LONDON – If the good times keep on rolling like this, Pau Gasol isn’t going to want to see this summer end.
On the same day Gasol led Spain from 13 points down to a win over Russia in the first of two semifinals here at the Olympics, he found out that the Lakers put the finishing touches on a blockbuster deal that will pair he and All-Star center Dwight Howard in a revamped frontcourt that will be the envy of the NBA. Add all that to the Steve Nash sign-and-trade deal from last month and the realization that Gasol’s name will no longer come up in trade rumors (it ended up being Andrew Bynum) and things couldn’t get much better.
Well, there is always that game Sunday and a potential matchup against his good friend and teammate Kobe Bryant and the U.S. Men’s Senior National Team, and those other two high-profile teammates back in the States watching all of the action unfold.
It’s a decent rebound summer for a guy whose name had come up in so many trade rumors over the past two years that it made it hard not to internalize all of the chatter. Instead of heading elsewhere, Gasol will be a central figure on a Lakers team that vaults into the mix with Miami and Oklahoma City as favorites to win the 2012-13 NBA title.
Most importantly, Gasol will stay put in Los Angeles for at least the foreseeable future.
“That’s big news, big news.” Gasol said after Spain’s 67-59 win over Russia. “That’s huge. I’ve been involved in so many talks and so many rumors, we all know that. After a while I’ve been able to block it out. So I feel relieved. And I’m anxious and excited with our team, fully committed and fully focused on working extremely hard and just our team as much as I can.”
LONDON – The end of the Dwight Howard Odyssey could-could-be over soon for the Orlando Magic.
The team is in serious discussions with the Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets and Philadelphia 76ers about a potential deal that would send Howard to the Lakers, Pau Gasol to the Magic, Andre Iguodala to the Nuggets and Andrew Bynum to the 76ers. Other players and Draft picks would be included in the deal as well, with the possibility that Gasol or could be flipped for additional assets.
In this scenario, first reported Thursday by Yahoo! Sports, forward Al Harrington would go from Denver to the Lakers, and guard Arron Afflalo would go from Denver to the Magic. However, the final version of the deal, if it happens, would certainly involve additional players — or, perhaps, some of these players winding up in different places.
Two sources said Thursday that this deal could happen, although with so many teams and so many moving parts, the potential for the deal collapsing is ever-present. Another source had indicated to NBA.com earlier in the week that a “blockbuster” deal was on hold because at least two of the teams involved did not want to move forward.
Orlando, however, is determined to end the Howard saga as soon as possible — provided it gets what it wants. It has been adamant that it wants a combination of future picks, young players with short or otherwise reasonable contracts and the removal of some of their its contracts in exchange for Howard.
HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – This isn’t the first time a wild card team has been injected into the Dwight Howard conversation, and it certainly won’t be the last.
But we challenge you or anyone else to find a more intriguing twist than the Orlando Magic superstar joining the reigning Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder in their quest for a Larry O’Brien trophy.
Sure, it sounds far-fetched, given that the Thunder have never been considered even a remote factor in the Howard discussion and Thunder general manager Sam Presti‘s well-versed championship plan is already in full swing without Howard.
Still, in a summer when basically anything goes when we’re talking theories, can you imagine a more imposing lineup than what the Thunder could throw at teams if Howard was the man in the middle?
John Rhode of the Oklahoman mentioned it in passing in his examination of Presti’s “slow and steady” championship blueprint, raising some interesting points along the way:
OKC could throw its name into the Howard hopper and offer Kendrick Perkins, James Harden and Eric Maynor in a Howard sign-and-trade with Orlando, but doing so would abandon the Presti Plan and give the perception he had gone about things all wrong.
Then again, it potentially could result in an NBA title or two with a starting lineup of Howard, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Thabo Sefolosha and Serge Ibaka, not to mention a season record for blocked shots and a high-dollar existence above the league’s luxury tax.
“Dwight’s position has remained unchanged since the end of this past season,” said Dan Fegan of LaGardere Unlimited. “He fully intends to explore free agency at the end of next season, regardless of what team trades for him, including Brooklyn.”
