The NBA offseason is by no means over, but the lion’s share is behind us, so it’s a good time to take a look back at a few of the…um…let’s say “questionable” decisions of the summer. Here are my Top 10, in no particular order. Feel free to add to the list if I missed something.

1. Trevor Ariza plays spiteful hardball…and loses.
Let’s get this straight — the Lakers offered Ariza the same deal he was getting on the open market, and he refused since the Lakers could have offered more, but didn’t? Um, okay. David Lee (the agent, not the Knicks forward) says that Ariza wanted to go somewhere where he’d be “appreciated.” Lee overestimated the market for his client, and the Lakers quickly moved on to acquire Ron Artest. Now instead of playing for the world champs, Ariza is stuck in Houston on a team that faces a very uncertain future. Lee now says that Ariza turned down a deal worth $9 million more, but still picked Houston. It sounds to me like he’s just trying to save face.

2. Grizzlies acquire Zach Randolph.
Once the Clippers traded for Randolph (and his toxic contract) last season, I thought the bar for NBA general managers had hit a new low thanks to Mike Dunleavy and his wily ways. But Dunleavy proved that he wasn’t the dumbest GM in the league when he convinced the Memphis Grizzlies to take on the final two years Randolph’s contract at the tune of $33.3 million. Remember that $25 million or so of cap space that the Grizzlies were going to have next summer? Yeah, that’s down to about $8 million with this brilliant move. Just when it looked like Chris Wallace was going to rehab his image after the Pau Gasol trade — Marc Gasol panning out, trading for O.J. Mayo — he goes and does this. Sigh.

3. T-Wolves draft both Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn with no (good) plan in place.
When GM David Kahn drafted two point guards with back to back picks, everyone around the league thought that he had a trade in place. Not so, according to Kahn, who likes the idea of playing two smallish, ball-dominating guards in the same backcourt. Now Rubio is threatening to stay in Europe for another year or two, and Kahn is seemingly happy to wait until Rubio finally makes his way to the NBA to see if his unorthodox plan (and that’s being kind) will ultimately work.

4. The Magic trade for Vince Carter.
Let’s see, your team just lost in the Finals — losing two games in overtime — and your main ballhandler is a free agent. What do you do? It’s tough to create the kind of chemistry that gets a team to the Finals, so you re-sign him, right? Not the Orlando Magic, who balked at Hedo Turkoglu’s $10 million-per-season asking price and instead pulled the trigger on a trade for Vince Carter. So essentially they gave up their most consistent player (Turkoglu) and a budding star (Courtney Lee) for the 32-year-old Carter. A healthy Jameer Nelson (along with a savvy mid-level signing) may have been enough to put this Magic team over the top, but now we’ll never know.

5. Pistons sign Ben Gordon for $11 million per season.
Look, I like Ben Gordon…for about $8 million per season. The guy is a great scorer, but he has sketchy shot selection at times and is a big liability on defense. For years, the Bulls didn’t even deem him good enough to start, but the Pistons are going to throw $11 million per year at him? And it turns out that they were bidding against themselves, as the Bulls didn’t even bother to make an offer before Gordon signed with Detroit.

