ESPN

• Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times: Acquired by the Milwaukee Bucks in a multi-player deal with the Detroit Pistons last Wednesday, Brandon Knight is extremely confident in his abilities and his potential. “I know I can play with them because I have already,” Knight said Tuesday following a press conference at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. “I played against John; I played against Derrick and I know I have the talent and the skill set and the physical stature to play with those guys. “It’s not a question; it’s just a matter of me going out and doing it. And it’s having the opportunity to do so.” Knight, 21, who already has started 135 games, will be given every opportunity to exhibit his talents with the Bucks. Bucks coach Larry Drew has already designated Knight his starting point guard. Drew, a former NBA point guard himself, is convinced Knight has the tools to excel.
• Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press: Can the Pistons become Lob City East? Their latest acquisition, point guard Brandon Jennings, seems to think Motown can become the Eastern Conference version of the Los Angeles Clippers. He looks at the front court of Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe and Josh Smith and sees endless possibilities for a highlight tape. “They’re going to make my job a lot easier, and of course I’m going to make their job a lot easier,” Jennings said today at the Palace on front of Palace Sports & Entertainment employees and the media. “I guess you could say we can bring Lob City to Detroit this year.” … Joe Dumars added that the he is very comfortable with the roster. “I don’t foresee us doing anymore big moves,” Dumars said. “I might do something smaller. With signing Peyton Siva yesterday, we have 14 roster spots, and so we’ll probably look at filling the last spot with a front-court guy.”
• Dan Bickley of The Arizona Republic: Well, whattaya know. Michael Beasley has surfaced in a mug shot. His hair looks fabulous. His future? Not so much. The Suns’ forward was arrested at 1:15 a.m. Tuesday morning, pulled over for speeding in Scottsdale when officers noticed the smell of marijuana coming from his vehicle. Anybody surprised? He had multiple driving infractions in January. He was investigated for sexual assault in May. And now that he’s been arrested, he might go down as the most pathetic player in Suns history. Clearly, the Suns have no choice but to waive Beasley. They have a new coach, a new front office and a new infusion of fresh hope. They’re selling a new beginning. They are unveiling new uniforms in the next two weeks. They can’t afford to have Beasley anywhere near their product. Note how we have one former marijuana abuser in Arizona – Tyrann Mathieu – who is being hailed for his new focus and his mental acuity. And in Beasley, we have another athlete who can’t focus on anything but squandering every ounce of his God-given talent.
• Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune: The Basketball Federation of Montenegro has confirmed that Wolves center Nikola Pekovic will not play in the Eurobasket tournament in September. The news was reported by two Spanish-speaking websites, including sportnando.net. Pekovic, a restricted free agent, has yet to come to terms with the Wolves on a new contract. The 27-year-old Pekovic has been offered a multiyear deal by the Wolves, believed to be for four years at around $48 million. Last week Wolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders traveled to New York to talk with Pekovic’s agent, Jeff Schwartz, to explain the team’s offer in more detail. It is clear Pekovic and Schwartz have been working to get a better deal, though the Wolves appear relatively firm in their offer. Still, a deal — which could include incentives that could raise the deal’s total value — is expected to get done before the Wolves open training camp.
• Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News: We all know why, but 25 national TV games for the Lakers vs. 15 for the Spurs is pretty lame.
• Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: Christmas will be spent in Los Angeles, playing the Lakers at Staples Center. Thanksgiving will be spent in Toronto the day before a game there against the Raptors, although it won't be Thanksgiving in Canada. No, the Miami Heat did not exactly receive a championship schedule Tuesday when the league's 2013-14 regular-season calendar was released by the NBA. Over the past 10 seasons, the defending champion had played on the road on Christmas three times. The Heat, in fact, not only will have to leave for Los Angeles on Christmas Eve, but will not return to South Florida untilNew Year's Eve. When it comes to Thanksgiving, the Heat are in Cleveland the night before and Toronto the night after (although that could leave open the possibility of Thanksgiving at LeBron James' Akron estate). No sooner was the schedule released, then Heat forward Shane Battier posted on his Twitter account, "Does anybody know when the schedules come out?" Shortly thereafter, he clarified, "The schedule I got said that we are on the road for Xmas and Turkey Day. I think I received a bad copy." This is the 10th time the Heat have played on Christmas and the ninth time in the past 10 years
• Vaughn McClure of the Chicago Tribune: It seems fitting that Derrick Rose's likely regular-season return will come against the defending NBA champions on their home court. Tuesday's release of the 2013-14 schedule confirmed the Bulls' opening-night matchup against the Heat on Oct. 29 in Miami. Rose has vowed to be ready for his first meaningful game action since tearing the ACL in his left knee April 28, 2012, during a playoff game against the 76ers. Fans saw glimpses of Rose warming up before games last season, but it ended up being a tease as Rose proceeded with caution. Now presumably at full strength, Rose is poised to lead the Bulls back into title contention after his one-year hiatus. The Heat, Pacers and revamped Nets figure to be the biggest obstacles. But considering how the Bulls competed without Rose or Luol Deng (illness) last postseason, coach Tom Thibodeau's bunch should be serious contenders.
