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ezzzp wrote:According to Meyers, no finals and Durant is gone...and he would want his own team...Joel Meyers elevates Above The Rim stating that Kevin Durant will leave Oklahoma City if they don't make the NBA Finals, according to his sources. Also, the Golden State Warriors will not be Durant's #1 choice.
https://soundcloud.com/siriusxmnba/according-to-sources-joel-meyers-says-durant-will-leave-thunder-if-they-dont-make-nba-finals
shinoff2183 wrote:rcklsscognition wrote:Such a large part of me wishes Oladipo was good enough to be our PG.
I mean he has tolled it back recently, I honestly dont think it would be a long shot. Payton and dipo are hit or miss some nights. Id prefer dipos on nights to paytons.
Kevin Durant on the Finals-or-bust report from yesterday: “You put too much pressure on everybody if you say something like that. Especially my teammates and the organization. They don’t deserve that. So I never said said, I never thought said. But like I said I can’t control rumors from people who sit behind their desk every day and think of stuff to say, I’m worrying about coming out here every day and staying healthy and trying to battle against the best players in the world while rumors are getting written up about whatever, and I have no control over it. That’s their job and my job is to play ball. So I never said that.”
Bismack Biyombo has been a solid addition to the Raptors this season and he is providing better value than Amir Johnson, who departed as a free agent this past offseason, is for the Celtics, Ben Golliver of SI.com opines. Johnson is earning $12MM this season in Boston while Biyombo is due $2.814MM from the Raptors.
Biyombo, meanwhile, has been found money. After Charlotte gave up on him following the completion of his rookie deal, Biyombo has been the backline anchor for all of Toronto’s highest-performing defensive units. A long-armed shot-blocker who often looked out of sync or out of position earlier in his career, Biyombo has achieved a better level of reliability this season.
Called upon to start when Valanciunas was lost to a hand injury, Biyombo helped Toronto go 11–7 during that critical stretch. If Casey decides he needs to load up on defense late in games come May, Biyombo (98.1 defensive rating) looks like a far superior option to Valanciunas (104.5 defensive rating). Not bad for a footnote signing who is earning a fraction of what Amir Johnson, last year’s frontcourt defensive lynchpin, is pulling down in Boston. SI
Sources close to (Ryan) Anderson have said that the power forward is strongly considering a change of scenery and a fresh start with a new team, and there will be a long list of suitors trying to sign the stretch-four.
Reports have indicated that Anderson will command a ton of money this summer – perhaps even a maximum contract – since teams are increasingly looking for big men who can shoot the three ball and rebound.
@stevekylerNBA I'm really in love with the idea of the Knicks going hard at @EvanFourmizz Evan Fournier.What do u think he fetches in FA? Assuming A LOT
EAS Law wrote:Wow, so Ryan Anderson Max... and even the notion that the Magic will Max Fournier... what is going on in the world?
If LeBron James can return to Cleveland and be embraced by the fans, the possibility exists that the same could happen for Dwight Howard in Orlando, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel posits.
The scribe notes that a reunion, while improbable, has the potential to benefit both sides. Returning to a star-hungry Magic squad would allow Howard to be the primary option once again on offense, while Orlando would land itself an upper-tier player who could help attract other free agents, Schmitz adds. Howard’s firing of agent Dan Fegan could also help make a reunion happen, as Fegan’s relationship with the team was a contentious one, Schmitz also notes. The Rockets center is widely expected to turn down his player option and hit free agency this summer.
ezzzp wrote:@stevekylerNBA I'm really in love with the idea of the Knicks going hard at @EvanFourmizz Evan Fournier.What do u think he fetches in FA? Assuming A LOT
[tweet]https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/707364638506090496[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/707365093835603968[/tweet]
ezzzp wrote:If LeBron James can return to Cleveland and be embraced by the fans, the possibility exists that the same could happen for Dwight Howard in Orlando, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel posits.
The scribe notes that a reunion, while improbable, has the potential to benefit both sides. Returning to a star-hungry Magic squad would allow Howard to be the primary option once again on offense, while Orlando would land itself an upper-tier player who could help attract other free agents, Schmitz adds. Howard’s firing of agent Dan Fegan could also help make a reunion happen, as Fegan’s relationship with the team was a contentious one, Schmitz also notes. The Rockets center is widely expected to turn down his player option and hit free agency this summer.
Brian Schmitz + Hoops Rumors
OrlandoDream wrote:ezzzp wrote:@stevekylerNBA I'm really in love with the idea of the Knicks going hard at @EvanFourmizz Evan Fournier.What do u think he fetches in FA? Assuming A LOT
[tweet]https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/707364638506090496[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/707365093835603968[/tweet]
Max Fournier? No thank you. If we are willing to use that much $ for a SF, then take a gamble and sign Parsons or Batum. I would like to keep Fournier but for the right price. He is useful to us but is replaceable. You could even make the argument that we could be better without him. I just dont see Mario emerging and AG becoming our #1 option as long as Fournier is here. Him and Dipo think they are the two best scoring players on this team and that the offense should go through them. Thats not how the rest of us see it.
Patrick1978 wrote:OrlandoDream wrote:ezzzp wrote:
[tweet]https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/707364638506090496[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/707365093835603968[/tweet]
Max Fournier? No thank you. If we are willing to use that much $ for a SF, then take a gamble and sign Parsons or Batum. I would like to keep Fournier but for the right price. He is useful to us but is replaceable. You could even make the argument that we could be better without him. I just dont see Mario emerging and AG becoming our #1 option as long as Fournier is here. Him and Dipo think they are the two best scoring players on this team and that the offense should go through them. Thats not how the rest of us see it.