6. No one makes an offer (that we know of) to Ramon Sessions.
7. The Bucks don’t extend one-year offer to Charlie Villanueva and lose him without compensation.
8. The Bucks give away Richard Jefferson.
Let’s tackle my beloved Bucks all at once. First, they give away a former All-Star Jefferson in a salary dump. Then, they elect not to take the option to make Villanueva a restricted free agent, which allows the Pistons to sign him away without having to give the Bucks anything in return. I know why the Bucks made these moves — they don’t feel that this roster is worthy of being in luxury tax territory and I don’t disagree, but small market teams can’t give away assets for nothing. Yeah, maybe signing Villanueva for the final year of his rookie contract would have cost them $4 million or more, but they could have traded him for a young prospect or maybe a draft pick. And why didn’t they get a first rounder out of the Spurs for Jefferson? Small market teams have a tough time signing stars, so they have to build through the draft and via trade. Giving away the rights to a $7 million-per-season player (which is what the Pistons paid Villanueva) is not the way to get better. Lastly, why hasn’t anyone made RFA Ramon Sessions an offer? The Bucks have proven that they are trying to cut salary and they picked up Brandon Jennings in the draft. Does anyone really think that they’d match a significant ($4-$5 million per year) offer for Sessions? He had the 13th-highest PER amongst all point guards, and the 5th-highest amongst all point guards under the age of 26. Moreover, his +/- numbers are the best on the team for anyone who played more than 1200 minutes. Why hasn’t a team in need of point guard help (Portland?) jumped on this guy?

9. The Suns give away Shaquille O’Neal.
Regular readers know that I’m not fond of the job Steve Kerr is doing in Phoenix. First, he trades Rudy Fernandez away for cash. Then he ruins one of the most exciting teams in NBA history by trading Shawn Marion for Shaquille O’Neal. Now he seemingly admits that the Shaq trade was all for naught by giving him away in a salary dump. Shaq made the Third Team All-NBA last year, and Kerr traded him for Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic’s expiring contracts. Geesh.

10. Six teams pass on DeJuan Blair IN THE SECOND ROUND!
When I first heard that there were concerns about Blair’s knees, I thought he might fall into the bottom third of the first round. Even if the guy is missing ligaments in his knees, he was still one of the best rebounders in all of college basketball last season and he ate up #2 pick Hasheem Thabeet in Connecticut. When Blair fell into the second round I was stunned as the Kings, Wizards, Blazers, Nuggets, Pistons and Grizzlies all passed on Blair. A second round pick doesn’t require the same kind of financial commitment as a first round pick, so there’s very little downside if the guy doesn’t pan out. Blair fell and fell, right into the inviting arms of the Spurs, who will be lucky to have him on the roster for the foreseeable future.

The Detroit Pistons have a ton of cap space heading into 2009 NBA free agency, and they apparently aren’t afraid to use it, agreeing in principle to contracts with Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva.

Former Bulls guard Gordon will receive a five-year deal for between $55 million and $60 million, while former Bucks forward Villanueva gets a five-year deal for $40 million, sources told ESPN.com’s Chris Broussard.

Gordon rejected deals from Chicago in excess of $50 million each of the past two seasons. Milwaukee elected to let the 24-year-old Villanueva become an unrestricted free agent earlier this week, after the Bucks determined that matching any restricted free-agent offers would move the team closer to the luxury tax threshold and limit changing the roster.

It’s not surprising that the Pistons signed both of these players, but the value of the contracts seem a little high when taking the current economic climate into consideration. It seems like GM Joe Dumars is operating in a 2006 or 2007 mindset when the reality is that the demand for these players probably didn’t justify $11 million per season for Gordon and $8 millon per season for Villanueva.

There are only eight teams with significant cap space this summer — the Grizzlies, Pistons, Hawks, Thunder, Kings, Raptors, Blazers and Timberwolves — and Memphis, OKC and Minnesota weren’t expected to be big players this offseason. The Bulls were trying to re-sign Gordon, and they probably were in the same neighborhood of the two deals they offered over the last two years that averaged $10 million and $9 million per season, so Detroit may have felt they had to outbid Chicago to pry him away. But I just don’t think he’s worth it, given his defensive liabilities and his lack of size for an off guard.

As for Villanueva, he was intrigued with the possibility of playing with LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal in Cleveland, but they could only offer him a mid-level deal, which would probably start at around $5.5 million per season. Even though his new contract’s $8 million per season average is the first thing to jump out, we need to focus on the first season. The contract could very well start at $6 million and go up $1 million per season for five years, which would add up to $40 million. They needed to outbid the mid-level deal to convince Villanueva to join a non-contender. Still, that’s a big commitment for a player who has a reputation for being a poor defender and has had his work ethic questioned at time. But at 24, Villanueva is still learning and is already a proven scorer.

