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Ronnie Brewer Resents Utah Didn’t Try to Bring Him Back

October 07, 2010   Chris Tomasson   No comments

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Ronnie BrewerDALLAS — Ronnie Brewer wanted last summer to return to Utah as a free agent and general manager Kevin O’Connor had said Jazz officials would talk to him.

In the end, though, the guard said Utah never made a serious run at him, and Brewer believes the Jazz pretty much had closed the door on him after a contract extension couldn’t be reached last fall and he was traded last February to Memphis. So he ended up signing a three-year, $12.5 million deal with Chicago.

“I kept in constant conversation with my agent (Henry Thomas) every day,” Brewer said in an interview with FanHouse before a preseason game against Dallas on Thursday, the second straight game Brewer has missed due to a sore right hamstring. “Kevin O’Connor didn’t contact me or (Thomas) even though I guess he said he did. He said that he was going to get back with them and he said he was going to get back with me. And he didn’t really pursue (it).”

O’Connor declined comment. Indications are O’Connor last summer did talk to Thomas, who did not immediately return a call, but no offer ever was made on Brewer. The Jazz ended up signing guard Raja Bell as the replacement for Wesley Matthews, who bolted to Portland after signing a five-year, $33.4 million offer sheet the Jazz didn’t match.

 

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Adam Morrison Accepts Wizards’ Training Camp Invitation

September 21, 2010   Matt Watson   No comments

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Adam MorrisonAdam Morrison has accepted a training camp invitation on a make-good contract with the Wizards, Michael Lee of the Washington Post reports, citing two unnamed league sources.

Morrison, 26, won back-to-back championships with the Los Angeles Lakers but never cracked the team’s rotation, appearing in only 31 regular-season games this past season, as well as only two playoff games the previous two years combined. In fact, ever since Morrison played 78 games in 2006-07 as a rookie, he’s appeared in just 83 games over the last three seasons, missing the entire 2007-08 campaign with a torn ACL.

After averaging 29.8 minutes and 11.8 points — albeit with woefully inefficient (37.8 percent) shooting — in his first season, he’s never averaged greater than 13.7 minutes or 4.0 points. Needless to say, it’s unlikely he’ll ever match the expectations placed upon him when the Charlotte Bobcats drafted him third overall in 2006, ahead of fellow lottery picks Brandon Roy (No. 6) and Rudy Gay (No. 8), not to mention late-bloomer Rajon Rondo (No. 21).

That said, there’s no reason he can’t reinvent himself from a complete bust into a useful player. For the first time in years, Morrison has a chance to carve out steady playing time. As Lee notes, the Wizards currently have only 12 players with guaranteed contracts, meaning up to three roster spots are up for grabs in training camp. Morrison has never been very adept at creating his own shot — and even less so after his knee injury — but if he can find consistency with his once-acclaimed stroke as a spot-up shooter, he may be able to extend his career for several seasons.

 

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Louis Amundson to Sign With Warriors

September 13, 2010   Sam Amick   No comments

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Louis AmundsonFifth-year forward Louis Amundson has agreed to terms with Golden State on a two-year deal worth a little less than $5 million, according to his agent.

The move comes after months of deliberation for Amundson, the undrafted big man who was a key reserve for Phoenix the last two seasons and has carved a niche in the league despite his limited skill-set. He was reportedly pursued by Indiana, New Orleans, Toronto and Charlotte, but opted to bring his hustling, glue-guy ways to the Warriors. He will join the likes of Andris Biedrins and newly-acquired David Lee on the frontline.

“It was a long process — unbelievably long,” Amundson’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, told FanHouse. “To the Warriors’ credit, they really, really pursued him doggedly. They stayed after it and stayed after it. … It was a tough decision for Louis. We felt like he made such great strides in his game in the last two years and he wanted to continue the progression. This was an important decision to make the right step.”

