Official 2008 Summer Free Agency Thread

[Dirkenstien]

I'd think Detroit could get more for Billups.


I wouldn't mind the trade, though.

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by dalmations202

Just a FYI,
I am expecting Carlisle to turn the Mavs into Detroit South.

Terry in the Rip role, Kidd in the Billups, JHo in the Prince role, Dirk in the RWallace, and Diop in the Big Ben role.

It just looks too much like that is where the Mavs are heading.

This would work out good if Kidd was Mr.Bigshot or anywhere near that and JET was 4/5 inches taller. Then also if JHO could defend and catch lobs like Prince and Dirk was aggressive on the blocks like Sheed..

[dalmations202]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

This would work out good if Kidd was Mr.Bigshot or anywhere near that and JET was 4/5 inches taller. Then also if JHO could defend and catch lobs like Prince and Dirk was aggressive on the blocks like Sheed..

If they get Artest without giving up JHo, then you have Terry hitting the big shots, Artest playing Prince, and JHo is 4-5 inches taller than Terry at the SG. Kidd on the bench.....(huh)

I think this is where they are trying to get presently.

Of course, I wish they would have tried to be the 80's Celtics instead of the Pistons, but hey......maybe that was impossible to acquire.

[nikeball]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/HeadlineSt...BA#STORY_10463

Dallas Offered Stackhouse for Artest?

Posted: 7/17/2008 2:57:00 AM
Source: Sacramento Bee

According to a source close to Dallas, the Mavs have offered Brandon Bass and Jerry Stackhouse for the Kings small forward. The chatter was first reported by Hoopsworld here, but I've independently confirmed the pieces in the offer. Stackhouse has a contract that's almost identical to Artest's ($7.4 million, expiring for Artest; $7 million expiring for Stackhouse), and Bass is a young beast of a big man who comes at the bargain price of $826,269 (also expiring). I can't even come close to seeing Kings basketball president Geoff Petrie doing this deal, not unless Josh Howard is involved.

And from what I'm told, that's not going to happen. As the Mavs see it, the perceived risk of taking Artest is acceptable so long as the price of getting him is Bass and Stackhouse. Lose Howard to get Artest, though, and the gamble is too great. As is always the case, though, things could change.

As far as the continuing frontrunners in the Artest sweepstakes, I've been told by a source close to the Lakers that there are no ongoing discussions. The next relevant date remains Friday, when the Lakers' deadline to match Ronny Turiaf's offer sheet passes. It's at that point the Lakers may decide to take on Kenny Thomas to fill Turiaf's old role or quite possibly engage a third team in the deal so as to avoid his contract.

[nikeball]

if the above happens...i would wet my pants.

[alby]

Sacramento is not that dumb. But good initial offer from Dallas, at least we didn't give them 5 1st rounders.

[me770706]

azubuike is going to the clippers

[alby]

Good move for LA. most of their cap got used up in the Camby deal so this was a solid move. Azubuike is very underrated, he plays much bigger than he is. With that being said, the Warriors and the Clippers will be hovering around .500 all year IMHO.

[me770706]

looks like cj miles is headed to okc

[MavsFanFinley]

The Suns make a nice move by signing Matt Barnes to the minimum.

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns...720barnes.html

Suns near deal with Barnes

25 commentsby Doug Haller - Jul. 20, 2008 09:09 PM
The Arizona Republic

Free-agent forward 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.

Barnes, 28, spent the last two seasons mostly in a reserve role with the Golden State Warriors. He collected a career-best 9.8 points and 4.6 rebounds in 2007. Last year, he averaged 6.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 19.4 minutes.

General Manager Steve Kerr and coach Terry Porter talked with Barnes by phone last week from Las Vegas, where the Suns were in NBA Summer League action. In his seventh season, Barnes is expected to make $1.2 million, but the Suns will pay only $797,000. The rest will come from a league fund.

Barnes, 6-foot-7 and 226 pounds, also has played for Philadelphia, New York, Sacramento and the Clippers since his college days at UCLA. He has averaged 6.1 points over his career, shooting 32 percent from 3-point range.

Once Barnes signs, the Suns still will need to sign two more players to reach the 13-man roster minimum. Finding a backup for point guard Steve Nash remains a priority. Reports surfaced last week that second-round draft pick Goran Dragic had decided to stay in Europe, but a decision hasn't been made.

[BGMaverick9]

For the minimum, you can't get mad at that signing if you're Phoenix.

[EricaLubarsky]

wow that is a steal. Barnes is a stud-- Marion light.