This Gordon signing may indicate that Rip Hamilton will be moved before next February’s trade deadline. Though he’s getting older, he’s still a highly efficient scorer and he’d definitely be able to help a contender. I doubt that it’s Dumars’ plan to have $22 million locked up per season at one position. If Hamilton is moved, then the Pistons would be building around a lineup of Rodney Stuckey, Gordon, Tayshaun Prince and Villanueva.

Pistons, Blazers interested in Hedo Turkoglu.

The Oregonian reports Blazers general manager Kevin Pritchard and assistant general manager Tom Penn called agent Lon Babby last night to begin the courtship of Hedo Turkoglu.

With Carlos Boozer out of the picture, an NBA source tells the Chicago Sun-Times that Turkoglu is now the Pistons’ first choice in free agency.

While the Blazers’ interest has long been rumored, Detroit’s interest is a little surprising. They already have a very good small forward on the roster in Tayshaun Prince, so unless they’re planning to play Turkoglu at the four, someone is going to lose some minutes. Of the two teams, the Pistons have more cap space, so if they want him, they can get him. (And what about Ben Gordon?)

Charlie V ahead of Turkoglu on the Pistons’ wishlist?

Chicago’s Ben Gordon remains the backcourt player deeply coveted by the Pistons, but the prospect of a Gordon-and-Villanueva combo likely would be slightly cheaper than trying to sign Gordon and Turkoglu with Detroit’s nearly $19 million in projected salary-cap space.

The Pistons may also be interested in Paul Millsap, but anytime a team signs a restricted free agent to an offer sheet, that money is tied up for a week while his current team decides to match. That makes signing an RFA a dicey prospect.

I wonder if the Bucks are regretting letting Villanueva given the amount of interest he’s generating from their division rivals (Detroit and Cleveland).

Knicks not offering David Lee what he wants?

A team source claims the Knicks will offer David Lee a four-year deal worth $32M, reports the New York Daily News.

Lee and his agent are asking for $10M per season.

Donnie Walsh is no dummy. Lee is an energy player, and those types of bigs don’t generally get the monster contracts that their back-to-the-basket counterparts do. Walsh knows that most players, given the choice, will want to play in New York, so he’s essentially daring another team to come with a strong enough offer to pry Lee away.

The Rockets are interested in Marcin Gortat.

Rockets.com reports Houston wants Marcin Gortat so bad that Rockets’ general manager Daryl Morey rang the door bell at Gortat’s Orlando-area home at 12:01 am this morning.

I like Morey’s style. While showing up at the house at midnight is a little stalker-ish, I think Gortat will let it slide. Morey even asked Rockets fans for help in recruiting Gortat by setting up an email account for them to send messages to show their support for the signing.

With Yao Ming out indefinitely, it makes sense that the Rockets would try to lock up another center. The Rockets are over the cap, so they can only offer a mid-level deal unless they can swing a sign-and-trade with Orlando.

Jazz not deterred — first to contact Paul Millsap.

General manager Kevin O’Connor called at 10 p.m., according to Millsap’s agent, DeAngelo Simmons.

Simmons called O’Connor a “class act” for the gesture, adding, “I think it was great that they called and expressed their interest. That’s good on their part.”

Simmons is seeking a contract in the $10M a year range for Millsap.

With Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur making the (semi-)surprising decisions to play another season in Utah, the Jazz are going to have to go well over the luxury tax threshold to re-sign Millsap. Utah is a small market team who usually has to overpay to convince free agents to come to (or to stay in) Salt Lake City. Already having Deron Williams locked up is a big bonus.

It will be interesting to see where Millsap lands now that Boozer and Okur are off the market.

Andre Miller wants to get paid.

