Category: NBA (Page 532 of 595)

In a strange move, John Salmons cancelled a sign-and-trade that would have sent him to the Toronto Raptors.

“Upon reviewing the basketball situation in Toronto, John decided it’s not the best fit for him,” Salmons’ agent, Joel Bell, said a statement released Friday. “In a very stressful and tough decision, he decided he could not accept the opportunity to play for the Raptors, even though he was excited about the prospect of being in Toronto.”

Huh?

I love it when agents say something but say nothing at the same time. What happened here? It appeared that Salmons would have had the opportunity to start at guard for a team that should be on the rise, with new GM Bryan Colangelo leading the way. Instead, he’s without a contract for next season after turning down an offer from the Suns and having his qualifying offer by the Sixers rescinded earlier in the week. He would be a valuable addition to any team in need of a complimentary swingman. He proved he was able to pick up his play, scoring well in games that Allen Iverson missed due to injury.

The Suns signed Marcus Banks to a 5-year/$21 M deal to back up Steve Nash at point guard. This is a great signing for Phoenix, who have an up-and-coming guard to take over for Nash once he retires, which is probably why Banks agreed to a backup role. After the All-Star break, he averaged 12.2 ppg and 5.2 apg, while shooting 47% from the field.

It looks like Alonzo Mourning is set to re-sign with the Heat for another season. It must be tempting to walk away after winning the title, but maybe he has dynasty on his mind. Mourning is still playing at a high level and was one of the most efficient centers last season…Flip Murray has agreed to sign with the Pistons for two years and $3.6 M. The signing gives Detroit the appearance of a bench…Allen Iverson says that he wants to stay with the Sixers, but only if they still want him. Considering all the trade rumors surrounding the tumultuous guard, it doesn’t appear that they do…When Peja Stojakovic agreed to sign with the Hornets, it looked like the Pacers would not get any compensation for trading away Ron Artest. But Indiana convinced the Hornets (with an undisclosed cash payment) to trade a $7.5 M trade exception, which may allow the team to complete a sign-and-trade for Al Harrington.

LeBron James really started a trend. Carmelo Anthony considered the shorter deal that James signed, but then decided to take the max. Dwayne Wade originally agreed to the max, but then signed the shorter deal. And now Chris Bosh is expected to sign a three-year deal with a player option for a fourth year. Bosh has never been completely sold on the possibilities of winning a title in Toronto, but with the arrival of GM Bryan Colangelo, there is reason for optimism. It appears that Bosh is willing to give Colangelo three years to turn things around, making the power forward just 25 years-old when his contract would be up (assuming he didn’t take the player option for the fourth year). He’d still be in the prime of his career and he’d be able to sign a huge contract with Toronto or sign a long deal with a team in a better position to win a title. It was a savvy move by James (and Wade and Bosh), but there is an element of risk involved. If one of these players has a career-ending injury during the shorter deal, they would have left all that extra money on the table. In essence, they are gambling that they’ll be healthy when that next contract rolls around, so that they can cash in. I’ll bet their agents have made a few calls to Lloyds of London over the last week or so…The Suns want a decision today from John Salmons, who is deciding between Phoenix and Toronto. Maybe he’s waiting to hear about Bosh’s contract before committing to Toronto. He has to decide if he wants to come off the bench for a winner or potentially start for a team that seems to be on the rise…The rumors are still swirling about the Celtics’ persistent interest in Allen Iverson, but the Sixers apparently have a lot of options in the marketplace, which makes sense considering that AI’s contract is pretty reasonable for what he brings to the table…Cleveland’s negotiations with Drew Gooden aren’t going well; the numbers are just too far apart. Gooden is using the Nene deal as a benchmark, and it is highly unlikely that the Cavs will agree to give the forward a salary averaging $10 M a year…The Wolves finally made an offer to Marcus Banks, but I’m not sure he’s going to want to back up Mike James in Minnesota after playing pretty well as their starter last season. Maybe the Rockets, one of the teams that James spurned, would be a good fit for Banks.