Tag: 2010 NBA free agents (Page 40 of 54)

      Houston’s pitch to Chris Bosh

      May 4, 2010 /

      Last Friday, Chris Bosh used his Twitter page to ask his fans where he should play and why. Some see the move as harmless, while others think he’s out of line for baiting his fans like that. The truth is probably somewhere in between. With the playoffs in full swing — and Bosh sitting at home — I suspect he was missing the limelight a little bit and needed the ego boost.

      Regardless, the move confirms that Bosh is seriously considering changing zip codes this summer and Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle suggests that the Rockets can put together one hell of a pitch for the native Texan.

      Chris Bosh will open his front door at 12:01 a.m. July 1 and see a smiling Daryl Morey standing between Hakeem Olajuwon and Yao Ming.

      How’s that for a first impression?

      Just to be clear, Justice doesn’t know that this is the plan, but if it is, that would be a pretty serious pitch. While most of the other teams with cap space — Miami, New York, Chicago, in particular — will be chasing after LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, Houston may be the only team that has Bosh at the top of its list. And that may go a long way with Bosh, who has said in the past that he is the kind of player a franchise can build around.

      The presence of Olajuwon and Yao would give a glimpse of the franchise’s past and potential future. Olajuwon won back-to-back titles in the ’90s while Yao is the big center that Bosh has always wanted to play with. (Remember, he thinks of himself as a power forward, not a center.)

      The issue with the Rockets is that they don’t have any cap space and can’t sign Bosh outright. But if they can convince him to come to Houston, then the Rockets can then work out a deal with Toronto that is mutually beneficial. Marc Stein has a few ideas:

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      Does LeBron’s MVP ceremony hold clues to his future?

      May 3, 2010 /

      Chris Broussard thinks so…

      “I love Akron to death,” James said. “Since I was a little kid, I always said I was going to find a way to put this city on the map. And I’m going to continue to do that.”

      As James spoke after receiving his second straight MVP award Sunday at the University of Akron, you couldn’t help but think to yourself: He ain’t leaving.

      Of course, James didn’t go that far. He kept his wiggle room as the greatest prize in the greatest free-agent class in NBA history by saying, “No matter what might be ahead for me, this will always be my home.”

      But everything else about the afternoon said he’s staying with the Cleveland Cavaliers. After all, the overriding theme of the event was loyalty — to his mom, to his family, to his high school teammates, to his city and to his team. Now in his seventh year with the Cavs, James even invited his teammates onto the stage, where they mugged and posed for pictures while sharing inside jokes.

      “I don’t have any special insight into this,” said Keith Dambrot, James’ first high school coach and now the head coach at Akron. “But if I had to, I’d bet my house that he stays. Why else would you do things like this?”

      There’s more than just 40 miles separating Akron and Cleveland. When asked last summer about his loyalty to Cleveland, James had this to say:

      “My loyalty is to Akron. I’m looking forward to this upcoming season, but I’m looking forward to the summer of 2010, too, to see what may happen. No matter what happens that summer, you know, I’m still here. I’ve got a nice big house here that I’m always coming back to. You know, I love this city and I’ll always give back to this city no matter what my profession; if it takes me somewhere else.”

      James has been careful to distinguish his hometown from the city where he works, and he has always left for the possibility that he’ll change teams this summer, even at his loyalty-themed MVP event.

      I don’t think Cleveland’s proximity to Akron would trump another early postseason exit for the Cavs, but we may never know for sure.


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      Where do the Mavs go from here?

      April 30, 2010 /

      In the Daily Dime, Marc Stein discusses the short-term future of the Dallas Mavericks after their first round loss last night to the Spurs.

      Mavs owner Mark Cuban didn’t trade for Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood in February, taking on millions in extra salary and luxury tax in the process, to make such a swift return to the early playoff misery inflicted by Golden State in 2007. Dallas became the first No. 1 seed in league history to lose a best-of-seven series in the first round that year … and just became the first No. 2 to lose in Round 1 since the NBA went to a best-of-seven format in 2003.

      “We’re a failure,” Mavericks guard Jason Terry said. “We failed. There’s no other word but failure. That’s how we feel right now.”

      Cuban himself acknowledged after the Mavs’ Game 1 triumph that the F word — yes, failure — was going to be the reaction all over town and all over the league “if we don’t win a championship.”

      “We’ve got a great base,” Cuban said. “We’ll have a chance to work with each other [in training camp before next season]. You could see some of the uneasiness because we haven’t had a full season to play together, and that showed a few times, but we’ll pull all the pieces together and we’ll go at ’em again next year.”

