- Bob Kravitz of The Indianapolis Star: "The last remnant of the Indiana TrailPacers is gone. Finally. Jamaal Tinsley, one of the most maddening players in Pacers history, is gone. Bought out. History. In the end, the Pacers lost this war of wills and paychecks with Tinsley. They said from the beginning they would never buy him out. Well, they bought him out. Faced with an upcoming arbitration hearing, the Pacers chose to cut their losses, cut their ties with Tinsley and eat their pride. ... In the end, Tinsley outmaneuvered the Pacers by doing absolutely nothing, by sitting on his backside and collecting paychecks. That's certainly galling. The Pacers will still have to take a cap hit these next two years, courtesy of Donnie Walsh's misguided decision to extend Tinsley's contract years ago. Still, though, it's not a complete loss. Because Tinsley is gone. Because the stench of the TrailPacers days is gone. All the primary figures who brought so much shame to the franchise are playing elsewhere. Tinsley's departure also frees up a valuable roster spot. Josh McRoberts just re-signed Wednesday, giving the Pacers 11 guys under contract. That doesn't yet include second-round pick A.J. Price or free agent Earl Watson, who is expected to sign next week. Finally, there is closure. The TrailPacers era is over."
- Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News: "Everything hasn't been rosy for Allen Iverson, but it hasn't been all thorny either. It's a Catch-22. Without his stubbornness, he never would be the 16th-leading scorer in NBA history. More impressively, he's averaged 41 minutes a game through his career, fourth most in NBA history. No player similar in height and weight is in the top 20. he same attributes that make him great, however, hold him back from signing with a contender at this stage of his career. He's done things his way and had success. Based on his rough background, his game and life parallel each other, for better or worse. Consequently, he's been judged, deservedly or not. 'I obviously feel like it's unfair, but it just makes the chip on my shoulder that much bigger,' Iverson told NBA TV in an interview Tuesday night. 'The whole thing with me is to be in a situation where I can be happy,' Iverson said. 'Obviously the objective is to win a championship, but I've been thinking about it -- my whole thing is to be happy and finish my career in a happy situation.' "
- Mike McGraw of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald: "Over the years, several Bulls staffers have told me chairman Jerry Reinsdorf is a genuinely nice person and a great boss. I had little to say in response, because I barely knew the guy. I can think of maybe three or four times during the 10 year covering the Bulls full-time that I've spoken with Reinsdorf. A couple of those were when he was made available for other causes, such as the WNBA ticket experiment and dedication of a new basketball court in North Chicago. Reinsdorf finally agreed to sit down with the team's three beat writers on Monday and, really, it's a shame he doesn't talk more often. He was very thoughtful, friendly and open during the interview session. If I can appreciate hearing from Reinsdorf, fans of the Bulls and White Sox probably feel the same way."
- Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune: "A Spanish media report said Wednesday that David Kahn went to Spain with a list of Minnesota companies willing to sign Rubio to endorsement deals for a sum totaling $4 million, which could pay all or most of a renegotiated deal with DKV Joventut. NBA deputy commissioner Adam Silver reportedly was involved in a meeting last week in Las Vegas that included Kahn, Dan Fegan and Wolves owner Glen Taylor. Before he left for Spain, Kahn was asked if he was headed overseas with a list of endorsement deals for Rubio that would get the buyout solved, and if Silver was involved in the meeting to advise what is permitted within NBA rules in such matters. Kahn answered no to both questions. 'We cannot circumvent the salary cap and we cannot pay him more than $500K,' Kahn said in a text message. 'Like any player, he is entitled to obtain his own sponsorship deals locally, nationally.' "
- David Aldridge of NBA.com: "This just in: Utah is not going to be goosed into doing a Carlos Boozer deal. All summer, we've been given breathless updates as to who is 'ahead' in the Boozer 'sweepstakes,' with the two-time All-Star making his preference for wearing Heat Black next season clear. Three-way trades, two-team trades, all kind of trades--to the Bulls, to the Heat, to the Knicks, with the emphasis on a supposedly imminent deal, the Jazz not possibly being able to welcome Boozer back into the fold next season. All wrong. There's a good chance Carlos Boozer is the starting power forward for Utah in November, with a slighly overpriced backup in Paul Milsap. Let me say this one more time: Utah is not going to be bullied, rushed or otherwise forced into trading Boozer anywhere. The Jazz is not going to do a deal for a deal's sake, and certainly isn't going to do a bad deal. That doesn't mean Utah isn't listening to offers (it is) or won't ultimately get a deal done for Boozer (though Miami will have to do better than combinations featuring Udonis Haslem and Dorell Wright; if the first words out of Riles's mouth aren't 'Michael Beasley,' forget it)."
- Geoffrey C. Arnold of The Oregonian" "Kevin Pritchard has one more evaluation to conduct this week. Greg Oden. The Trail Blazers' general manager will watch as Oden competes in USA Basketball's three-day minicamp beginning today. Oden's participation will allow Pritchard to watch the Blazers' center and gauge his improvement. 'We want to see progress, that's what we want to see,' Pritchard said. 'We'd like for him to play well so he can get some confidence and feel good about the work he has put in.' Oden is coming off an inconsistent rookie season and just about anyone interested in the Blazers is wondering if -- and how quickly -- Oden's work this summer will translate to a noticeable development of his game. 'We know he has been working hard this summer,' Pritchard said. 'He's put in some work -- really good work -- with Coach (Bill) Bayno this summer. We want to see some improvement.' "
- Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal: "In a way, the 20 players participating in this week's USA Basketball minicamp are no different from the millions of others who visit Las Vegas each year. There's a chance they might strike it rich, but only a select few will walk away winners. There's a small window to make a positive impression, beginning today at Valley High School and culminating with Saturday's intrasquad game at the Thomas & Mack Center. The reality is there are only a handful of spots available on Team USA's roster for the 2010 FIBA World Championships, because several spots will go to Team USA veterans such as LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. The competition figures to be fierce, in the drills overseen by coach Jay Triano and the daily scrimmages. 'It
9;s hard to project exactly how many spots there's going to be,' said Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketball's managing director. 'The plan is to watch this week and get a pretty good look at what we have. We also have next (NBA) season to look. So we should get a good idea between the two about what we have.' " - Dan Levin of The New York Times: "With 1.3 billion potential fans, China is increasingly seen as a financial promised land for N.B.A. stars through endorsement deals, and the league itself has established a robust organization here valued at $2 billion. But China's own professional league, the Chinese Basketball Association, has hardly enjoyed a smooth ascendance alongside this country's basketball boom. American players and agents describe broken contracts, unpaid wages, suspicions of game-fixing and rising resentment toward foreign players. Several players have left China after failing to receive paychecks. Last month, the league announced that it lost $17 million last season, which ended in May. Players and coaches in China's professional league said problems escalated last season after the association loosened salary and court-time restrictions on foreign players, part of an effort to heighten the game's appeal to China's growing N.B.A fan base and to bring in more lucrative sponsorship deals. The association also hoped the prowess of imported players would help bolster China's basketball prospects for the 2012 Summer Olympics. The efforts yielded conflicting results. TV ratings soared, and foreign players found starring roles -- the top 15 scorers were non-Chinese, and players like Bonzi Wells and Dontae' Jones -- who had less than stellar N.B.A. careers -- frequently scored more than 40 points a game. At the same time, the dominance of foreign players fueled frustration. 'Foreigners should play supporting roles, not dominate the game,' said Zhang Xiong, director of operations for the Chinese Basketball Association."
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