There were many who wanted Juan Mendez to be the first Canadian ever drafted by the Toronto Raptors, however, it was widely known that the forward from Niagara might not have the full skill-set to compete in the league.  This did not stop the Raptors from making Mendez an offer to play in their summer league to which Mendez declined, opting to play for the Miami Heat.

Mendez's agent, Merle Scott, told The Associated Press. "We appreciate their interest and consideration," Scott said, referring to the Raptors. "But Juan's going to accept the Miami Heat invitation."

Miami Heat general manager is happy to have Mendez on the summer squad.

"If we got him, that's great," Pfund said. "That kid can play basketball. If he doesn't make it in this league, he'll make a whole lot of money playing in Europe or someplace else."

Miami Heat starting point guard Damon Jones chose not to exercise the one-year option on his contract making him a free agent.

Jones, the Heat's starting point guard this past season, had until midnight Thursday to invoke a $2.75 million option for 2005-06.

Jones, the only Miami player to appear in all 97 games, including playoffs, averaged 11.6 points and connected on 225 of 521 attempts from 3-point range during the regular season and had the fourth best assist-to-turnover ratio in the league at 3.57-1.

The Golden State Warriors have exercised the fourth-year contract options on guard Mickael Pietrus and forward Zarko Cabarkapa, Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Mullin announced today. Under the NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Warriors had until October 31, 2005 to exercise their options, which extend the contracts through the 2006-07 season.

"Mickael and Zarko played a big role in our second half success last season," said Mullin. "We look forward to watching their continued development in the future."

Pietrus, 23, averaged career-highs of 9.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 20.0 minutes in 67 games last season. Over his final 15 games played, he averaged 14.0 points in 22.8 minutes off the bench, while shooting 53.4% from the field.

They also announced that Rodney White has been waived.

Gary Payton, along with Sam Cassell and Jason Caffey, are due to appear in a Canadian court on Monday to face assault charges stemming from an incident outside a Toronto strip club, according to court documents obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.

The incident occurred in April 2003 after a Bucks/Raptors game with Payton being charged with one count of aggravated assault causing bodily harm and two counts of simple assault.

Cassell, who now plays for the Minnesota Timberwolves, is charged with two counts of simple assault, while Caffey, a free agent, faces one count of simple assault.

The Pistons have a need for another perimeter scorer off the bench and the plan is to fill that need through free agency.

It is likely that several veteran swingmen will become available this summer, as teams exercise a one-time only option to waive a big-salaried veteran from their tax rolls.

Michael Finley, Allan Houston and Jalen Rose are all expected to be released. Finley and Rose will likely be seeking the mid-level exception. Houston, who is older and in questionable health, will be available for the veteran's minimum.

Houston has told friends, by the way, that Detroit is at the top of his list. He played for the Pistons for three seasons starting in 1993-94. His wife is from Farmington Hills, and he is still close with Dumars and Hunter.

Reports are surfacing across the country that Paul Pierce is the biggest superstar available via trade this summer.

Danny Ainge's youth movement is in full swing and Pierce still has a ton of value as one of the best pure basketball players in the game.

This is not a Tracy McGrady situation where a trade must be made, which should help Ainge negotiate a favorable deal that gives the Celtics both salary cap flexibility, as well as young talent.

The Denver Nuggets will be looking for a veteran shooting guard this summer to complete their roster for the 2005-06 NBA season.  One obvious candidate for the job is the Mavericks? Michael Finley.

"I still think two-guard is a situation we need to address, which we obviously will attempt to do our best at," general manager Kiki Vandeweghe said Wednesday. "There are some positions that should be filled by veteran players."

The Seattle Supersonics extended qualifing offers to Vladimir Radmanovic, Ronald Murray, Reggie Evans and Damien Wilkins on Tuesday.

The small forward Radmanovic has put his Seattle house up for sale and there is much speculation he will go for a bigger contract elsewhere.

Ronald "Flip" Murray has seen very little time playing behind shooting guard Ray Allen, however, can be explosive in the few minutes he does play.

Reggie Evans had a breakthrough year as the Sonics power forward with tough defense and tenacious rebounding.

The youngster Damien Wilkins has shown much promise and had some very big games late in the season filling in for the injured Radmanovic and Rashard Lewis.

New York Knickerbockers President of Basketball Operations Isiah Thomas announced today that forward Michael Sweetney's option for the 2006-07 season has been picked up by the team.

Sweetney, 6-8, 270-pounds, finished his second season with the Knicks during 2004-05 and averaged 8.4 points and 5.4 rebounds in 77 games. Originally drafted as the ninth overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, the 22-year-old Washington, D.C.-native registered career-highs in almost every statistical category from his rookie season in 2003-04.

One NBA source said on Wednesday that the Bucks have reduced their coaching search to two candidates.

The primary object of the Bucks' search is considered to be former Minnesota Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders. But numerous reports say he is in line for the Detroit Pistons coaching job if Larry Brown departs.

Brown was scheduled to check into the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday for a three-day checkup, and it was unclear if the 64-year-old coach would be given a clear medical update by Friday.

The Bucks are believed to be focusing anew on Terry Stotts, the former Atlanta Hawks coach and a lead assistant to George Karl for four seasons in Milwaukee. Stotts served as an assistant on Mike Montgomery's Golden State Warriors staff last season.