 

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Joe Smith Replaces Sean May on Nets

September 11, 2010   Tom Ziller   No comments

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Joe SmithThe Nets announced Friday the team had signed 35-year-old forward Joe Smith, less than a week after waiving Sean May, who had suffered a stress fracture in his foot while preparing for training camp. Smith played for the Hawks last season, and the Nets will be his 11th team in his 16th NBA season. Smith is only one of 101 NBA players in history to play at least 1,000 regular season games; for comparison’s sake, graying Tim Duncan will reach that threshold this season, and Kurt Thomas is still 34 games away.

That speaks of commendable longevity, even if Smith, the No. 1 pick in 1995, didn’t exactly peak as highly as most believed he would. What’s not clear is whether Smith is helping his team on the court as this point. Deposed Hawks coach Mike Woodson didn’t seem to think so, with Smith’s minutes dropping off a shelf, as this sparkline of Joe’s career minutes-per-game average shows: . Smith has been a roleplayer for several years; at this point, but last year, at fewer than 10 minutes a game, he had basically become a bit player.

 

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Linas Kleiza, New and Improved, Looks Forward to NBA Return

September 07, 2010   Chris Tomasson   No comments

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Linas KleizaISTANBUL — When Linas Kleiza was last seen in the NBA, he was hanging out beyond the arc. In the 2009 Western Conference finals for Denver against the Lakers, 19 of his 30 field-goal attempts were three-pointers.

But then Kleiza went to Greece for a season to play. He got stronger. He got smarter. He grew a scraggly beard that makes him look tougher.

Like an advertisement for a laundry detergent, Kleiza can claim to be new and improved. But the truth is he is.

This refined version of Kleiza was on display Tuesday in a knockout round game in the World Championship at the Sinan Erdem Dome. The forward scored a game-high 30 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Lithuania in a 78-67 win over China to advance to a Thursday quarterfinal against Argentina, which beat Brazil 93-89 later Tuesday.

 

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Shaq Claims to Have Turned Down More Money From Hawks, Pistons

September 07, 2010   Tom Ziller   No comments

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Shaquille O'NealMany were surprised when Shaquille O’Neal, long a proud, proud superstar, agreed this summer to subjugate himself not only in a pecking order by joining the Celtics, a professed team of equals, but also by taking an ego hit in his pocketbook, signing a minimum value contract.

Of course, O’Neal is at the end of his career, preparing his ride into the twilight, hoping to finish with more titles than Kobe Bryant (who is one ahead) and/or Tim Duncan (knotted at four). The Celtics provide a better opportunity than most suitors would, or at least in comparison with suitors who would agree to bring Shaq back. (The Heat and Lakers need not apply.)

But did Shaq actually have high-dollar options out there? We know Shaq flirted with the Atlanta Hawks — FanHouse’s own Tim Povtak reported that the team offered O’Neal a two-year deal starting at the mid-level exception. FanHouse’s Chris Tomasson later reported that after signing Joe Johnson, the Hawks were reticent to cross the luxury tax threshold, and thus had ruled a money-hunting Shaq out.

 

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Report: Hornets Lied About Luther Head’s Ankle

September 05, 2010   Tom Ziller   No comments

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Luther HeadLuther Head, former guard for the Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers, has agreed to a non-guaranteed one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings, according to Yahoo!’s Adrian Wojnarowski. If Head is on the Kings‘ roster on Dec. 1, his $992,000 salary will become fully guaranteed. He is expected to compete for a roster spot with undrafted rookie Donald Sloan out of Texas A&M, former Celtic J.R. Giddens and 1-2 other fringe NBA players.

More interesting is how Head got here.

In July, Head reached a two-year, $2.5 million agreement with the Hornets. But before Head could sign the contract, the Hornets withdrew the offer, claiming the guard failed the physical on account of his surgically repaired ankle. Wojnarowski reports that this was a cover story for New Orleans.

Woj reports that when GM Jeff Bower was fired after the verbal agreement on Head’s contract but before pen met paper, Hornets president Hugh Weber decided he didn’t want Head’s deal on the cap for the next personnel boss. Failing Head on his physical was an easy cover story, so the guard’s deal was canceled.

