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Hawks plan to keep Lou Williams in bench role

The Hawks plan to bring Lou Williams off the bench once he returns from ACL surgery next season, according to USA Today's Lang Greene.

Jeff Teague will reprise his starting PG role next year, and Williams' sixth-man status is an acknowledgement that he's not big enough (6'1", 175 lbs) to defend the league's starting SGs. The market for free agent SGs has quickly dried up (Nate Robinson, Alan Anderson, Damien Wilkins and Sam Young are among the best remaining), and at the moment it seems as though John Jenkins or Jared Cunningham could be candidates for Atlanta's starting SG job.

Source: Lang Greene on Twitter

Sat, Jul 13, 2013 08:42:00 PM

Anthony Davis on track for season opener

Anthony Davis (knee surgery) thinks that he is on track to play in the season opener.

"Right now, I think I'm heading in the right direction toward getting there," Davis said on Saturday. "Today everything felt great. I feel like I'm more explosive than what I was and more powerful." He did "virtually" everything in the Pelicans first practice, but his workload will continue to be monitored during the preseason. His durability concerns aren't a secret, but his sheer upside means he won't fall out of the first round of fantasy drafts.

Source: New Orleans Times-Picayune

Sep 25 - 10:25 AM

Drummond says he'll win rebound crown again

Andre Drummond said he's going to win the rebounding crown again this season.

Drummond also said he's "shed about 20 pounds" this summer. He's easily the favorite to finish first in boards again with his league-leading 14.8 boards per game last year. What's more, he led the NBA in boards per game in all but one month last year -- DeAndre Jordan was first in January. Nobody will question Drummond on the glass, but the 23-year-old big man really needs to improve on his shooting.

Source: NBA.com

Sep 24 - 10:36 PM

Goran Dragic says he's ready to lead the Heat

Goran Dragic believes he is "ready" to play a leading role for the Heat.

Ready or not, it's coming his way with Chris Bosh (blood clots) out indefinitely and Dwayne Wade now wearing a Bulls uniform. "I already felt great last year in the middle of the season, and even this year I’m in way better than shape than I was last year," Dragic said. "I was playing all summer. I’m ready. I need to take care of a couple things — try to be more aggressive, try to score and try to get everybody else involved. I already started or felt like that last season in the playoffs. For me, nothing is going to change, basically. I need to be myself and play my game." After being somewhat of a fantasy letdown last year, Dragic is shaping up to be a draft day bargain and serious bounce-back candidate this time around.

Source: Miami Herald

Sep 24 - 6:24 PM

Ainge: We need Marcus Smart to step up

Danny Ainge said Marcus Smart is a player who needs to "take steps forward" this season.

Smart is a career 35.7 percent shooter with a career average of 3.1 assists per game, and it seems that Ainge is specifically hinting at Smart improving his efficiency now that he's entering his third professional season. The former sixth overall pick is expected to have a bigger role without Evan Turner in the fold, but Brad Stevens has other options in guys like Terry Rozier, Gerald Green and rookie Jaylen Brown. Despite the ability to be an elite on-ball defender, the bottom line is this: Smart needs to perform better on the offensive end to justify his presence on the court.

Source: Boston Herald

Sep 24 - 5:29 PM

Miami Heat release statement on Chris Bosh

The Miami Heat have released an official statement on Chris Bosh stating that the team is unable to clear him to take the court.

"The Miami HEAT and Chris Bosh, in consultation with team doctors and other physicians, have been working together for many months with the mutual goal of having Chris return to the court as soon as possible. Chris has now taken his pre-season physical. The Miami HEAT regret that it remains unable to clear Chris to return to basketball activities, and there is no timetable for his return. We are not able to comment further in light of Article XXII, Section 3(e) of the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement, which precludes a team from releasing certain medical information without a player's consent." Bosh remains hopeful that he'll be able to play in the NBA again, but as has been the case since last season, there remain more questions than answers and the search for clarity is again clouded by fog.

