any cap relief from his salary. Fast forward a bit and the NBA ruled that Darius Miles had a career-ending knee injury, they wiped the $27.5 million left on his contract off the books. But, the Blazers will lose this relief if Miles plays in at least 10 games over the next 2 seasons. Could Danny be trying to get some measure of revenge from the league by way of the Blazers by trying to prove that Miles is indeed well enough to play in the NBA? Interesting conjecture. The Suns are also looking at Miles. The Celtics said that his workout was impressive but it remains to be seen whether his off court troubles are behind him. He will be suspended for the 1st 10 games of the season for violating the leagues drug policy. The Suns are also interested in signing Tyronn Lue who has been mentioned as a player that the Celtics have looked at as a back up point guard. After reports that he was unhappy at being traded to the Bucks, Richard Jefferson broke his silence with a press conference yesterday. He said that he was unhappy because he felt betrayed by New Jersey and not because of the team that traded for him. He is excited about playing with Michael Redd and the chance to get back to the playoffs. He also said he doesn't expect New Jersey to be back in the playoffs for the next couple of years because of the moves they have made. The Record adds this little tidbit for one of the reason that Jefferson was traded (another being that they got a contract that expires in 2010 in return as they chase the LeBron sweepstakes): Another reason, sources within the organization said, was that change was needed. They said Jefferson was jealous of Vince Carter and became so fixated on making the All-Star team that he focused more on the offensive end – he averaged a career-best 22.6 points last season - and didn't rebound or defend as hard as he did earlier in his career. Regardless of the reasons, I think the Bucks just improved themselves considerably. Exprss News reports that Kurt Thomas would like to return to the Spurs but has received interest from both the Lakers and the Heat. The Spurs' pursuit of Corey Maggette is on the front burner right now and after Maggette makes his choice, then the Spurs (and the other teams that are pursuing him (Pistons, Jazz, Celtics, Magic, Warriors to name a few) will be able to move on to other matters. The Orange County Register reports that along with making a run at James Posey and trying to sign their own free agents Rony Turiaf and Sasha Vujacic, the Lakers are making a play to get Sun Yue, the 6'9" point guard they drafted last season but who opted to stay overseas. The last 6'9" point guard who played for the Lakers did pretty well and they are hoping this one will too. Along with pursuing James Posey and Corey Maggette (isn't everyone?), MLive tells us that the Pistons are looking at a number of prospects on their Summer League team. One of the stronger free agent candidates on Detroit's summer league roster is point guard Will Bynum. Bynum signed with the Boston Celtics prior to the 2005-2006 season, but was waived shortly before the season opener. He will be remembered by Celtics fans because of the incident in Chicago that landed Tony Allen in legal trouble as they were celebrating Bynum's signing with the Celtics. If Bynum plays well this summer, he has a good chance of entering training camp as the team's No. 3 point guard behind Chauncey Billups and Rodney Stuckey. But then again, Detroit News mentions that the Warriors have been trying to unload Al Harrington (two years left worth about $20 million) and they need a point guard. The Pistons could offer Chauncey Billups, but they would want a lot more than Harrington back in return. Just a conjecture on their part, but an interesting one. The Star Tribune reports that Ryan Gomes is going to wait until some of the dust settles on the free agent market and see what is available after players like Posey, Maggette, etc are signed before making a decision whether or not to take the Wolves' one year qualifying offer. If the Celtics lose out on Posey and Maggette, I wouldn't mind making Gomes an offer, but the Wolves can match any offer made so it would be a long shot to get him back. Summer Leagues are in full force. It seems strange not to be watching the Celtics battle it out in Vegas at this time of the year. For so many years, the hopes of the future were pinned on what was going on with those summer league teams. It seems pretty foreign now remembering back to watching Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, Leon Powe, Gerald Green and company and thinking that the future was bright, although far away. The Oklahoma City team got its start as a franchise with its summer offering wearing black mesh