Tag: Philadelphia 76ers (Page 5 of 8)

NBA Rumors: Boozer, Sessions, Miller and Jerry Reinsdorf

Carlos Boozer wants to play in Miami.

The two-time NBA All-Star said Monday that he and the Jazz have “mutually agreed” to a trade, and it would be “a beautiful thing” if he wound up reunited with Olympic teammate Dwyane Wade on the Heat.

“We first came here for tax reasons and fell in love with it,” Boozer said, taking a break from his campers. “We love the palm trees, the laid-back attitude, the sun, quality of life. It’s like paradise here, and I would love to be part of the Heat. They’re a very good team, and I’m real close to some of the guys. Dwyane and I started to get close at the Athens Olympics in 2004, and I’d love to play on his team. Plus, I already live here. I’m just waiting to see what happens.”

The Heat have a few trade chips, but when considering Boozer, who is in the final year of his contract, the Jazz aren’t going to want to take only expiring salaries in a trade. They might as well keep him for the year and hope they can make some noise in the playoffs.

Udonis Haslem is a good player, but he’s in the final year of his deal. Would Miami be willing to part with Michael Beasley? Would Jerry Sloan even want him? Miami may need to get a third team involved to facilitate this deal.

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Toronto sends Kapono to Philly

Wake up! There’s been a trade in the NBA!

The Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers have completed the first trade of what is being widely forecast as an active month for NBA transactions by agreeing to swap sharpshooting guard Jason Kapono for rebounding specialist Reggie Evans.

The Sixers targeted Kapono — two-time winner of the NBA’s Long Distance Shootout at All-Star Weekend and a career 45.4 percent marksman from 3-point range — to address their well-chronicled lack of outside shooting since dealing Kyle Korver to Utah in December 2007.

The Raptors, meanwhile, potentially address two needs with the trade, adding Evans’ physicality to a roster short on that quality last season and creating a bit of extra salary-cap space for a crucial summer before Chris Bosh becomes an unrestricted free agent in July 2010.

Toronto will save about $1.2 million this season and $1.6 million next season due to the difference in the two players’ salaries. This will give the Raptors a little extra cap space to up the ante for a free agent or two over the next two summers.

Kapono is a career 45% three-point shooter and will bring a dimension to Philadelphia that was seriously lacking last season. Other than Donyell Marshall (who only played 7.6 minutes per game), the Sixers didn’t have a player shoot better than 35% from long range.

Wright withdraws name from Sixers coaching position

A day after Villanova head coach Jay Wright removed his name from consideration in becoming the next coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, add Chris Ford to the list.

Philly.com is reporting Sixers general manager Ed Stefanski has interviewed six candidates for the team’s vacant coaching position.

Wright said of his conversation with Stefanski:

“He is a longtime friend of mine whom I have great respect for and is someone I talk to often,” Wright said in a statement. “We had a lively conversation about the vision Ed has for the Sixers organization. As a lifelong Sixers fan, I was honored to be part of the process.”

Wright said he called Stefanski after the meeting and requested removal from consideration.

“I love Villanova and it is where I want to be,” Wright said.

Team sources have confirmed the five candidates in the mix are Eddie Jordan, Dwayne Casey, Kurt Rambis, Tom Thibodeau, with Ford’s interview being the last of the first phase in the selection process. Stefanski reiterated that there is no timetable for his selection, as he will continue conducting interviews, extensive research, and in-depth background checks before naming his choice.

Wild day of NBA action

– The Bulls beat the Celtics in a double-overtime thriller. Chicago almost squandered the win by allowing Ray Allen to get a wide open three at the end of regulation. The Bulls were down by five with two minutes to play in the first overtime, but fought back with some good defense and some clutch jumpers by John Salmons and Kirk Hinrich. Chicago jumped out to a lead in the second OT and held on for the win.

– The Bulls spread the scoring around with seven players in double figures. Rajon Rondo had his second triple-double of the series (25 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists), while Derrick Rose was one dime short of his own triple-double. The series is proving to be a great showcase of two of the best young point guards in the league.

– Looking at the box score, something strange jumped out. It says that the Celtics were -17 in the five minutes that Stephon Marbury was on the court. That’s mind-boggling.

– In the only snoozer of the day, LeBron James had 36 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in the Cavs’ 21-point victory over the (hapless) Pistons. Detroit got just eight points combined from Rip Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace, and were led by the unlikely duo of Antonio McDyess (26 points) and Will Bynum (22 points). I expect this will be Wallace’s last game in a Pistons uni.

– Hedo Turkoglu hit a huge three in the waning seconds of Game 4 of the Orlando/Philly series to give the Magic the win. Orlando seizes back control of the series and now it’s a best-of-three with two games in O-Town.

– The Rockets trailed by six heading into the fourth quarter, but locked the Blazers down defensively, allowing just 18 points in the final period. Shane Battier hit back-to-back threes, and Carl Landry followed up with a 20-footer to give the Rockets a four-point lead with 2:30 to play. Houston made enough free throws down the stretch to seal the win. The Rockets got a combined 38 points and 20 rebounds from Yao Ming and Luis Scola, and now have the Blazers on the ropes.

– Greg Oden continues his fouling ways. He had five fouls in 11 minutes tonight. In the series, he now has 19 fouls in 66 minutes. Wowsers.

Couch Potato Alert: 4/24

The Detroit Lions are now on the clock.

Well, they have been on the clock since the first week of preseason. The unofficial kickoff to the upcoming football season is here, as the 2009 NFL Draft will be the highlight event of the weekend. Your mock draft is due prior to the start of the draft. So be sure to cram in every player’s 40 yard time and wonderlic score during an all-night study session tonight. And if you want to play a good drinking game on Saturday, take a sip when Mel Kiper says “that was a value pick” or “he was the best player available.” I guarantee you will pass out halfway through the first round.

All times ET…

NFL
Sat, 4 PM: 2009 NFL Draft (ESPN/ESPN2/NFL Network)
Sun, 10 AM: 2009 NFL Draft (ESPN/NFL Network)

NBA Playoffs
Fri, 7 PM: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Detroit Pistons (ESPN)
Fri, 8 PM: Orlando Magic @ Philadelphia 76ers (ESPN2)
Fri, 9:30 PM: Portland Trail Blazers @ Houston Rockets (ESPN)
Sat, 1 PM: Denver Nuggets @ New Orleans Hornets (ESPN)
Sat, 4 PM: San Antonio Spurs @ Dallas Mavericks (TNT)
Sat, 6:30 PM: Atlanta Hawks @ Miami Heat (TNT)
Sat, 9 PM: Los Angeles Lakers @ Utah Jazz (ESPN)
Sun, 1 PM: Boston Celtics @ Chicago Bulls (ABC)
Sun, 3:30 PM: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Detroit Pistons (ABC)
Sun, 6:30 PM: Orlando Magic @ Philadelphia 76ers (TNT)
Sun, 9 PM: Portland Trail Blazers @ Houston Rockets (TNT)

NHL Playoffs
Fri, 7 PM: New York Rangers @ Washington Capitals (Versus)
Sat, 1 PM: Pittsburgh Penguins @ Philadelphia Flyers (NBC)
Sat, 10 PM: Anaheim Ducks @ San Jose Sharks (Versus)
Sun, 2 PM: Washington Capitals @ New York Rangers*if necessary (NBC)
Sun, TBD: New Jersey Devils @ Carolina Hurricanes (Versus)

MLB
Sat, 4:10PM: New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox (Fox)
Sun., 12 PM: Philadelphia Phillies @ Florida Marlins (TBS)
Sun., 8 PM: New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox (ESPN)

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