Blazers make Hedo the “12:01″ call
Rip City Project | A Portland Trailblazers blog —
No smokescreens, no posturing, no rumors. Kevin Pritchard and the Blazers want Hedo Turkoglu, and they want him now, as in seconds after free-agency opened now. It’s a lot to process, all the thoughts and opinions out there, but here we go:
Ken Berger made the first call (I believe) and put down the number $50 million on the table. That’s a hell of a lot of dough for a 30-year old small forward, but every time I scratch my head about it, I remember that this is Portland’s only summer with cap space, and saving a few dollars by inking Turkoglu to an $8 million per year deal isn’t getting you another FA signing in the process. If Hedo is ...
NBA Free Agency: Bryant, Boozer, and Daryl Morey's Polish Plea
Outside the Boxscore —
Monday, I posted a list of the top 30 free agents this NBA off season, imho of course. The market on free agents opened several hours ago, 12:01 EST specifically. So far the action has amounted to a few players opting to stay/choosing not to opt out and one Daryl Morey petitioning Rockets fans to ...
Need for Sheed?
RedsArmy.com - The Voice Of Celtics Fans —
Via Marc Stein of ESPN.com: Boston has emerged as the hot new entrant in the race for 'Sheed, with my colleague Ric Bucher from ESPN The Magazine crediting Kevin Garnett for not only convincing Celtics personnel chief Danny Ainge to enter the bidding but leading the Celtics' lobbying efforts. ...
Sheed Rumors Gaining Momentum
CelticsBlog —
... I gave Tanguay a hard time about how he delivered the rumor a day ago, but now the rumor is picking up steam. Marc Stein is reporting: ...
And the Madness Has Begun: Hello ‘Sheed, Goodbye Leon?
Boston Celtics Basketball - Celtics news, rumors and analysis - CelticsHub.com —
A quick round-up of the day’s free agency news, with our usual Celtics slant:
• KG is apparently going full-out to try and convince ‘Sheed to come to Boston, according to Stein. As I explained yesterday, I have mixed feelings. If we get the engaged ‘Sheed for one year at the full mid-level, I’m in. Of course, with someone so unpredictable, you cannot guarantee engagement. If he asks for a multi-year mid-level deal, I’m out of the bidding. I’m not willing to tie up the mid-level for multiple seasons on an aging big man who showed only occasional commitment to playing hard last season.
Of course, signing ‘Sheed ...
A Nightmare Scenario
48 Minutes of Hell —
Work with me for a second.
Assume the Spurs close out the offseason in style, signing an impact player with their MLE. They go into camp as a favorite, and all their efforts and newly acquired talent put the team back in the Finals, against, say, the Cavs. The series is tight, and all the major players are earning their checks. Then, in a crucial moment, Manu Ginobili gets hot. Goes on one of those Chuck Norris couldn’t guard me tears, and Mike Brown is forced to counter. Brown looks to the bench for his cooler. The camera tightens in on one of his sharp-browed what-would-Pop-do stares. He needs someone who can come in and ice Manu. Mike Brown calls Bruce ...
NBA Free Agency Update: Villanueva to DET?
WaitingForNextYear —
While we anxiously await the addition of a “stretch” power forward, a defensive stopper on the wing or anything of that ilk, I thought it would be best to update you all on the most recent grumblings around the league regarding the top-billed free agents. smugly-hedo-turkoglu ...
Lee, Robinson, and Wilcox Hit the Market
Posting and Toasting —
... - Marc Stein says otherwise, but I would think that the Darko Milicic acquisition makes Marcin Gortat a lot less interesting to Donnie Walsh. Actually, I kind of think I prefer Darko to Gortat, even ignoring finances. Maybe that's just me. ...
Bucher: KG lobbying for Wallace
17Banners.com —
... The latest rumors have the Celtics, per Kevin Garnett's request, lobbying hard for Rasheed Wallace: ...
No one in Oklahoma City is saying so, but rival teams keep insisting that the Thunder are poised to...
SLC Dunk —
... Thanks to UtesFan89 for the heads-up Marc Stein: The latest chatter on free agency - ESPN
Free Agency Begins
Sir Charles In Charge | An NBA Blog —
As the clock struck midnight last night it signaled the start of the NBA free agent period. As I went to sleep last night I was expecting to wake up to a bunch of different happening overnight, however, when I woke up and checked the internet it seemed like it was a relatively quiet night.
Marc Stein of ESPN is doing a nice job of getting to the bottom of some of the teams’ focuses in free agents. Among his findings:
- Apparently the Pistons have slid Charlie Villanueva ahead of Hedo Turkoglu on their forward wish list that they wish to pair with Ben Gordon. Also in the fold of forwards would be Paul Milsap. The Pistons may be looking for a ...