I think we should let go fournier,hezonja can replace him.We could go for batum or parsons.
ralphie9898 wrote:Patrick1978 wrote:OrlandoDream wrote:Max Fournier? No thank you. If we are willing to use that much $ for a SF, then take a gamble and sign Parsons or Batum. I would like to keep Fournier but for the right price. He is useful to us but is replaceable. You could even make the argument that we could be better without him. I just dont see Mario emerging and AG becoming our #1 option as long as Fournier is here. Him and Dipo think they are the two best scoring players on this team and that the offense should go through them. Thats not how the rest of us see it.
I think we should let go fournier,hezonja can replace him.We could go for batum or parsons.
We have rights to Fournier so we can fist see what we get in free agency and then decide if we want to resign him. His cap hold should be low and shouldn't prevent us from going after anyone. Of course if someone signs him to an offer sheet then are hands would be forced but not sure if that will happen early. We can go over the cap to resign Fournier and even then I don't think he gets anything close to a max deal.
It’s unknown if the high praise from Stevens indicates that Boston intends to make a push to re-sign Turner, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer after earning $3,425,510 in 2015/16.
Having Turner back should be one of the top priorities this off-season. He is one of the best all-around players on the team, as previously noted, and has made his way into the Sixth Man of the Year conversation as well. It comes down to how much money he’s going to command, and maybe he’ll even give Boston a discount. Either way, losing Turner to free agency would be a huge loss and create a giant hole on the bench.
You could look at the stat sheet and see that Evan Turner averages 10.1 points per game and then wonder why he'd be up for discussion for the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award. But that would mean you haven't watched him play. No, Turner isn't a volume scorer off the bench like a handful of others around the NBA. He does more than just score. Take into consideration that the 6-foot-7 versatile guard/forward also averages 4.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game, too. And it doesn't end there.
Turner leads the NBA in most games off the bench with 10-plus points, five-plus rebounds, and five-plus assists - he's got 10 of them. He also leads the NBA in assists coming off the bench with 277. And if you don't think a good game by Turner equals a good game by the Celtics, think again. The C's are 26-3 when he has a positive +/-, including 22-0 when he's a plus-four or better...Brad Stevens trusts Turner late in games maybe more than anybody, which is why despite the fact he doesn't start, he's fourth in the NBA in fourth-quarter minutes with 591. He's also third in the NBA in fourth-quarter assists with 107, behind NBA assists leader Rajon Rondo and starting point guard John Wall.
The one knock on Turner? His three-point shot (though he's 3-for-5 since the All-Star Break). But he's been able to be plenty effective despite shooting just 18-percent from the three-point line.
One player that Ainge said he would like to see return to the Celtics for the long term is swingman Evan Turner, who has turned in a sparkling season coming off the Boston bench. Turner, who will be a free agent this summer, is averaging 10 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and a career-best 44.9 percent shooting in 27 minutes per game.
“As you know I’m a fan of Evan and I think he’s had a really good year,” Ainge said. “I think he’s had a good two years [with the Celtics]. He won a lot of games for us. Down the stretch of games, he’s a good guy to have on your team, he’s a versatile player. He plays multiple positions.”
When asked if he’d like to re-sign Turner, Ainge said: “Yes. We’re big fans of Evan. I think Evan likes us and we like him.”
Melvinlocker wrote:What do you guys think of using our trade exception from the Frye deal for Ed Davis or Joakim Noah (S&T)? We may need to sweeten the pot to net Ed, but I think Noah could be had in a straight up considering he is a free agent. Note that this would be after our free agent signings.
Ed might be one of the more underrated players in the league. He's pretty much Tristian Thompson except he can pass on the interior and block shots.
ezzzp wrote:Melvinlocker wrote:What do you guys think of using our trade exception from the Frye deal for Ed Davis or Joakim Noah (S&T)? We may need to sweeten the pot to net Ed, but I think Noah could be had in a straight up considering he is a free agent. Note that this would be after our free agent signings.
Ed might be one of the more underrated players in the league. He's pretty much Tristian Thompson except he can pass on the interior and block shots.
I like him, but I'm pretty sure Portland likes him a lot too and have him locked up cheap for 3 more years. He is definitely a part of their core and won't be moved unless its for a considerable impact trade with him in a package deal.
Patrick1978 wrote:ezzzp wrote:If LeBron James can return to Cleveland and be embraced by the fans, the possibility exists that the same could happen for Dwight Howard in Orlando, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel posits.
The scribe notes that a reunion, while improbable, has the potential to benefit both sides. Returning to a star-hungry Magic squad would allow Howard to be the primary option once again on offense, while Orlando would land itself an upper-tier player who could help attract other free agents, Schmitz adds. Howard’s firing of agent Dan Fegan could also help make a reunion happen, as Fegan’s relationship with the team was a contentious one, Schmitz also notes. The Rockets center is widely expected to turn down his player option and hit free agency this summer.
Brian Schmitz + Hoops Rumors
I have a feeling that henny will go after dwight.Here he will be the number one option
I think that dwight has realized it that it was a mistake to leave orlando
Melvinlocker wrote:What do you guys think of using our trade exception from the Frye deal for Ed Davis or Joakim Noah (S&T)? We may need to sweeten the pot to net Ed, but I think Noah could be had in a straight up considering he is a free agent. Note that this would be after our free agent signings.
Ed might be one of the more underrated players in the league. He's pretty much Tristian Thompson except he can pass on the interior and block shots.
http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.cgi?request=1&sum=0&y1=2016&p1=davised01&y2=2016&p2=thomptr01&p3=&p4=&p5=&p6=
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwRoQhOVf6U[/youtube]