• David Barron of the Houston Chronicle: One year removed from a season in which they were afterthoughts as blockbuster attractions for national television programmers, the Rockets of Dwight Howard, James Harden and Jeremy Lin will make at least 26 appearances on national television outlets during the 2013-14 season. The schedule announced Wednesday includes a March 16, 2014, game at the NBA champion Miami Heat on ABC (locally on KTRK, Channel 13), plus 10 slots on ESPN and nine on TNT. At least six games, plus as many as three additional games to be determined, will air on NBA TV, but those games will be blacked out within a 75-mile radius of Houston. Last year’s schedule, which came out before Harden’s acquisition from Oklahoma City, included just two Rockets games on ESPN’s initial schedule and no games on ABC or TNT. This year, the Rockets are among six teams with the maximum 10 appearances on ESPN and one of six with at least nine games on TNT.
• J. Michael of CSN Washington: John Wall vs. Kyrie Irving: Home games Nov. 16 and Feb. 7. Road game is Feb. 23. Let's see if they finally can get on the same page. The debate will go on and on until these two actually play each other enough to render a result, which is why the February home game is scheduled for ESPN, the Wizards' only national TV game. Both point guards are No. 1 picks, but they didn't meet in three games last season because one or the other was injured. Irving was selected as an All-Star reserve in his second season, something that Wall hasn't accomplished in three years. Irving is a better shooter while Wall, who is the bigger of the two, is better at distributing and rebounding
• Mike Gavin of Newsday: Somewhere along the way, the value of their NBA draft stocks intersected. Anthony Bennett's on its way up and Nerlens Noel's on its way down. Bennett, who was selected first overall out of UNLV, described draft night as "shocking." Noel said it was "frustrating." But now one is out to prove that he was worthy of being the top pick while the other is fully motivated to show that he deserved it all along. "I'll probably have to prove myself," Bennett said Tuesday during the NBA rookie photo shoot at the MSG training facility. "But at the same time I can't do anything outrageous and try to play outside of my game. I have to keep everything simple." …. He fell to sixth overall, where he was selected by New Orleans and later traded to a rebuilding Philadelphia team. "That definitely adds more fuel to the fire with my motivation to really be the best player I can be and show them," Noel said of falling in the draft. "I was already hungry as it was. Nothing wrong with being more motivated." His shot-blocking prowess is unquestioned, but Noel remains a raw talent offensively, limited to shots around the basket and putbacks. He said on Tuesday that there is still no timetable for his return and he hasn't begun any contact drills yet. "I'm just definitely being careful," he said. "Just waiting until I feel stronger than before and I'm ready." The paths of Bennett and Noel crossed once again Tuesday, this time as they wore their full NBA uniform for the first time. The No. 1 pick and the once presumed No. 1 pick, set to begin their careers.
• Michael Pointer of The Indianapolis Star: The Indiana Pacers have hired former NBA player Popeye Jones as an assistant coach, a source familiar with the situation confirmed to IndyStar.com. He replaces Jim Boylen, who left for an assistant coach’s position with the San Antonio Spurs, and completes Frank Vogel’s staff. The Pacers hired former NBA player and head coach Nate McMillan earlier this summer to replace associate head coach Brian Shaw, now the head coach of the Denver Nuggets. Longtime assistant Dan Burke is returning for a 17th year with the organization. Jones, 43, has spent the last three seasons as an assistant for the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets, but left the team when it hired Jason Kidd as its new coach. He also worked as a player development coach in Dallas following an 11-year NBA career that included stints in Dallas, Toronto, Boston, Denver, Washington and Golden State.