“We feel, from his body of work, Philadelphia should obviously reflect that in an offer, in appreciation for what he has done or what he can do for them in the future. We know the team has financial commitments elsewhere, but we also know Andre has continued to produce and deliver.”

Everyone wants to get paid, but 33-year-old Miller is reportedly seeking a three-year deal worth $30 million. Anytime an agent starts talking about his client wanting “appreciation for what he has done,” it’s time to get a little worried. $10 million per season is way too much to pay Miller and his camp knows that the Sixers are probably the only team able to make that kind of an offer.

Pistons not willing to pony up for Boozer?

The Pistons would love to sign Carlos Boozer should he decide today to opt out of the final year of his contract with the Jazz and become a free agent.

However, if Boozer opts out, he would leave $12.6 million on the table in Utah. Thus, there is a good chance Boozer, as has been widely speculated, would look to start his next contract at $14 million or $15 million.

If that is the case, the Pistons most likely would walk away.

Just because a guy asks for a contract starting at $14-$15 million doesn’t mean that the Pistons have to give it to him. If Boozer opts out, the Pistons are his most likely landing spot, so they set the market, not him. If he wants an unreasonable deal, they shouldn’t walk away, they should make an offer and give him some time to find a better one. Chances are that he won’t, and he’ll end up taking Detroit’s deal.

Assuming Boozer does not dramatically reduce his asking price, the Pistons would go after Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva.

Villanueva will turn 25 in August and is coming off his best season. He averaged 16.2 points and 6.7 rebounds for the Bucks.

The Pistons could conceivably sign Gordon and Villanueva and still have money left over to pursue re-signing Antonio McDyess.

I estimate Gordon’s value to be about $9 million, though he has turned down bigger offers from the Bulls in the past. Villanueva will probably get lots of MLE offers, so the Pistons would likely have to trump those to convince him to play in Detroit instead of Cleveland (or for another contender). So if Detroit signs both, expect them to pay at least $15.5-$16.0 million combined. That doesn’t leave a lot of space for McDyess.

Jason Kidd is meeting with the Knicks. According to the article if they don’t get Kidd, they may go after Ramon Sessions.

Kidd doesn’t seem like a very good fit for a team in the beginning stages of a rebuilding process, though the Knicks hope to accelerate that process by signing one or two big-name free agents next summer. I’m sure Kidd is interested in the prospects of being a part of that team, but it’s unclear how much of a role money will play in his decision. Unless they work out a sign-and-trade with the Mavs, the Knicks can only offer Kidd the mid-level exception (~$5.8 million).

As for Sessions, I think the Bucks are positioned to match any offer up to the mid-level, and I think that’s the top end of his market right now. Milwaukee would be wise to lock him up before next summer’s free-for-all.

Hedo Turkoglu turned down a four-year extension worth $35 million after the Finals.

“It’s going to be hard, but it’s not out of the question, and it’s certainly not out of our focus,” Vander Weide said of re-signing Turkoglu. “We didn’t do (the Carter trade) thinking automatically that Turk won’t be here. What you try to do in this league is collect assets, but occasionally you have to move those assets for something that’s a better fit. We still see Turk as an asset, and we’ll try to get something done, but we won’t know for a week or so what kind of deal we’re up against.”

Four years is longer than I would want to go, but I think he’ll eventually regret passing that deal up. Stan Van Gundy and the Magic gave him the opportunity to thrive and it’s shortsighted to pass up the chance to play on a championship-caliber club for a few extra million. The Blazers, Raptors and Kings are said to be interested, but only Portland is a serious championship contender.

Meanwhile, the Magic may very well be ruining a good thing buy acquiring Carter and letting Turkoglu walk. It’s not wise to drastically alter the face of a team that just went to the NBA Finals. And it’s not like the Lakers revealed some glaring deficiencies in the Magic roster. Sure, L.A. won in five games, but two of those wins were overtime games that could have gone either way. A healthy Jameer Nelson might have made the difference.