A source said the Nets never insisted Howard commit to an extension as a prerequisite for acquiring him, which Nets president Billy King confirmed in a text message.
Howard told the Magic, according to GM Rob Hennigan, he would like to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets above any other team. The Nets made concerted efforts to strike a deal for Howard earlier this month, but were forced to stop when the Charlotte Bobcats threatened to sign their restricted free agent center, Brook Lopez, to an offer sheet.
HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – With all due respect to the men working hard at their hoop dreams in Las Vegas and the patriots toiling away with USA Basketball on their way to the Olympics, the two most talked about basketball players in the world today are Jeremy Lin and Dwight Howard, put them in whatever order you prefer.
Lin’s on his way to Houston, the product of a free agency saga almost as intriguing as the Linsanity movement he inspired months ago when he was starring for the New York Knicks. Howard is on his way to … well, we’re still not sure where the Orlando Magic superstar will end up. But he’s in Los Angeles these days, the object of affection and scorn for fans from coast to cast, it just depends on where you are at any given moment.
We’re giving them both all of our attention on Episode 87 of the Hang Time Podcast, enlisting the services of two men well-versed in the art of discussion where both Lin and Howard are concerned. When discussing anything about Howard, RealGM columnist Jarrod N. Rudolph is the man in the know. He joins us to break down dynamics of the Howard situation in ways you haven’t heard before. New York Magazine contributing editor and Deadspin founder Will Leitch makes his Hang Time Podcast debut to help us measure the outrage felt throughout the Five Boroughs (and beyond) after the Knicks’ decision to let Lin walk for a measly, relatively speaking of course, $25.1 million.
Check out all that and more on Episode 87 of the Hang Time Podcast featuring RealGM columnist Jarrod N. Rudolph and Deadspin founder and New York Magazine contributing editorWill Leitch (who lives in Brooklyn but hasn’t given into the dark side just yet and started rooting for the Nets).
– To download the podcast, click here. To subscribe via iTunes, click here, or get the xml feed if you want to subscribe some other, less iTunes-y way.
HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – They’re just talking about the possibilities of a potential deal involving Dwight Howard wearing a Los Angeles Lakers uniform.
And that should be more than enough to crank up the machine that has been the Howard rumor mill once again, now that one of the first teams mentioned as a potential destination for the Magic superstar is back in the middle of the madness.
Yahoo Sports! reports that the Lakers want a commitment from Howard that he will agree to a contract extension before they agree to a trade with the Magic.
The Lakers and Magic have been in talks over Howard for the last week or so, sources told ESPN The Magazine‘s Chris Broussard, but nothing is imminent.
Howard had demanded a trade to the Nets but talks broke down between the Nets and Orlando last week. Magic GM Rob Hennigan called Howard last week to see if he would consider giving the GM’s new regime a chance, but Howard rebuffed the overtures.
Howard has said he would agree to sign an extension with only one team, and sources have said that team is the Nets.
The Houston Rockets also made a new proposal to the Magic for Howard last weekend and are willing to take on long-term salary commitments from Orlando if they land Howard in Houston.
As long as Howard is in play for the Magic, the Lakers have to explore their options. They have Andrew Bynum, the one asset no other teams in the running for Howard can throw into the discussion.
While there hasn’t been any confirmation that they are doing anything other than simply discussing the possibilities, it doesn’t make much sense for anyone to get wrapped up in details that haven’t been shared.
But since when did anyone need actual details to get carried away during free agency/trade season?
The Brooklyn Nets’ unprecedented offseason spending spree continued Tuesday by agreeing to terms with starting power forward Kris Humphries on a two-year, $24 million contract, according to sources.