uniforms with white stripes along the sides and the words "Oklahoma City" across the front of the jersey and atop a simple NBA logo. It is sad in many ways that the Sonics are no more. Tue, 08 Jul 2008 08:51:34 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/287228 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/287228 It seems like Banner 17 happened in a blur. One minute we were picking our hearts up off the floor after the draft lottery and the next we were jumping on tables with Paul Pierce. Part of what has our heads spinning is the total roster turnover from a year ago. For the most part we've been rooting for Paul Pierce and laundry (the green and white jerseys). There are players that we rooted for and enjoyed watching a year ago that had to leave to make all this happen. Those players are gone but not forgotten. Many of us still pull for guys like Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes, and Delonte West. In fact, there's been an understandable sentiment to bring some of those guys back. Wouldn't Gomes look great coming off the bench? Wouldn't Delonte be a viable backup to Rondo? Someone is going to take one last flyer on Gerald Green, why not us? Forget it folks. I know that Antoine Walker's second stint in green taught us that anything is possible, but I don't see these guys coming back. Not for any one reason, but each player seems to have moved on and will likely stay gone. Let us look... Wed, 25 Jun 2008 06:38:43 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/282117 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/282117 It's funny to think about now, but it wasn't that long ago we were justifying tanking our season to grab Oden or Durant. One of these guys was going to "change the face of the franchise" and "turn us into a contender for years to come." I was no better than anybody else. I had the next 10 or so years of my life planned around watching Kevin Durant draped in green. I only half-jokingly told my wife to start saving some money because we were moving downtown and buying season tickets. Kevin Durant truly felt like the light at the end of our tumultuous tunnel. So, on draft lottery night, when our collective dreams exploded in the form of the number five pick, I was literally left standing alone in my apartment, staring at the wall, not knowing if I wanted to punch it or cry. Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:38:37 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/280434 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/280434 Here's a video from August of Bob Ryan & Charlie Pierce flipping out saying all sorts of really interesting, but VERY WRONG things about the upcoming Celtics Season. If you want to laugh even more, read this from "basketball Bob" So tell me what's so enticing about this roster. If Danny had kept Ryan Gomes, I'd be far more optimistic. And why did Danny have to relinquish two No. 1 draft picks? Am I the only one who thinks this stuff matters? There is nothing to suggest the Celtics won't once again be a horrible defensive team. There is no guarantee Rondo can run a team and keep order among the star trio. There is no guarantee, for that matter, that Ray Allen will play 70 games, or even 60. sr_adspace_id = 1330307; sr_adspace_width = 300; sr_adspace_height = 250; sr_adspace_type = "graphic"; sr_ad_new_window = true; Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:59:26 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279701 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279701 I love how this stuff works sometimes. Last year Doc Rivers was the guy who deserved to be canned after his team did the nosedive into last place like they had a two-ton anchor attached to them. You even had guys like Ryan Gomes all but admitting they were tanking. Many people [...] Wed, 18 Jun 2008 01:19:07 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279247 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/279247 This is the third of five installments of my position-by-position rankings, where I consider the four major factors that affect a player's total value: talent (statistical performance), contract, age and potential. To see a more detailed explanation of my approach, give my point guard rankings a gander. I have also completed the first edition of my shooting guard rankings. To summarize a player's stats, I'll use the NBA Efficiency statistic, which is defined as: EFF = ((Points + Rebounds + Assists + Steals + Blocks) - ((Field Goals Att. - Field Goals Made) + (Free Throws Att. - Free Throws Made) + Turnovers)) Essentially, the order of this list depends on the answer to the question – would you trade Player X for Player Y, assuming the goal is to win a title in the next three seasons, while also building a strong franchise for years to come? On with the rankings... 