Anderson Varejao is going to test the market.

The Cavs can go over the salary cap to sign Varejao, but he’s free to sign with any team. The Cavs will not be able to match any offer he gets.

Varejao was slated to make around $6.2 million next season, so there isn’t much risk here. Someone will give him a multi-year mid-level deal, so he should get the security of guaranteed money. There’s no guarantee that the Cavs will bring him back because it will be tough to play both he and Shaq at the same time.

Trevor Ariza’s agent, David Lee, says that the Lakers won’t get a hometown discount.

“It’s a question of how committed the Lakers are to competing again,” Lee said. “If everyone else stood still, you could see what happens when a piece is missing, but the reality is teams out there are positioning themselves to be competitive. When other teams are getting better, you can’t afford to rest on your laurels.”

“If you’re doing a one-year or two-year deal, you could have all sorts of conversations about the Artests or the Turkoglus,” Lee said, “but if you’re talking a five-year deal, Trevor’s going to be 28 and those guys are going to be 35.”

So if some other team offers Ariza a deal averaging $6.5 million per year and the Lakers make an offer that averages $6.3 million, Ariza won’t stay in L.A.? If he does, that would be the definition of a hometown discount. I think most players would agree to some sort of a discount to stay put (especially on a championship team in sunny Los Angeles), it’s just a matter of how much.

I think Ariza’s floor is the mid-level.

Andre Miller wants $30 million?

One source has said Miller will be seeking around $10 million a year, which is what he earned last season, and that he will more than likely desire a minimum contract length of three years.

Stefanski said a sign-and-trade was “a possibility.”

In layman’s terms: The Sixers are over the salary cap. If they do not re-sign Miller, they cannot offer his salary to another player on the free-agent market. Per NBA rules, the Sixers are allowed to re-sign their own guy.

The Blazers are supposedly interested, though I think $10 million per season is pretty steep for a 33 year-old, especially for a three-year deal. I estimated his value to be $6-$7 million per season, but I could see him signing for a bit more. My guess is that a lot of these guys are going to have to lower expectations once free agency begins.

Brandon Bass is hoping for the mid-level.

Bass will be seeking the mid-level exception. Because he has been with the Mavericks for two seasons, they can offer him any annual salary up to the exception without actually using their exception.

The mid-level is expected to be between $5 million and $5.5 million.

That seems fair, if a bit high. I pegged his value somewhere in the $4.5-$5.5 million per year range. I think Bass is a starter-quality power forward, and at 24, he has some upside.

Unless the guy is a major disappointment, a team will usually extend the qualifying offer required to make a player a restricted free agent. In the last year of their rookie contract, players are generally still affordable, so average to decent players usually end up as RFAs for a year before hitting unrestricted free agency the following summer.

I told you all of that to tell you this — the Bucks elected not to make the qualifying offer of $4.6 million to perimeter-oriented power forward Charlie Villanueva, who averaged 16.2 points and 6.7 rebounds last season. In 47 games as a starter, he averaged 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds. He can now sign with any team he likes and the Bucks will receive no compensation. I expect that he’ll garner at least a mid-level deal on the open market. His defense is definitely suspect, but he’s young (24) and can really put the ball in the hole.

I sure hope that general manager John Hammond explored all of his options before making this decision. It seems like Villanueva holds enough value to pry a first round pick or a prospect away from a contender (how about a J.J. Hickson-for-Villanueva swap with Cleveland?), but this decision, coupled with the Richard Jefferson giveaway last week indicate that the Bucks are in serious cost cutting mode.

The good news is that, with the move, Milwaukee should be better able to match offers for Ramon Sessions, who is a TSR fave.

