To keep Dwight Howard, the Lakers will have to sell him on a vision for 2014 and beyond. As a result, if championships are his goal, the Rockets are the safer bet for a whole host of reasons. Read More. Written by Jonathan Tjarks on May 23, 2013
The event gives front offices the opportunity to evaluate D-League players with the possibility of offering Summer League or training camp invites. Read More.
Tyus Jones, the No. 2 overall recruit for 2014 and an excellent point guard, was selected by Paul Biancardi, Adam Finkelstein and John Stovall. Read More.
The Boston Celtics will host six point guards and four centers for draft workouts this weekend.
Point guards Shane Larkin of Miami, Phil Pressey of Missouri, Pierre Jackson of Baylor, Peyton Siva of Louisville, Erick Green of Virginia Tech, and Myck Kabongo of Texas are scheduled to attend.
The centers expected to participate are Jeff Withey of Kansas, Steven Adams of Pittsburgh, Colton Iverson of Colorado State, and Greg Echenique of Creighton.
The Celtics have the No. 16 pick in the June 27 draft.
Alvin Gentry wants to be considered for the Los Angeles Clippers’ coaching vacancy.
"If you look at that job, it's probably the best one out there," Gentry said. "When you take into consideration the talent level that they have and what they did this year."
Gentry has spent time examining how Vinny Del Negro handled the team.
"They need someone who can manage egos, that's huge with that team,” Gentry said. “You need someone who can manage the bench. That bench has been great for them and pretty much won probably 10-12 games outright for them.
"And you need someone who can come up with plays at the end of the game, a little more ball movement maybe.”
The Toronto Raptors have requested permission to interview Kevin Pritchard for their general manager opening, according to sources.
The Indiana Pacers do not want to allow interviews until the season ends. They are currently down 1-0 to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.
One of the possibilities that the Raptors have identified is teaming Pritchard with Oklahoma City assistant GM Troy Weaver.
The Toronto Raptors met with Masai Ujiri on Friday after the general manager received permission from the Denver Nuggets to interview, according to sources.
Tim Leiweke is aggressively pursuing Ujiri to become the Raptors' general manager and plans to present an offer that will pay him nearly $3 million annually over the course of a multi-year contract.
Ujiri's contract with the Nuggets expires on June 30 and it's possible an agreement can be struck that will allow him to leave sooner.
Ernie Grunfeld believes there's talent beyond the top two picks in the upcoming draft.
"Well, I think it’s a three-player draft," Grunfeld said, when told the draft is being described as top heavy, with the top two players being Nerlens Noel and Ben McLemore. "But I won’t tell you who that third player is."
Grunfeld seemed to suggest the Wizards already have a player in mind.
"Obviously we've been going through this process already, but the process will continue," he said. "And as I said before, we feel good about the player that’s probably going to be available to us at that spot."
Grunfeld wouldn’t rule out the possibility of trading the No. 3 pick.
"Well, I think everything is on the table," he said. "We feel good about where we are, we think we’ll get a nice player, but you never say never to anything."