• Tyler R. Tynes of The Philadelphia Inquirer: 76ers forward Thaddeus Young was front and center as he opened his third basketball camp Tuesday at Girard College in Philadelphia. The camp, which teaches the fundamentals of the sport to boys and girls ages 7 through 17 in the Philadelphia area, runs through Friday. Young said he has plans to start another camp in Memphis, his hometown, in the near future. He also said he tries his best to follow his pupils' development as they move through high school and beyond. "I try to go out and watch some high school games whenever I can," said the 6-foot-8 power forward, now in his seventh season with the Sixers. Some of the kids take away the experience and the skill work we try to give them and try to instill it into their games," Young said. "I hope the players get better with each year."

(Read full post)

Gary Dineen/NBAE/Getty ImagesDerrick Rose and Tom Thibodeau will be together again this season. Is another top seed in the cards?

(Read full post)

• Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer: Brett Brown is the preferred candidate for the 76ers coaching job, according to a league source. If the job doesn't go to Brown, the search for Doug Collins' replacement will remain competitive, the source said. Portland Trail Blazers assistant David Vanterpool; Sixers assistant Michael Curry, a holdover from Collins' staff; and Boston Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga are believed to be the other serious contenders. … This isn't the first time Brown has been mentioned as the leading candidate. About two hours after the June 27 NBA draft, Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie denied a New York Daily News report that the Sixers had decided to hire Brown. … Seven other NBA assistants - Ed Pinckney (Bulls), Quin Snyder (Atlanta Hawks), Kenny Atkinson (Hawks), David Fizdale (Miami Heat), Melvin Hunt (Denver Nuggets), Chris Finch (Houston Rockets), and Kelvin Sampson (Rockets) - also have been mentioned as candidates.
• Sid Hartman of the Star Tribune: If you take the word of Flip Saunders, the president of basketball operations for the Timberwolves, you can quit worrying about the club signing Nikola Pekovic. Saunders believes it’s just a matter of time before the 6-11 center from Montenegro agrees to a deal with the club. “Yeah, I’m still optimistic,” said Saunders, who plans to travel in the near future to New York to speak to Pekovic’s agent. If you want to select the most important announcement one of the local four pro sports organizations needs to make right now, I would vote for the signing of Pekovic. I am convinced that if he returns, the Wolves will be great entertainment this season. “Right now we’re going through maybe an education process [with] Pek and his people of where we’re at with our organization and his importance to us and where we feel we’re at with what our offer is and why we’ve offered him what we’ve offered,” Saunders said. … Saunders also said he remains optimistic that Rick Adelman is ready to return as coach next season. “I think he feels very good about where we’re going,” he said.
• J. Michael of CSN Washington: Ted Leonsis wanted to be certain that Wall was on board. Sure, he could've waited until after the season to re-sign him because the Wizards would've been able to match any offers made to Wall as a restricted free agent. But why bother putting up a front when there wasn't really anything to negotiate? Why deal with a year's worth of questions about it? Wall wanted the max. Leonsis didn't mind giving it to him. “I wanted to do it, show respect. I also wanted to see how he was doing with his workouts,” Leonsis said of his trip to L.A. “The discussion really was that I want to make sure I hear from you that this won’t amp up your personal goals, but it will be more about team goals. One of the reasons we wanted to do this and do it early is to remove the I-need-to-get-stats. This is such a stats-oriented league and to have the focus on what the team needs to accomplish.” This was typical of how the Wizards operated this off-season. They moved fast when the free agency period opened July 1, signing Eric Maynor, Martell Webster and Garrett Temple in the first three days. They have 14 players under contract. The maximum is 15.
• Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News: The whispers and accusations started after Andrei Kirilenko agreed to terms with the Nets, when he took an enormous pay cut to join Mikhail Prokhorov’s quest for an NBA title. Anonymous rival executives surmised a Russian conspiracy, according to a Yahoo! report. They envisioned rubles passed under the table, or elsewhere, although they lacked evidence. They called for an investigation from the commissioner’s office. “I can’t do anything with what people think,” Kirilenko said in a conference call on Thursday. “I’m coming from the facts. I can’t change it. I can’t control it. . . . Those type of rumors I can’t control. And I guess it comes from the history because of the Russian KGB. It makes it a little funny. What can I do?” The reality, according to Kirilenko, was he opted out of a one-year, $10 million deal with the hope of re-signing long-term with the Timberwolves, only to discover Minnesota GM Flip Saunders wasn’t interested. So he signed with the Nets for about $3 million per season, and the 32-year-old forward said it had nothing to do with shady deals or the work of the Russian underworld.