Yesterday, I ranked the top unrestricted free agents of 2009, but now it’s time to look at this summer’s crop of restricted free agents (RFA). Teams can sign an RFA to an offer sheet, then his team has seven days to match that offer to retain him. If the player doesn’t sign an offer sheet and can’t come to terms on a new contract with his current team, then he will play for a year for the qualifying offer and then become an unrestricted free agent the following summer.

For each player, I’ll provide his position, age, Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and an estimate of what kind of contract he’s likely to sign. They’re ranked in order of total value, which is based on overall talent, age, injury history and cost.

1. Paul Millsap, PF (24)
PER: 18.71
In his third year, this former second round pick had the best season of his career. He averaged 13.5 points and 8.6 rebounds, while shooting better than 53% from the field. While Carlos Boozer was out in December and January, the Jazz got a preview of what this kid can do when he gets starter’s minutes. He was a 17/11 guy during those two months, but the Jazz only went 11-13 in games in which Millsap played during that span. His camp expects a deal similar to the one David Lee is asking for, so something in the $10 million per season range. Is he worth it? Probably. And from the sound of it, the Jazz plan on offering him a deal that will keep him from testing the market. If he does explore his options, it may pay off as the Thunder and Pistons are rumored to have interest.
Value: $9.5 – $10.5 million per year

2. David Lee, PF (26)
PER: 19.07
GM Donnie Walsh said that the Knicks’ picking Jordan Hill in this year’s draft has nothing to do with Lee, but the two play the same position, so of course it’s going to have an effect on how the Knicks and Lee each view their relationship. The other issue is that two of the Knicks’ targets in 2010 are Chris Bosh and Amare Stoudemire might also play the same position as Lee, though Mike D’Antoni would likely play either at center, allowing Lee to play power forward. He gets most of his points off the glass, so he’d be a good fit with either of those guys. The Knicks are projected to have about $35 million in cap space heading into the summer of 2010 and whatever deal they sign Lee to will cut into that. If they want to keep Lee and sign two big-name free agents, then they’re going to have to rid themselves of either Jared Jeffries or Eddy Curry prior to 2010. I like Lee, but he’s not a guy that you can give the ball to on the block and expect him to score, and that limits his value somewhat as a big man. The Thunder, Kings, Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons could all make a serious run at Lee, though anytime a team tries to poach a restricted free agent, it’s a delicate balance between offering him enough to convince the other team to let him go, while getting a reasonable deal at the same time.
Value: $9.0 – $10.0 million per year.

3. Ramon Sessions, PG (23)
PER: 17.65
Regular readers know that I love this guy. I’m a Bucks fan so I see more of their games than the average NBA fan. Trust me — Sessions is flying under the radar. Normally, I think the Bucks would match any offer up to the mid-level exception, but now that they drafted Brandon Jennings, they may deem it too much to pay for a backup point guard. But Sessions is no backup. Jennings is a few years away from being a dominant player, and there’s no guarantee he’ll develop, so the Bucks would be wise to keep the 23-year-old Sessions around. He had the 13th-highest PER amongst all point guards, and the 5th-highest amongst all point guards under the age of 26. Moreover, his +/- numbers are the best on the team for anyone who played more than 1200 minutes. I definitely think that’s worth the mid-level. The Grizzlies, Hawks and Blazers might be willing to pay more, who knows.
Value: $5.5 – $6.5 million per year

4. Marvin Williams, F (23)
PER: 16.04
Williams is just 23, and averaged around 14/6 the last two seasons. He really improved his three point shot last year, nailing about 35% of his attempts (after shooting a woeful 10% the year before). His PER took a nice jump from 14.74 to 16.04, so he’s definitely developing, but what’s his upside? He’s a pretty good defender and he’s really young. In fact, he’s the complete package, but isn’t necessarily destined to be a star. He’s slated to make $7.3 million this season, and should probably sign an extension in that ballpark. The Kings, Raptors, T-Wolves and Blazers could use some help at small forward, so there may be a market if he and the Hawks can’t come to terms.
Value: $7.0 – $8.0 million per year