      Cuban’s “we’ve got a great base” comment implies that he’s not planning to blow up the roster. Dirk Nowitzki, however, is suddenly a candidate to join an already stellar free agent class this summer, though it’s still far more likely that he’ll re-up.

      But back to Cuban — the whole we-haven’t-had-enough-time-to-gel line of reasoning is starting to wear thin. Butler and Haywood had 27 games to work the kinks out — how long does it take to develop the necessary chemistry? That’s an entire season for most college and high school teams, and most of them gel just fine. Chemistry can develop over time, but typically speaking, it’s either there or it’s not.

      Complicating matters is Cuban’s tendency to drastically alter his roster. In February of 2008, he swapped Devin Harris and two first round picks for Jason Kidd. Last summer, he signed Shawn Marion. And this February, he pulled the trigger on the Butler/Haywood trade. Who’s to say that he’ll be able to control himself when a few more aging, expensive stars become available at the next trade deadline?

      As long as Nowitzki is around, the Mavs will be competitive. If he returns to a team that already has Butler, Kidd, Marion, Jason Terry and Roddy Beaubois, Dallas will once again win 50 games and make the postseason. But with the way that they were worked over by an aging Spurs team, does anyone really think the Mavs will make another Finals appearance anytime soon?

      It has to be frustrating to let a title slip through your fingers in 2006 and then spend the next three or four years trying to get back to that level. Under the current circumstances, the Mavs seem destined to be a Western Conference also-ran. I don’t blame Cuban for trying to build on what he has, but unless there’s a major infusion of talent — I’m talking a top 10 or 15 player acquired via sign-and-trade — it doesn’t look like the Mavs are a real threat to make the Finals.

      That’s the nice thing about knowing that you’re rebuilding. There are no delusions of grandeur.

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      Beasley not long for Miami?

      April 29, 2010 /

      Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel had this to say about Michael Beasley’s future in Miami:

      If Wade returns, then Beasley never will get to move closer to the leading-man role he so craves.

      Considering his final act this season was being benched for the second half of Tuesday’s series-ending loss to the Celtics, it would appear that a parting would be in the best interest of all parties.

      While Beasley should be able to produce breakout numbers on a team less caught up in pick-and-roll offense and defensive efficiency, his value is such that the best net gain in a deal for the Heat could be additional cap space.

      Trying to continue to make this work could be very difficult for the Heat, especially if Erik Spoelstra is back as coach.

      I’m not exactly sure why everyone is so down on Beasley. As John Hollinger put it, “Beasley produced the most successful disappointing rookie season ever, earning criticism for much of the year despite averaging 22.4 points per 40 minutes and posting a 17.23 PER.” His PER this season (16.16) was #28 amongst power forwards, but not a deal breaker given his rookie PER and the fact that he’s a 21-year-old kid coming out of rehab (for what, we do not know).

      He’s a very good scorer, and probably needs to go to a bad offensive team where he can take a lot of shots. He has a poor reputation defensively, and would need to go somewhere where either a) defense doesn’t matter all that much, or b) there’s a strong enough defensive culture to offset his lack of desire on that end of the court. He’s enough of a competitor that I think he can at least get to the point where he’s not hurting his team defensively.

      The bottom line is that he’s not fitting in with the Heat so he could probably be had for next to nothing this summer. It will be interesting to see where he lands.


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      Joe Johnson leaving if Hawks lose?

      April 29, 2010 /

      In a recent chat, John Hollinger had this to say about the chances of Johnson returning to Atlanta if the Hawks were to lose the series to the Bucks.

      Is Joe Johnson gone if the Hawks lose?
      John Hollinger: I suspect so, just because it makes it so much harder for Atlanta to sell its management on operating at the tax line when the club is losing so much dough.

      The series is a long way from over, but it’s an interesting question to ponder. Hollinger takes it from the angle of ownership not wanting to pony up for Johnson when the Hawks can’t even beat a Milwaukee Bucks team that is missing its best player.

      That’s a legitimate question, but Johnson is a top five free agent this summer, do the Hawks really just let him walk? He was outplayed by John Salmons in Game 5, so he may need to come up big in Game 6 and lead the Hawks to a series win if he hopes to get a max offer from Atlanta.

      The other perspective on this question is from Johnson’s point of view. Would he want to stay with a team that couldn’t get out of the first round despite suspect opposition? He may be ready for a fresh start after a semi-frustrating few years in Atlanta.

      If the Hawks do indeed lose the series, it will be a big disappointment for a franchise and a fan base that was expecting at least an appearance in the Eastern Conference semis, maybe even an upset of the Magic an appearance in the conference finals. Given the turmoil surrounding the franchise’s ownership in recent seasons, it wouldn’t be surprising if there’s a serious shakeup in the roster if the Hawks do exit the postseason in the first round.


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