- Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: Evidently, Jeff Green had grown as exasperated as Celtics followers regarding his unfinished contract. That became clear yesterday afternoon when he took to Twitter to shout, “FINALLY!!!” More than a month after he took part in a press conference announcing he and the Celts had reached agreement in principle on a new deal, the sides got things completed. Finally. Green later tweeted, “Been waiting to say this for a while... #iamaceltic”. According to sources, there were several reasons for the delay in getting things done. Green’s representative, David Falk, reported there were issues with the new collective bargaining agreement. But, in general, the parties just found the side issues were more complicated than expected once they agreed on the basic parameters of a four-year deal totaling some $36 million. Also, according to a player source, there were insurance issues to tackle. Green missed last season after having surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm.
- Geoff Calkins of The Commercial-Appeal: Robert Pera is not moving the Grizzlies. Nobody is moving the Grizzlies. "The team is not going anywhere," said Staley Cates. "That's the whole point." Cates is one of a group of Memphians — others include Pitt Hyde, Duncan Williams, Ed Dobbs and Billy Orgel — who have reached a deal with Pera to buy between 30-35 percent of the team. As part of the deal, Pera agreed to three provisions that will make it nearly impossible for the Grizzlies to move for at least 15 years: 1) If the Grizzlies were to leave Memphis, Pera would have to pay a $100 million penalty. 2) If Pera were to sell the team to someone who wanted to move it, the local owners would have the right to match the deal and buy the team themselves. 3) If Pera were to try and move the team himself, the local owners would have the right to buy the team at the current price. All three provisions are in affect for the next 15 years. In other words: The Grizzlies ain't moving. Can we please never talk about that subject again? And can we please disregard the lunacy of any who would try and tell you that local owners haven't "stepped up?"
- Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The Hawks will have to work out the Jeff Teague-Devin Harris backcourt (assuming it stays that way if/when Danny Ferry is done making trades). They need a true wing player, too. But I’m most intrigued to see how Lou Williams
fits. He’s a very effective scorer but, if he’s going to remain in a role similar to the one he filled in Philly, he may need to play alongside either Harris or Teague. ... Williams also attributes his foul magnetism to a nifty ball fake: “I got that from Andre Miller. He’s got one of the best pump fakes in the world.” Perhaps Williams can run the point for the second unit and just focus on scoring. As mentioned, he’s very effective playing off screens and he’s also a very good isolation player: his Synergy efficiency league ranks on those plays the past three seasons were 61st, 49th, and 30th. Williams’ isolations aren’t the ball-stopping kind. If Williams plays more minutes for the Hawks than he did for the Sixers, it will be interesting to see if he can remain an efficient, impact scorer even with a lower usage rate (probable if he plays a lot of minutes with the starters). - Michael Lee of The Washington Post: Free agent small forward Martell Webster worked out for the Wizards at Verizon Center this week, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation. The former No. 6 pick of the NBA draft in 2005, Webster has averaged 8.4 points and shot 37.4 percent from beyond three-point range throughout his career in Portland and Minnesota. ... ESPN.com first reported the workout for Webster, but a league source added that the team has watched a few free agents in Washington and elsewhere to see if there is a need to add another player to the current 13-man roster. They are about $3 million under the salary cap but are seeking to fill out the roster with players on minimum salaries. Anthony Tolliver has been in the mix for some time, but the team also has interest in free agents Michael Redd, Terrence Williams and Shawne Williams.
- Mike Wells of The Indianapolis Star: Reggie Miller will enter the Hall of Fame in about two weeks. Some say he should have made it last year, the first time he was eligible to head to Springfield, Mass. The good thing is Miller is headed to the Hall of Fame at the same time as former Pacer big man Mel Daniels, who definitely should have made it a long time ago. I wish I could share countless memories of covering Miller during his career. But I started covering him during the final 3 1/2 months of his career. Those 3 1/2 months weren’t about the end of Miller’s career, but rather how Rick Carlisle was able to keep the team together despite dealing with the suspensions of Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson and others from the incident that has become a distant memory. Obviously one of my favorite memories of Miller was against the New York Knicks during the in the playoffs in the 1990’s. I was in high school still when the Pacers, Knicks and Spike Lee had their battles.
- Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press: As Jonas Jerebko and Slava Kravtsov continue to excel during 2013 FIBA Eurobasket qualifying, two fans traveled overseas to observe the two Pistons. President of basketball operations Joe Dumars and assistant general manager George David arrived earlier this week in Europe. Obviously they will scout the tournament, but the organization says it's important to show support when players are competing for their countries. Also in Kravtsov's case, they are probably looking to see how he is progressing since they just signed him to a three-year deal this summer.
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