[LonghornDub]

Good signing for the minimum, but Barnes is a scrub, sans his otherworldly performances against the 67-win Mavericks.

[quietsavant]

Mark my word, with a PG like Steve Nash, this kid will come into his own as a 7th or 8th man on that team.

[alby]

For the vet's min, that is a good pick up. Anything more than that wouldn't be worth it because the guy is a scrub. I wonder how he feels knowing that his ex-teammate, Pietrus, got the full MLE in Orlando lol.

---

Also, Dooling going to the Nets for 3 million a year.

[Bayliss]

Boston Nachbar signed with Dynamo Moscow. Primo Bresec signed with a Euro club as well.

[jthig32]

Link

Report: Josh Childress weighing Greek offer

Sporting News staff reports


Free agent forward Josh Childress is weighing a three-year, $20 million offer from Olympiakos, a Greek basketball team, according to an online report.
Yahoo is reporting Childress flew to Greece late on Sunday to visit with Olympiakos officials because he is "so flustered with the Hawks' refusal to make a sign-and-trade deal."

"Unless he just gets there and doesn't like it at all, I think he's going to go," a league source told Yahoo. A source also told the site that there's a "better than 50-50 chance" he'll sign with the Greek team and spurn the NBA.
Only the Grizzlies have more than a mid-level exception available and their lack of activity on the free-agent market makes it clear they will not be spending on Childress or any other significant remaining free agents.
As part of a dynamic, young core for the Hawks, Childress averaged 11.8 points and 4.9 rebounds during the 2007-08 season.

[BGMaverick9]

That is such a stunning move, IMO. Atlanta is just looking so silly in the process.

[MavsX]

atl sucks

[MavsFanFinley]

Atlanta doesn't seem to be in any hurry to sign Childress or Smith. It doesn't sound like they're interested in a s/t either.

[alby]

That's what happens when the ownership is in disarray. Makes you appreciate what we have here...






...with the Dallas Cowboys

[BGMaverick9]

Originally Posted by MavsFanFinley

Atlanta doesn't seem to be in any hurry to sign Childress or Smith. It doesn't sound like they're interested in a s/t either.

They know they can sit and wait because there are only a very small handful of teams that actually have money. They don't want to set the market higher than what it should be. There are still good names out there that are restricted and waiting to get paid. It sucks for the players, and one of them (Childress) is taking the issue into his own hands. I'm still very surprised by that potential move going to Europe. It'll be a major pie in the face move for ATL.

[alby]

The more money that is pumping into the European leagues, more and more quality players will be leaving the NBA for bigger paydays across the pond. This is why Emperor Stern is trying to tap into the market before it is too late. I actually want a few powerful basketball leagues around the world instead of just one; something similar to club soccer where they have league championships, etc. It'll be like having the Olympics every single year.

[BGMaverick9]

ATL fans seems pretty ready to face the fact that he'll probably leave and they don't blame him.

[BGMaverick9]

per yahoo sports:
LAS VEGAS – Unless the Chicago Bulls can reach an agreement for a contract extension with restricted free agent Luol Deng before he departs to join the Great Britain national team in two weeks, he will end talks and tell management that he plans to leave the organization as a free agent next summer, a source close to Deng told Yahoo! Sports.

It looks like those restricted guys are just flat out tired of waiting.

[BGMaverick9]

What happened to Bonzi Wells? Is he going to be a minimum contract player too?

[alby]

thanks BG for keeping it in the thread

[MavsFanFinley]

No link yet but the Spurs have called a 3 pm news conference to announce the resigning of Kurt Thomas.

Not really a surprise as they said repeatedly they'd like to keep him but the Lakers were showing a strong interest.

[alby]

Next big move in the Lone Star State IMO is where Landry is going to end up.

[SMC0007]

With all the players going to Euro teams etc.. Anyone else forsee the Salary cap going up in a cpl years?

[purplefrog]

PG Marcus Williams to the Warriors....

Report: Nets trade Marcus Williams to Warriors
Posted: July 22, 2008
Sporting News staff reports

New Jersey Nets point guard Marcus Williams is being traded to the Golden State Warriors for a future first-round draft pick, the New York Post reports.

The pick is lottery protected for 2011, according to the newspaper, so the Nets get it if the Warriors reach the playoffs. It is also protected in 2012 and 2013. If the pick is not conveyed by 2013, the Nets get second-round picks in 2013 and 2015.

Williams was the backup to Devin Harris, and his status with the team became tenuous after the team began courting Keyon Dooling. Williams said earlier that he would fight for minutes if Dooling joined the Nets.