Marc Stein with some Nuggets rumors
Denver Stiffs —
Marc Stein with some Nuggets rumors
Keep in mind these are all rumors:
Nuggets looking at Grant Hill:
"Fresh off a trip to the Western Conference finals, Denver keeps coming up as a team hot for Hill, who earned less than $4 million over the past two seasons with the Suns."
Andersen could come to verbal ...
Fear The Links - Wednesday 7/1
Fear The Sword —
... The News-Herald
Bob Finnan discusses the Cavs interest in Varejao and Villanueva and has other Cavs notes.
Around The Internet
At TheClevelandFan, Jesse Lamovsky looks at the free agents available while Sam Amico looks at the needs for every team in the Eastern Conference.
Scott at WaitingForNextYear discusses the recent rumblings on the top free agents.
Marc Stein at ESPN.com discusses the latest free agency news and think the Pistons will go hard ...
Wolves Updates 7/1 Part 2
TWolves Blog - Minnesota Timberwolves News and Articles —
From Marc Stein/ESPN:
We're also hearing that new Wolves president David Kahn is assembling a l-o-n-g list of candidates to interview for his coaching opening, suggesting that his search to replace Kevin McHale could consume the bulk of this month. Some of the more prominent names Kahn wants to talk to in addition to presumed favorite Mark Jackson: Sam ...
The Genius of the Allen Iverson Trade: Gone
ESPN.com - TrueHoop —
When Allen Iverson was traded to the Pistons, I wrote a post about how smart the Pistons were. The trade positioned them to be major players in free agency in their choice of years -- 2009 or 2010. With (then) a winning tradition, a big fanbase, a talented roster and a general manager with a stellar reputation, the Pistons looked to be in position to add some extraordinary pieces. At the time, I threw around names like LeBron James and Chris Bosh. Now they are a team with a fired coach, several key veterans with one foot out the door, and good players who don't appear to fit well together. Today the talk is that the Pistons have their ...
All quiet on the Western front
Uwe Blog —
Charlie V: Someone's about to get rich beyond his actual ability The NBA free agency period began about 12 hours ago and so far not a peep. Kobe Bryant ain't going anywhere. Neither are Mehmet Okur or Carlos Boozer from the Jazz. I love how Charlie Villanueva is suddenly the hot free agent ...
Blazers will reportedly meet with Hedo Turkoglu Thursday
Blazers Blog —
... Blazers coach Nate McMillan is flying to Orlando to have a Wednesday night dinner with the Blazers' top free-agent target, Hedo Turkoglu. Turkoglu's agent, Lon Babby, said Wednesday that Turkoglu will then travel to Oregon for a Thursday tour of the Blazers' facilities and meetings with Portland general manager Kevin Pritchard and assistant GM Tom Penn. Stein is also reporting the Detroit Pistons, who have the largest cap space available to sign free agents this summer, may focus their attention on former Milwaukee Buck Charlie Villanueva . And, That has established Portland ...
Heard It Through the Grapevine
The Two Man Game —
The Mavs have been in contact with all of their free agents (yes, that means you, Gerald Green), as well as Marcin Gortat and Quinton Ross. Gortat was to be expected; the Mavs need help in the middle and they need it bad. Ross, on the other hand, is a bit of a wild card. He bears a pretty close resemblance to Antoine Wright on the court, which isn’t that bad I guess. He also serves as evidence that the Mavs are looking to assemble the entire cast of role players from the 2005 Clippers (Wilcox and VladRad, ahoy!).
According to Woj at Yahoo! Sports, Gortat’s agent is spreading word that he’s already received one offer for the ...
Five teams contact Hedo Turkoglu; Magic talk to Bass
Orlando Magic Daily —
UPDATE: The Magic made a call to Brandon Bass earlier today.
Carlos Boozer decided to stick with the Jazz for one more season, (very arguably) making Hedo Turkoglu the most coveted free agent available. The 30-year-old received calls from five teams today: the Portland Trailblazers, Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, Toronto Raptors and Memphis Grizzlies.
Per the Orlando Sentinel:
"I heard from five teams last night. Portland was first right at midnight," Babby said.
Asked if the Magic were one of those teams, Babby said, "I have not spoken with (General Manager ) Otis (Smith) yet."
It ...
Free Agency News: $60 Million For Turk? The King Courting Artest? Several Team Interested in Gortat.
Howard the Dunk | An Orlando Magic Blog —
According to the Oregonian, the Toronto Raptors are preparing to offer Magic SF Hedo Turkoglu a 5 year deal worth $60 million.
“However, in order for Toronto to clear enough money to sign Turkoglu to the five-year, $60 million deal, it would have to renounce the contracts of Shawn Marion, Anthony Parker, Carlos Delfino, Patrick O’Bryant and Quincy Douby. The team is leery of taking that path, having that same tactic backfire last season when it created room for the arrival of Jermaine O’Neal.”
More power to you Turk. This is a ridiculous amount of money for Hedo. It also being reporting that Rudy Fernandez is ...