The 24-year-old Humphries averaged a double-double (13.8 points, 11 rebounds) last season for the Nets, finishing fifth in the league in rebounds per game and displaying his talents for scoring without plays being called and keeping possessions alive with his ability to hit the offensive boards. He looked like he’d be a cap casualty earlier in free agency as Brooklyn spent lavishly on keeping Deron Williams, Gerald Wallace and Brook Lopez, and took on the remaining $89 million of Joe Johnson‘s contract in a trade with the Hawks. But sources indicated last weekend that Humphries was likely to return to the Nets rather than accept a contract offer from the Charlotte Bobcats.
Brooklyn owner Mikhail Prokhorov is a billionaire and one of the world’s richest men, but his outlay this month has been stunning, even in the max contract world of the NBA. Prokhorov has okayed a $98 million contract for Williams, assuring the Nets would retain their franchise player; a $60 million extension for Lopez, a $40 million extension for Wallace, $24 million for Humphries, the aforementioned $89 million for Johnson, $9.5 million for European forward Mirza Teletovic, $5 million for free-agent forward Reggie Evans (acquired in a sign-and-trade with the Clippers), and $2.5 million for free agent guard C.J. Watson. Including a veteran minimum deal for guard Jerry Stackhouse, the Nets have committed somewhere in the neighborhood of $330 million in new deals since the start of the free agent period July 1.
HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS –Magic Johnson is the one member of the Showtime Lakers who is used to his words about the NBA’s current state of affairs drawing attention.
James Worthy has, for the most part, managed to stay away from the mess. But he won’t for long, not with his assessment of the Dwight Howard-Andrew Bynum dynamic that rages on (at least in some corners) this summer as we all await a decision on the futures of both of the NBA’s dominant big men.
“I like Andrew Bynum,” Worthy said recently at an appearance at Bell Gardens Intermediate School, sponsored by After School All-Stars Los Angeles and Metro PCS. “He’s young and just as good as Dwight right now. He’s getting better. Dwight … to me, he’s too much gab and too much talking. I’m old school. I want to see something done on the floor. He does all this media stuff, flip-flopping. You don’t get respect from veteran players when you do that kind of stuff. They just want you to play. They want to see what you can do out there.”
Amid several reports that a deal to send Dwight Howard to the Brooklyn Nets is close, a source directly involved in the discussions said Monday that the Nets are exploring offers from other teams that want to get involved in the Howard talks besides the Cleveland Cavaliers — the third team that is reportedly the conduit to take on players and Draft picks to enable Brooklyn to get Howard while sending players and picks to the Magic.
While the structure of a deal involving the Nets, Magic, Cavaliers and at least one other team is in place, involving numerous players, the moving parts involved in that scenario are a long way from being resolved. For example, Brooklyn created the structure of the deal, which would include sending forward Kris Humphries to the Cavaliers as part of the trade. However, Humphries, being a free agent, would have to agree to the terms of a sign-and-trade deal first.
And since Humphries played on a one-year deal for the Nets last season, he’s reluctant to do it again, looking for a multi-year deal. Under the terms of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, Humphries could only sign up to a four-year deal if he was part of a sign-and-trade. But the Cavaliers are reluctant to sign Humphries to a long-term deal, preferring to use him as a trade chip to amass additional assets or to only take up cap space for a year. (Being well under the salary cap, Cleveland could just sign Humphries using its room if it was interested in him, and wouldn’t have to give up anything.)
HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS –Deron Williams broke his own free agency news this evening, choosing an offer from the Brooklyn Nets over an offer from the Dallas Mavericks.
He did the deed with a simple Tweet, ending the suspense before the 4th of July holiday and sending the Mavericks and other teams scrambling to figure out their next move now that the most coveted player on this summer’s market is off the board.
“Made a very difficult decision today …” Williams tweeted along with a link to the photo of the Nets’ new Brooklyn logo.
He’s agreed to a five-year deal that will pay him $98 million, some $25 million more than he could have earned from the deal with the Mavericks.
The Nets can now turn all of their attention to trying to come up with a deal to land Dwight Howard, the Magic superstar who has demanded a trade to Brooklyn where he could join forces with Williams and All-Star guard Joe Johnson. The Nets agreed Monday to trade five players and a lottery-protected first round Draft pick to Atlanta Johnson.