The Nets acquired Dooling from the Orlando Magic in a sign-and-trade deal Monday. In exchange for Dooling, the Nets gave the Magic cash and the trade exception they received when they sent Jason Kidd to the Dallas Mavericks.

Williams' development with the Nets was hindered last season when he suffered a broken foot shortly before training camp. He played in 53 games for the Nets last season, starting only seven.

[AxdemxO]

Wow I think this is Huge. Williams is a big guard and I think can play well alongside Ellis. With injuries he hasnt really had the chance to show what he can do, but we have seen flashes. Always been a fan of the guy and I think the Warriors just made a great move.

[alby]

Devin Harris is probably breathing a sigh of relief because he was losing tons of minutes to Marcus at the end of last year.

[MavsFanFinley]

A solid move by Golden State. Very nice move for them.

[chumdawg]

Damnit, horse!

[purplefrog]

Originally Posted by BGMaverick9

per yahoo sports:
LAS VEGAS – Unless the Chicago Bulls can reach an agreement for a contract extension with restricted free agent Luol Deng before he departs to join the Great Britain national team in two weeks, he will end talks and tell management that he plans to leave the organization as a free agent next summer, a source close to Deng told Yahoo! Sports.

It looks like those restricted guys are just flat out tired of waiting.

I think its about time for Del Harris to convince the Bulls FO to trade Deng to the Mavs for Stack, Eddie Jones and and a first round pick in the 2020 draft. That sounds about as fair as the Gasol trade. Deng is such a troublemaker... he should be traded to Dallas immediately!

[MavsFanFinley]

Warriors make another nice signing. This time in the form or Maurice Evans. 3 years/ $6.4 million deal. They obviously are letting the Clippers keep Azubuike.

http://www.mercurynews.com/sports/ci_9969946

Report: Warriors sign forward Maurice Evans to three-year deal

Bay Area News Group
Article Launched: 07/23/2008 07:25:45 AM PDT

On the heels of adding point guard Marcus Williams, the Warriors are now reportedly adding free agent forward Maurice Evans, who played for both the Lakers and Magic last season.

The Warriors have signed Evans to a three-year, $6.4 million deal, according to the Riverside Press-Enterprise. By adding Evans, it means the Warriors would not match the three-year, $9 million contract restricted free agent Kelenna Azubuike signed with the Los Angeles Clippers last week. The Warriors had until Friday to match Azubuike's deal, but Evans represents a cheaper - and perhaps better - alternative.

In Evans, the Warriors are getting an athletic swingman who's known as a solid defender and good three-point shooter (39 percent last season). The 6-foot-5 Evans averaged 9.3 points in 68 games for Orlando last season. He came to Orlando with Brian Cook in a November trade with the Los Angeles Lakers that sent Trevor Ariza to Southern California.

Evans, 29, has played five seasons in the NBA, including stops in Detroit and Sacramento.

[alby]

They have a lot of athletes on that team. But who plays the three? Maggette or SJax? If they are both starting, who plays the one?

So this is what I came up with:

Monta/Marcus/Marco
Maggette/Evans/CJ
Jackson/Randolph
Harrington/Randolph/Wright
Biedrins/Turiaf

Is this pretty close?

IMO, I think they have to move either Jackson or Harrington for a quality big man.
a) to produce now because they are seriously lacking in muscle
b) more importantly, to help develop Randolph/Wright/Biedrins

[MavsFanFinley]

Harrington made some noises about wanting to be traded as he wasn't happy with his role last year. We'll see if the Warriors do so or not. I think he can play some center too if they fail to trade him. Otherwise, I think your depth chart looks about right.

[MavsFanFinley]

Utah and Clippers make a small deal. Seems fair for both sides.

http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_ar...brevin_knight/

Utah Acquires Brevin Knight

Jul 23, 2008 6:03 PM EST

The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has acquired veteran point guard Brevin Knight from the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for guard Jason Hart. Originally selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round (16th overall pick) of the 1997 NBA Draft, Knight (5-10, 170, Stanford) has appeared in 655 career regular season games (423 starts) over 11 NBA seasons with Cleveland, Atlanta, Memphis, Phoenix, Washington, Milwaukee, Charlotte and the Clippers, owning career averages of 7.9 points, 6.6 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.77 steals per game. He appeared in 74 games (39 starts) this past season with the Clippers, averaging 4.6 points, 4.4 assists and 1.35 steals in 22.6 minutes. Knight ranked second in the NBA in assists-per-turnover (4.62), and third in steals per turnover (2.87).