• Marc Berman of the New York Post: The Knicks have decided rest is more important for Amar’e Stoudemire than “The Dream Shake’’ and wisdom of Hakeem Olajuwon. Stoudemire will not return to the Olajuwon camp in Houston to work on his post moves again this month as had been planned, The Post has learned. Stoudemire had planned to return to Texas to refine the post moves he learned last summer. That Olajuwon is about to be named to the Rockets staff as instructor for Dwight Howard and Omar Asik is not a factor in Stoudemire not attending. According to a Rockets source, Houston is allowing Olajuwon to fulfill any of his prior commitments with opposing players this month before he exclusively works with Rockets big men. Hence, Stoudemire might never work with Olajuwon again.
• Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel: A whirlwind summer has taken 18-year-old Giannis Antetokounmpo around the globe. The Milwaukee Bucks' first-round pick in the June draft, the 6-foot-9 small forward has traveled to New York and Milwaukee, home to Greece, to Slovenia and Estonia and now back to Milwaukee. Suddenly he's a millionaire after signing his first NBA contract Tuesday. But he's also an untested rookie. The good news for the Bucks is the smiling Antetokounmpo, already being called "GA" by some, is willing to learn. He worked out Thursday on the Cousins Center court with player development coach Josh Oppenheimer and Cody Ross of the basketball operations staff. Asked if he was satisfied with his showing for Greece in the Under-20 European Championship earlier this summer, Antetokounmpo did not hesitate to answer. "No," he said. "I was not satisfied with my performance. What can I do? I'm going to try next year. "If the team had taken a medal, maybe I would have been OK. But we didn't take a medal. I didn't play (great)."
• Jamie Samuelsen of the Detroit Free Press: In essence, the Detroit Pistons traded Brandon Knight for Brandon Jennings. Is this just a short-term fix or a long-term solution for the Pistons at point guard? If a patient is declared dead and then you get a pulse – that’s a cause for celebration, right? You’re not necessarily looking for him to jump off the gurney and start running all over the hospital. But once you get that heartbeat back, anything is possible. … There are five virtual locks in the Eastern Conference for the playoffs – Miami, Indiana, Chicago, Brooklyn and New York. The Pistons are now high amongst the group of teams fighting for the last three spots. That’s something you couldn’t have said a month ago. And that makes this a team to watch. Full credit to Dumars for moving the parts around to create the space to make this team better. They’re not contenders. Not yet. But they’re alive. And that’s a heck of a lot better than being dead.
• Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald: If all goes according to plan, Derrick Rose's return to NBA action will not start in Chicago. The Bulls released their preseason schedule on Thursday and it features games in Indianapolis, St. Louis and Rio de Janeiro before the first contest at the United Center on Oct. 16 against Detroit. Rose said during a recent European promotional tour he feels 100 percent healthy and plans to play in the preseason opener. He's been sidelined since April 28, 2012 when he tore the ACL in his left knee in a playoff game against Philadelphia. The Bulls will start the preseason against Central Division rival Indiana on Sat., Oct. 5, then face Memphis at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. After that, they'll play the first NBA game in Brazil on Sat. Oct. 12 against Washington.
• Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle: Veteran guard Francisco Garcia re-signed with the Rockets on Thursday, taking care of perhaps the final entry on the Rockets’ off-season to-do list. Garcia on July 6 reached agreement on a two-year veteran’s minimum deal, the second with a team option, worth $2.6 million. He had been out of the country following the end of the signing moratorium and unavailable to complete his physical, leading to the delay. The Rockets are expected to announce the signing on Friday. “He was a revelation after the trade,” Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said. “He stepped right in to the locker room as one of our key guys. There was no way we’d have advanced as far as we did in the Oklahoma City series without him. He brings leadership, shooting, defense. We’re very happy we were able to work this out to bring him back.”
• Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe: The Celtics have cut forward Shavlik Randolph, a move that trims their roster to the regular-season limit of 15 signed players and also saves them about $1.1 million. The team had until Thursday to cut the 6-foot-10-inch Randolph or else his contract would have been fully guaranteed for the 2013-14 season. Randolph's agent confirmed to the Globe that the Celtics informed Randolph that they won't be picking up the option on his non-guaranteed deal, thus ending his tenure with the team he joined in February after playing in China. … But with the Celtics' desire to trim salary to stay under the tax line, and with a crowded roster especially heavy in the frontcourt with Humphries, Brandon Bass, Vitor Faverani, Jared Sullinger, Kelly Olynyk, and Fab Melo, Randolph was simply a victim of the numbers.
• Mike Gegenheimer of The Times-Picayune: "We can all be very proud as we're going to be very proud of our team as we work hard to become a champion," Tom Benson said. "We're going to have two champions -- the New Orleans Saints and the New Orleans Pelicans." Pelicans forward Jason Smith gave fans their first look at the team's new home jerseys as he emerged from the manufactured fog and into a crowd of local-area children and several members of the media. Smith, along with Anthony Davis, donned the white home gear, which had red and gold striping down the sides and "New Orleans" displayed across the jersey in blue lettering inspired by the iconic street signs of the French Quarter. The road uniforms, modeled by forward Ryan Anderson and new point guard Jrue Holiday, are similar to the home uniforms in design but navy blue. The Pelicans are one of only three NBA teams to feature the name of the city on home and away jerseys, and one of 10 franchises to have a navy uniform. "I kind of never had that before in my life," Davis said. "To come out here and actually present the uniforms to you guys and the kids and their families and the owner -- it means a lot. It says they have a lot of confidence in me and faith and trust in me."
• Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun: Remember the name Thon Maker. He’s going into Grade 10 and already 7-foot-1, runs the floor well and is a solid jump shooter. He wasn’t even the tallest man in the building this week though. That honor goes to Brampton’s Tanveer Bhullar, who is bound for New Mexico State and stands 7-foot-3, though he’s small compared to his brother Sim, also at New Mexico State and 7-foot-5. Another name to remember: Montaque Gill-Caesar, also known as Teki. He’s the same height and build as Wiggins, plays for Wiggins’ old school, Huntington Prep in West Virginia, has similar mannerisms and even sounds like him. He’s also a solid player already and getting better.

• Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel: The strange summer saga of Brandon Jennings finally was resolved Tuesday. The Milwaukee Bucks agreed to a sign-and-trade deal with the Detroit Pistons, inking Jennings to a three-year, $24 million contract and sending him to Detroit in exchange for point guard Brandon Knight, small forward Khris Middleton and center Viacheslav Kravtsov. … The move signaled the Bucks’ determination to start anew after a sour ending to last season, culminating in a four-game sweep at the hands of the Miami Heat in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Gone are Jennings and Monta Ellis, the starters in the Bucks backcourt all of last season and the team’s two leading scorers. In their places are the 21-year-old Knight and 25-year-old shooting guard O.J. Mayo, who signed a three-year, $24 million free-agent deal earlier this summer. … The Bucks have only five holdovers from the roster at the end of the season: Larry Sanders, John Henson, Ersan Ilyasova, Ekpe Udoh and Ish Smith. Instead of committing to a long-term deal with Jennings, the Bucks obtained a player in the third year of his rookie-scale contract. Knight will make $2.8 million next season and $3.5 million in 2014-’15.
• Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News: The Pistons weren’t done wheeling and dealing, as Pistons president and Louisiana native Joe Dumars returned to his riverboat gambler ways, acquiring point guard Brandon Jennings in a sign-and-trade from the Milwaukee Bucks. The Pistons traded Brandon Knight, Khris Middleton and Slava Kravtsov for Jennings and will have him for the next three years at $24 million total. Mind you, this was not too far removed from Dumars demonstratively denying any talks with the Bucks, run by good friend and former Pistons executive John Hammond. Meaning he plays poker, too. In acquiring Jennings and Josh Smith, there’s two talented but mercurial players who could be termed as “wild cards.” Chemistry is indeed a fair question, but considering the Pistons got two players for far less than they felt they’d command on the open market — Smith wanted a max contract and Jennings wanted $12 million per season — they should have two players with things to prove to the NBA at large. A willingness to silence critics should make potential sacrifices a lot easier in what’s an interesting mix of talent, youth and experience in the Pistons’ locker room. The last time the Pistons changed three starters so dramatically in one offseason was in 2002 when they signed Chauncey Billups as a free agent, traded mainstay Jerry Stackhouse for some unknown guard named Richard Hamilton and plucked Tayshaun Prince late in the first round for what was a bad 2002 draft.
• Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald: After the spinal tap incident sidelined Luol Deng for the final seven games of the playoffs, he mostly stayed silent, other than a few health updates on Twitter. Deng finally addressed the incident in an interview posted on nba.com. He’s currently in Ghana for one of the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders events. “The end of the season was disappointing,” Deng said. “I worked hard all season, played in the All-Star (Game), and wanted to take the team as far as possible in the playoffs. But then, when I got sick, I think that we could have handled the situation better. “Obviously there are some things that you can’t handle. You can’t really handle getting sick, being taken to the ER or going to the hospital. I got the spinal tap and that’s where it went all wrong. My body didn’t react well to the spinal tap. I had some serious side effects that not only didn’t allow me to play basketball, but really put my life in danger.” No matter how you slice it, Deng’s hospital visit on the afternoon of Game 6 vs. Brooklyn didn’t go well. Due to concerns he could have meningitis, Deng was given a spinal tap. As it turned out, he didn’t have meningitis. His body began to leak spinal fluid after the procedure, leaving him in no shape to move around, let alone play basketball. After a few rough days, there was nothing to do but wait for his body to replenish the fluid. The Bulls say Deng is doing fine now.
• Chris Herrington of the Memphis Flyer: The Mike Miller introduction felt like the peak of the late-summer momentum that seems to have firmly re-entrenched the Grizzlies as a legitimate Western Conference contender. And Joerger went into a bit of detail about how Miller can factor on the floor, not only in spacing the court for the team's power players but also using his versatility to give the team more playmaking and more small lineup options. Perhaps most intriguing was the suggestion that this second go-round could last a little while. Joerger emphasized that Miller, in Memphis, would not be seen as merely a “hired gun,” but rather as a more meaningful part of the team and community. But the suggestion went further than that. Miller talked about “being a part of this for a long time to come.” Levien followed up by mentioning a “long relationship in Memphis going forward.” Miller signed a two-year deal with the Grizzlies with a player option in the second season, the idea being that Miller thinks he's got one more significant contract left in him. Based on the team's current salary projection, Miller might need to play out both years of his current contract to get a longer-term deal for above the vet minimum in Memphis. This will make next summer interesting. But that's next summer.
• Michael Pointer of The Indianapolis Star: Q: Despite having an outstanding season, there’s been a lot of speculation you may go back to coming off the bench this season, especially if Danny Granger is healthy and ready. Would you be OK with that? Lance Stephenson: “I’m just coming in to play hard. Whatever coach (Frank Vogel) decides to do, I think it’s a great decision. Me coming off the bench, Danny coming off the bench, either way, we’re deep. Whatever helps the team, that’s what I want to do.”
• Jody Genessy of the Deseret News: Derrick Favors knows he’ll need to more than hold his own, mentally and physically, now that Paul Millsap has headed to his backup’s childhood home to play for the Hawks and Al Jefferson has signed with Charlotte. That was the message they each had for Favors on their way out of Utah: “They both just told me, ‘It’s (your) team now; it’s time to take over; do your thing out there. You’ve been learning from us the past two or three years; now it’s time to play.’” To sum up Favors’ reaction to that sentiment: FINALLY! … More than ever, Favors realizes that devotion and continual self-motivation are critical to his long-term goals. Now that he’s a few months from the golden opportunity that he’s waited for so long, Favors realizes it’s on him to be a hard worker, a defensive beast, a reliable offensive presence and a solid leader for his teammates to get that chance someday to hold the NBA’s Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. And Favors believes he will.
• Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com: USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo has left the door open for Portland Trail Blazers All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge to represent his country if he has interest in doing so. However, Colangelo reiterates that he is not reaching out to players. He only wants players who are willing to make the necessary commitment to going through the entire process. When asked about Aldridge's chances of being added to the USA Basketball program, Colangelo's response was basically that he needed to hear from Aldridge, himself. “I am always interested in players who seek to compete,” Colangelo told CSNNW.com Tuesday night. “My phone is always available. Unless one is hungry and passionate about USA Basketball, there is little chance. “Certainly we won't solicit.” In mid-April, Aldridge informed CSNNW.com that he would participate if requested. It is unknown at this time if Aldridge will contact Colangelo.
• Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman: Sorry, I can’t get excited about Ryan Gomes, who apparently is signing with the Thunder. Mike Miller? Absolutely. Dorrell Wright? OK. Derek Fisher? Fine. Ryan Gomes? Nope. A 6-foot-7 small forward who is a career 35 percent 3-pointer doesn’t fit the Thunder needs. Gomes always has been a good defender, but does the Thunder need a wing defender who’s not a great offensive threat? Let’s see. Thabo Sefolosha. DeAndre Liggins. Andre Roberson. I love defense as much as the next guy — OK, I love defense way more than most next guys — but the Thunder doesn’t need four wingmen whose forte is defense. It’s not that Gomes is a bad player. You’re not going to believe what I’m about to tell you, but it’s true.
• Mac Engel of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: The team is on the verge of signing Spurs free agent forward DeJuan Blair to a one-year deal. Blair would be an immediate upgrade over Elton Brand, who signed this offseason with the Atlanta Hawks. He is 6-foot-7, 265 pounds but has a big frame and can beat up people. Phsyically, he would remind you of David West, without his touch around the rim or jumper from 15 feet. When Blair was a rookie out of Pittsburgh, he looked like he had the makings of becoming a nice, bruising power forward. A guy who scored eight points and grabbed eight rebounds off the bench. As a rookie in 2009-'10, Blair played in all 82 games with the San Antonio Spurs and averaged 7.8 points and 6.4 rebounds. Since then, it's been a straight ride down the bench. Last season, he averaged 5.4 points, 3.8 boards and a career-low 14.0 minutes per game. When he's "good", he can push people around, defend the low block, and grab some boards and score junk buckets. He should be in the Mavs rotation, and be better than Brand.
• Shannon J. Owens of the Orlando Sentinel: So, a top 10 NBA draft pick, a former Orlando Magic guard, a Houston Rockets forward and a Euro Cup MVP walked into an Orlando recreation center gym the other night. I promise this isn't the start of a joke. How is this for a pick-up ball lineup? Austin Rivers, Courtney Lee, Chandler Parsons and Nick Calathes. All four gathered at the Downtown recreation center Monday night, competing together for the first time this summer in the Orlando Pro-Am league. With the exception of Calathes, who flew to Memphis to meet with theGrizzlies about potentially playing for the team, the rest of the NBA ballers came back for more rec hoops action Tuesday. "This is the best competition and best league in Orlando, so it's definitely fun coming out here," Parsons said. "The crowd gets into it, people are talking trash, so it's fun." And some of you thought all NBA players are spoiled millionaires with no love for the game. Clearly, you're not looking in the right places. Seriously, I've seen high school gyms pack with better crowds than what I witnessed Monday night as Parsons' 3 Stripes team beat 800-Trial-Pro — headlined by former UCF star Keith Clanton — 105-93 before a crowd of about 150 people.
• Ryan Lillis of The Sacramento Bee: What began as a small group of neighborhood activists scraping for donations at a picnic in a midtown Sacramento garden has developed into a volatile political clash over whether to hold a public vote on the city's plan to subsidize a new Kings arena downtown. The debate has escalated in recent days. There have been allegations that paid signature gatherers are lying to voters, charges of doctored press releases and outrage on Twitter about claims made by both sides. In an indication of how intense the campaign has become, more than 56,000 city voters received an automated "robocall" Sunday evening extolling the virtues of a downtown arena and attacking the campaign under way to place the city's financing plan before the voters in June. Those kinds of robocalls are not unusual during campaign season. But a vote on the arena – if it comes at all – won't be held for another 10 months.
• Richard Goldstein of The New York Times: Ossie Schectman, a Knicks guard and a onetime all-American at Long Island University in Brooklyn, played when the two-handed set shot ruled and a 6-foot-8 center was a giant. When Schectman died on Tuesday at 94, he was remembered as a central figure in the National Basketball Association’s creation tale. He scored the first 2 points in the league’s history and became something of a celebrity when the distinction was uncovered, 42 years and 5 million points later. On the night of Nov. 1, 1946, the Knicks faced the Toronto Huskies at Maple Leaf Gardens, the home of the National Hockey League’s Maple Leafs, before 7,090 fans more familiar with face-offs than jump balls. The court covered the ice surface. It was the inaugural game of the Basketball Association of America, which became the N.B.A. three years later.