5. Josh Childress, SF (26)
PER: 18.00 (2007-08 season)
Childress, who spent the last year playing in Greece, could return to the NBA as a restricted free agent, but the general consensus is that he’s going to stay overseas. He’s a very good all-around player, but doesn’t have the upside of his former teammate, Marvin Williams, so this summer he’s probably a MLE-type player.
Value: $5.5 – $6.5 million per year

6. Charlie Villanueva, F (24)
PER: 18.64
Charlie V performed admirably when Michael Redd and Andrew Bogut went out with injuries. In 47 games as a starting forward, he averaged 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds, and shot 35% from long range. He’s a perimeter oriented power forward — sort of a poor man’s Rashard Lewis. This makes him an appealing option for the Cavs, who could use a guy like Villanueva to match up with Orlando. In fact, due to fiscal constraints, the Bucks may not even make the qualifying offer of $4.6 million that’s required to make Villanueva a restricted free agent. If they don’t, they’ll lose him with no compensation. He doesn’t play much defense, so I think someone will offer him the mid-level.
Value: $5.5 – $6.5 million per year

7. Nate Robinson, G (25)
PER: 18.95
At just 5’9″, it’s not clear that Robinson is suited for a starting role. He’s a terrific scorer (17.1 ppg last season), but he shoots less than 44% from the field and less than 33% from long range. Even so, he had the 8th-highest PER in the league amongst point guards and set a career high with 4.1 assists per game. He’s not a pure point guard, which means he might not be long for New York — Mike D’Antoni likes a pass-first point guard running the show. Still, his terrific offensive skills and high energy make him a valuable reserve who can finish games given the right matchup. I think the MLE is a possibility.
Value: $5.0 – $6.0 million per year

8. Ray Felton, G (25)
PER: 13.80
Felton has been a 14/7 guy the last three seasons, but his shooting (41% from the field, 29% from long range) is fairly brutal. He’s a pretty good playmaker and his overall efficiency would benefit if he focused more on distribution than scoring. He spent much of last season playing out of position alongside D.J. Augustin in the backcourt, but given the right situation and the right guidance, he has the potential to be a very good point guard. His rep is bigger than his game right now, which might lead to a wake up call when it’s time to talk turkey.
Value: $4.5 – $5.5 million per year

9. Glen Davis, F (23)
PER: 10.77
Big Baby’s regular season efficiency was nothing to write home about but in 16 games a starter, he averaged 12.6 points and 5.6 rebounds, while shooting 48% from the field. With Kevin Garnett out for the postseason, David really stepped up his scoring, averaging 15.8 points and 5.6 rebounds in the playoffs. At 6’9″ and 289 lbs, I’d like to see better rebound numbers. He’s strong as an ox, but isn’t terribly quick and has short arms. (Hence, the nickname.) Is he a starter-quality power forward? Right now, I don’t think so. His regular season PER (10.77) is well below average, and one good run in the playoffs does not a career make. Davis peaked at the right time however, as some team will likely reward his efforts with a nice contract. I think it will fall below the MLE, but you never know.
Value: $4.0 – $5.0 million per year

10. Marcin Gortat, C (25)
PER: 17.04
Gortat is a beefy center, but doesn’t get much run playing behind Dwight Howard in Orlando. He’s pretty skilled in the post, though he gets most of his points on dunks since there is so much attention paid to the other Magic players. He’s a fringe starter at center, and that makes him a pretty valuable commodity. The Knicks are supposedly interested, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he signs a mid-level deal.
Value: $5.0 million – $6.0 million per year

Other notables: Channing Frye, Linas Kleiza, Leon Powe, Jarrett Jack, Shannon Brown, Hakim Warrick, Jamario Moon

Related content:

The Top Unrestricted Free Agents of 2009
Which NBA teams will have cap space this summer?
The Top 10 NBA Free Agents of 2010

Rajon Rondo is available. Wait, no he’s not.