Source: NBA.com

Sep 24 - 4:06 PM

Report: Vivek Ranadive wants to keep Rudy Gay

Kings owner Vivek Ranadive is "determined to hold on to" Rudy Gay, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.

Despite Gay making it abundantly clear that he wants out and has no faith in the front office—we don't blame him for that stance—Ranadive isn't willing to give up on an attempt to retain him. Per Woj, Sacramento's owner believes Gay is a "vital talent," and he's told "associates that he believes he can change Gay's mind this year and persuade him to stay." It's hard to comprehend how Ranadive remains so far distanced from reality, and an argument could be made that this franchise has the most dysfunctional front office in the entire sport.

Source: The Vertical

Sep 24 - 3:29 PM

Bird confirms plan is to re-sign Jeff Teague

Larry Bird confirmed that he intends to attempt to sign Jeff Teague to a long-term contract.

At the time Teague was traded to the Pacers, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported that Indiana intended to sign the point guard to a long-term deal. Now, Bird has confirmed that course of action. "This contract stuff will take care of itself," Bird said. "We’ll like to have both of them [Teague and Paul George] back, but you never know what happens." It's possible the two sides work out a new deal during the season, but it's still too early in the process to project a possible outcome.

Source: Indianapolis Star

Sep 24 - 3:13 PM

Pacers have standing max offer to Paul George

The Pacers have a standing max contract offer to Paul George.

Bird wants to sign George to a max deal as soon as PG-13 is ready. "I know he don’t want to talk about it all year and I don’t either," Bird said. "We want Paul here and we know what it’s going to cost and what it’s going to take. If Paul wants to get a deal done, we will. It’s a max deal. There’s no others, so there’s no use talking about it. If he wants it, he’s got it." All the attention will now turn to George and his future plans as the Pacers prepare to begin the 2016-17 campaign.

Source: Indianapolis Star

Sep 24 - 3:09 PM

Festus Ezeli (knee) has no timeline to return

Festus Ezeli (knee) has no timeline to return to action.

"I personally don't have a timeline," he said. "I'm taking it day by day because when it comes to this situation, you never go with a timeline. It will frustrate me if I go by a timeline. I just try to take it by how I feel so hopefully sometime soon I can get back on the court and start playing again." The big man did say that his knee is "getting better," but "it's gonna take a little bit for me to get to where I'm a 100 percent." The ongoing knee issues helps to explain why Ezeli's free agent market didn't develop like so many anticipated, and it's currently unclear when he may be able to get onto the court for his new team. As a result, Portland will be forced to lean a little harder on Mason Plumlee and Ed Davis.

Source: CBS Sports

Sep 24 - 2:47 PM

Tyreke Evans dealt with blood clot in calf

Tyreke Evans revealed that he developed a blood clot in his calf after his most recent knee surgery.

This definitely helps to explain why Evans is taking a slow road back to action. "I had to take a step back, but I kept working hard in my rehab," he said. Doctors have told Evans not to rush his return, and the swingman also said he's not aware of any concerns that doctors have about the clotting being an ongoing issue. Between all of his recent knee surgeries, an uncertain timeline to get back on the floor and the news of a blood clot, it's virtually impossible to recommend burning a draft pick—even in the later rounds—on the former Rookie of the Year.

Source: PBT

Sep 24 - 2:37 PM

Anthony Davis doing 'virtually' everything

Anthony Davis (knee surgery) did "virtually" everything in the Pelicans first practice, and added that he's feeling "great" as the team heads into training camp.

Given AD dealt with both knee and shoulder problems last season, this is certainly an encouraging start, especially since Davis said his shoulder feels "stronger than it's ever been." That being said, the big man remains one of the biggest—if not the biggest—risk vs. reward players in fantasy due to his injury history and price point in drafts. He has never played 70 games in any NBA season, and he'll again be the focal point on every opposing team's scouting report as the Pelicans prepare to enter the season shorthanded without Jrue Holiday (personal) or Tyreke Evans (knee surgery). As an aside, Davis said he "never" plans to leave New Orleans and wants to bring a title to Bourbon Street.

Source: ESPN

Sep 24 - 2:30 PM