 

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Kwame Brown Signs With Bobcats, Reunites With Jordan

August 23, 2010   Tom Ziller   No comments

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If you had to name the franchise least likely to sign free-agent center Kwame Brown, the Bobcats — now owned by Michael Jordan — would have to be at the top. Jordan was the general manager who selected Brown for the Wizards with the No. 1 overall pick in 2001. Not only did MJ reportedly treat Brown like a bad dog in D.C., calling him names and expressing eternal regret, but Brown has served as an albatross for MJ’s post-playing career.

Yet somehow, some way, Brown is a new member of the Bobcats. ESPN.com’s Marc Stein reports Brown agreed to a one-year veteran’s minimum contract with Charlotte, earning the center $1.3 million for the 2010-11 season. The Bobcats traded incumbent starting center Tyson Chandler to the Mavericks and are expected to waive or trade Erick Dampier, the center who came back in that trade. Charlotte also has veterans Nazr Mohammed and DeSagana Diop.

The Bobcats made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history last season, but have two gaping positional holes at center and point guard. The team let Raymond Felton sign with the Knicks but signed Shaun Livingston and undrafted rookie Sherron Collins while keeping young D.J. Augustin. At both positions, the team has decent depth but no sure-thing starter.

 

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More Power to the Fans: An Interview with Dave Zirin

August 09, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals   No comments

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For over a decade now, author and radio personality Dave Zirin has tirelessly explored the intersection of sports and politics. He has two main angles of attack: spotlighting the rare athletes who make their views known, and laying out the ways in which politics seep into our discourse of sport.

It’s an uphill battle, to be sure. Many fans look on major leagues as the ultimate form of escapism. They represent an oasis, a place to get all worked up over things that don’t really matter. Next to figuring out immigration, the economy, race relations, war, and abortion, lamenting a tough playoff loss or your team’s lack of a rebounding might as well be comfort food.

Feminists have long insisted that “the personal is political”, and met with varying degrees of resistance for it. For Zirin, sport is always political — whether or not that’s a message we want to hear. Go ahead, accuse him of cherry-picking when he spotlights rabble-rousers like Etan Thomas or Josh Howard. When he calls foul on Stern’s dress code, or takes issue with Team USA’s Republican leadership, tuck him safely away in The Nation, away from the mainstream sports page.

But It’s becoming harder and harder to ignore Zirin’s perspective. Earlier this year, he was instrumental in fomenting for a boycott of the 2011 MLB All-Star Game in Arizona, a movement that has now been taken up by the players themselves. During the Los Suns saga, Zirin reported that union head Billy Hunter would like to see more in the way of NBA activism.

 

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Agent: Tolliver to Sign with Minnesota

August 06, 2010   Chris Tomasson   No comments

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Anthony TolliverForward Anthony Tolliver, one of the top free agents left out of a very thin crop, has reached an agreement to sign with Minnesota.

Tolliver’s agent, Larry Fox, told FanHouse on Friday his client will join the Timberwolves. While Fox wouldn’t discuss terms, sources said he’ll get a two-year deal that could be worth as much as $4.8 million when incentives are considered.

“He’s really excited,” Fox said. “He can play (power forward) for them and be a stretch (small forward).”

The 6-foot-9 Tolliver, 25, averaged 11.7 points and 7.0 rebounds last season in 46 games with Portland and Golden State. Take away a scoreless two games with the Trail Blazers early in the season and he averaged 12.3 points and 7.3 rebounds in 44 games with the Warriors.

Golden State had strong interest in re-signing Tolliver. But in the end the Timberwolves, which had cleared a spot for Tolliver by trading Ryan Hollins last week, were thought to be the better option.

“They really wanted him,” Fox said of the Timberwolves. “It was like college recruiting. We were out there last Sunday, and they took us to a Twins game.”

Tolliver has played two NBA seasons after being undrafted out of Creighton. He spent parts of 2008-09 with Cleveland and San Antonio. After being waived last December by Portland, he finally got his chance after he joined the injury-riddled Warriors last January.

Chris Tomasson can be reached at tomasson@fanhouse.com or on Twitter @christomasson

 

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