1. LeBron James, Cavaliers Age: 23 EPG: 30.6 Contract: three years, $47.3 M ($15.8 M per) What's there to say about LeBron that hasn't already been said? He's only 23 and is, at worst, the second-best wing in the NBA. He has some things to work on (i.e. post game, consistent shooting), but the sky is the limit. 2. Kevin Durant, Sonics Age: 19 EPG: 15.2 Contract: four years, $23.3 M ($5.9 M per) ROY probably should have gone to Al Horford, but Durant won it and his game is dripping with potential. I don't think the Sonics would trade Durant away for anyone on this list but LeBron. 3. Rudy Gay, Grizzlies Age: 21 EPG: 18.5 Contract: three years, $10.3 M ($3.4 M per) Gay broke out in a big way, averaging 20/6 in his sophomore season. He's young and talented, and will be the cornerstone to Memphis' rebuilding effort. (See the rest of the list after the jump.) Mon, 26 May 2008 13:00:17 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/271057 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/271057 Tim Duncan is the best power forward in the game and one of the best ever to play. Able to play both forward and center, he can dominate whoever he plays on both sides of the floor. Not only that, he steps up his game in the playoffs with 24.8 PPG, 13.8 RPG and 2.4 BPG. He might be boring to watch, but you can't argue with 4 championships. 3 more positions left to cover. Player (Current Team/Former Team) PPG, RPG, APG, SPG, BPG * = Best in Category (R) = Rookie Steals 1+ Shown Blocks 1.5+ Shown Blocks and Steals Shown if both are 1+ 1. Tim Duncan (SAS) 19.3, 11.3*, 2.8, 2 BPG 2. Amare Stoudemire (PHX) 25.2*, 9.1, 1.5, 2.1 BPG*, 59% FG* 3. Kevin Garnett (BOS) 18.8, 9.4, 3.4, 1.2, 1.4 4. Dirk Nowitzki (DAL) 23.6, 8.6, 3.5 5. Carlos Boozer (UTA) 21.1, 10.4, 2.2, 1.2 SPG 6. Antawn Jamison (WAS) 21.4, 10.2, 1.5, 1.3 SPG 7. Chris Bosh (TOR) 22.3, 8.7, 2.6, 1 BPG 8. David West (NOH) 20.6, 8.9, 2.3, 1.3 9. Josh Smith (ATL) 17.2, 8.2, 3.4, 1.5, 2.8 10. Lamar Odom (LAL) 14.2, 10.6, 3.5, 1 SPG 11. Rashard Lewis (ORL) 19, 8.4, 4.4*, 1.6 SPG* 12. Zach Randolph (NYK) 17.6, 10.3, 2 13. Danny Granger (IND) 19.6, 6.1, 2.1, 1.2, 1 14. Emeka Okafor (CHA) 13.8, 10.7, 0.9, 1.7 BPG 15. LaMarcus Aldridge (POR) 17.8, 7.6, 1.6, 1.2 BPG 16. Udonis Haslem (MIA) 12, 9, 1.4 17. Drew Gooden (CHI/CLE) 12, 8.6, 1.2 18. Chris Wilcox (SEA) 13.4, 7, 1.2 19. Kenyon Martin (DEN) 12.4, 6.5, 1.3, 1 SPG 20. Al Harrington (GSW) 13.6, 5.4, 1.6 21. Tim Thomas (LAC) 12.4, 5.1, 2.7 22. Ryan Gomes (MIN) 12.6, 5.8, 1.8 23. Charlie Villanueva (MIL) 11.7, 6.1, 1 24. (R) Luis Scola (HOU) 10.3, 6.4, 1.3 25. Hakim Warrick (MEM) 11.4, 4.7, 0.7 26. Ben Wallace (CLE/CHI) 4.8, 8.4, 1.5, 1.2, 1.6 27. Joe Smith (CLE/CHI) 10.2, 5.1, 0.9 28. Josh Boone (NJN) 8.2, 7.3, 0.8 29. Mikki Moore (SAC) 8.5, 6, 1 30. (R) Yi Jianlian (MIL) 8.2, 5.6, 0.8 Just Missed Out Brandon Bass (DAL) , Jason Maxiell (DET), Antonio McDyess (DET), Carl Landry (HOU) Some of these players don't just play the PF, but they can play SF too. Josh Smith, Rashard Lewis, Danny Granger, Ryan Gomes, they played SF until the occasion called up. Smith played PF a lot and is matched up with KG in the playoffs. Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu are interchangable with it comes to the 3 and 4 spots. Granger has even started as a shooting guard and Gomes went big when Al Jefferson started as a center. It just shows you how interchangable the NBA is now. Thu, 01 May 2008 13:38:27 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/262307 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/262307 Had Golden State not blown it against the Bobcats, Pacers, and T-Wolves, they'd be celebrating and the Nuggets would be fishing. Tue, 15 Apr 2008 17:22:32 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/238237 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/238237 Say it, say it! Ryan Gomes is more than just a "little ball of energy." Sat, 05 Apr 2008 07:29:29 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/229396 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/229396 On the same day that the Major League Baseball season opened up in the States, the NBA offered 9 games. There were plenty of surprise performances with the playoff and lottery race very much in tact. We saw Zach Randolph and Shawn Marion sit out, while the Timberwolves shocked the Jazz, and only word of a future return of Dirk Nowitzki offered some positive news for Dallas. Here's a look at Sunday's fantasy highlights. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:06:24 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/225048 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/225048