While there has been talk around the NBA from several scouts that the Celtics have been shopping guard Rajon Rondo, he isn’t expected to be dealt. While unlikely, one Eastern Conference executive said the latest trade rumor included Rondo and forward Brian Scalabrine going to Memphis for guard Mike Conley and swingman Rudy Gay. On the flip side, one NBA GM said that he asked Celtics president Danny Ainge about Rondo and Ainge said he didn’t want to trade him.

Chad Ford had this to say…

I’m more persuaded by what several league sources told me about Doc Rivers’ relationship with Rondo. They say Rivers has told them Rondo is “impossible to coach” and “stubborn.” The worry is that if the Celtics give him a big contract extension next year, he’ll be even more unmanageable in the future. So the Celtics are trying to trade him now, while his trade value is high, to avoid a very difficult decision a year from now.

While it’s true that his stock has never been higher, the proof is in the pudding. If the Celtics can keep their core — Garnett, Pierce, Ray Ray and Rondo — healthy for the playoffs, they have a great shot at winning another title. Why break that up?

The Richard Jefferson trade was aimed at giving the Bucks more financial flexibility to re-sign Ramon Sessions and/or Charlie Villanueva. (Duh.)

The Cavs are said to be targeting Villanueva, a young and talented power forward, as an option to get younger on their front line depth. It was believed that the Bucks might be willing to let Villaneuva go because of their deep salary commitments. Now those have been eased.

If the Cavs are scheming to get by the Magic, Villanueva could really help. He’s not a great defender, but he’s similar to Rashard Lewis and would potentially be a pretty good matchup in another Cavs/Magic series. He’s also a terrific scorer who could ease some of the burden that LeBron is carrying. However, if the Bucks go with a point guard at #10, which is a strong possibility, there’s a good chance that they’ll re-sign Villanueva. If Jordan Hill slips to #10, or the Bucks go with someone like DeJuan Blair, it might be a signal that Charlie V is available.

Regardless, the Bucks would be nuts not to bring Ramon Sessions back, assuming he doesn’t get a crazy offer from another team.

T-Wolves looking to move up?

Minnesota acquired the No. 5 pick in a trade with Washington Tuesday. Now, there’s talk the Timberwolves will try to package that pick, along with their No. 6 pick, and send them to Memphis for the No. 2 overall selection.

Only Andy Katz said yesterday that the T-Wolves plan to keep both picks.

There has been some talk about Minnesota trading #5 and #18 to the Thunder for the #3 pick to select Ricky Rubio if he’s available. This would give OKC an opportunity to get another solid prospect at #18 (B.J. Mullens?) if they were interested in James Harden. If the first two picks are Blake Griffin and Hasheem Thabeet, then the Thunder could trade down to #5 knowing that Sacramento is unlikely to draft Harden at #4 since they already have a great shooting guard in Kevin Martin. The T-Wolves could then take Tyreke Evans or Stephen Curry (who could both play off guard) at #6.

Knicks and Thunder working on a deal?

The New York Knicks, who currently have the eighth overall pick, are trying to acquire the No. 3 pick from Oklahoma City. The Knicks are targeting Curry, whose dad, Dell, played for the Bucks during the 1998-99 season.

The Knicks can’t trade David Lee or Nate Robinson until July because any deals involving restricted free agents have to be part of a sign-and-trade, so it’s not clear how New York intends to move up.

Now is the time when major smoke is blowing, so says Ric Bucher.

This is usually when major smoke is blown. OKC now wants Rubio, Sac now off Rubio, Mem likes Tyreke. Teams rarely change course this late.

I have been noticing that teams are suddenly interested in players they weren’t all that interested in for the last few weeks. It makes sense. If OKC wants Harden but says it wants Rubio, then that encourages a team to trade up to #2 to take Rubio, leaving Harden at #3.