To tell Bryant he was going to play for the Lakers. John Ireland, writing for CBS2.com, has the story:

After Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest got into that, “war of words” in March back in Houston, I asked Kobe what he really thought of Artest.

“We’re friends,” Kobe said, “I like him a lot–like his game–always have.”

Then he told me a story that makes today’s news–Artest is supposedly on his way to LA for three years, $18 million–very likely to happen.

Kobe said that after the Lakers lost game six of the ‘08 NBA Finals in Boston by 39 points, he was alone in the shower, just fuming.  He heard somebody walk in and assumed it was one of his teammates, or maybe a staff member.  Instead, he looked up, and it was Ron Artest (to this day, Kobe has no idea how Artest got into the locker room).

“I want to come help you,” Artest said.  “If I can, I’m going to find a way to come to LA and give you the help you need to win a title.”

Kobe didn’t think much of it, especially since Artest still had a year left on his deal with the (Kings), and that the Lakers were returning an entire team that had just won the Western Conference.  Plus, players talk like that a lot, and it’s just talk.  But it struck Kobe as a nice gesture, especially since he had just been hammered by the Celtics and nobody was saying much of anything.  Kobe told me that the perception a lot of people have of Artest is wrong.

“He competes….every night, every play,” Kobe said.  “I’ve known him since high school and he’s always been like that.”

(Via TLN)

According to Frank Dell’Apa and Marc J. Spears of The Boston Globe, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Danny Ainge and Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck met with Rasheed Wallace in Detroit yesterday. Sources indicated Ainge offered Wallace a contract using their mid-level exception. Other teams pursuing Wallace are Charlotte, Cleveland, Orlando, and San Antonio.

In somewhat related news, Jimmy Shapiro of SportsRadioInterviews.com spotted Pierce at the Wynn Casino last night. Pierce owns a home in Las Vegas, so he apparently flew back to Nevada following the “three-hour meeting” in Michigan. Shapiro shares his exchange with the former Finals MVP:

So I’m heading back to my room and I see Paul Pierce playing craps.  Obviously, he wasn’t part of the contingency romancing Rasheed Wallace to the Celtics on Thursday or most likely on Friday.  I’m in a semi-Red Bull and Vodka daze, but not enough that I don’t have my bearings or really need to worry about spelling words incorrectly.  I watch him play craps for a few minutes and when a lull in the action occurs, I say “I thought you were supposed to be wooing Sheed”.  The Truth didn’t take too kindly to my statement.  He then says, “Oh man, can’t I get any privacy! Shouldn’t you be looking for girls.”  I then tell him I’m married and Pierce then says to me “Then why are you in Vegas?”  My response is I’m here on business working with Doyle Brunson for the WSOP Main Event.  He loses his roll of the dice and slams his hand down on the craps table as hard as he can.  I’m not sure if I should feel guilty, not give a crap, or run as fast as I can.

I decide to stay for another minute.  He mutters some more stuff under his breath and then offers to buy shots for me since I’m not chasing women.

J.A. Adande of ESPN.com:  “LeBron or Kobe? Kobe or Shaq? These weren’t just classic sports arguments for Ron Artest. For him, this was real life, real money and perhaps his last real shot at an NBA championship. He chose Kobe. Or maybe his decision was more about Los Angeles over Cleveland (no contest there). After all, he was sitting courtside at Staples Center almost as much Jack and Denzel after the Lakers eliminated the Rockets from the playoffs, and he’s already familiar with two fixtures of L.A. nightlife: TMZ paparazzi and bacon-wrapped hot dogs. He even has a cell phone with a 310 area code. But from a basketball perspective, Artest’s choice reaffirms the final theme of this season: Shaq was then, Kobe’s now, LeBron’s next. At the moment, nothing matters in the NBA world as much as what the Lakers are up to.”

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports:  “As Kobe hits his 30s, he can’t be chasing the best player on defense every night. Now, Artest gets the job. What’s more, Kobe gets a maniac who will want to please him, get his approval. Anything is possible with Ron-Ron running roughshod in Los Angeles. ‘I hope it’s chaos,’ a Western Conference GM texted Thursday night. And maybe, in some ways, that won’t be the worst thing in the world for the Lakers. Chaos? That’s letting your agent’s agenda and big mouth get your butt shipped from the Los Angeles Lakers for lottery land in Houston. Kobe Bryant had been willing to take back his whole team, but Ariza made the mistake of giving the Lakers what they always wanted, what they always believed was available to them: the combustible and crazy Ron Artest. Kobe Bryant gets his Rodman now, and yes, this is how all hell breaks loose in Hollywood.”

Kelly Dwyer of Yahoo! Sports:  “The Lakers don’t need him. His off-court palatables hardly matter. The Laker offense begs for players whose hands don’t stick to the ball, and Ron’s hands stick to the ball like no other. He’s the wrong idea. He’s a wasted face. He’s the wrong choice. Let that sink in. He’s the wrong choice. The Lakers, as presented during June of 2009, had no flaws. Honestly, not a single flaw, outside of defending point guards. Artest, as great as he is, solves absolutely nothing. He’s a fine player, and everyone knows his name, but the Lakers don’t need him. He’ll spin the radio chat show fodder funk to no end, but that means absolutely nothing. He’s a defensive-minded small forward heading toward a team with small forward depth and a good defensive history.”

Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times:  “Less than three weeks after the parade, the NBA champion Lakers have already met the biggest threat to their throne. Themselves. What are they thinking? What are they doing? They just won a title that would not have been possible without the strong defense and stunning shooting of a 24-year-old kid with a limitless ceiling. Yet they send the kid packing for an aging nut whose greatest hits have occurred on the heads of fans. They just won a title with a locker room bathed in the soothing light of unselfishness, teamwork and a quiet temerity. Yet they cut the power and added the darkest of moods, a guy who has made a career out of hoarding the ball, the attention, and the anger. Tell me again, why did they get rid of Trevor Ariza for Ron Artest?”

Terry Pluto of The Cleveland Plain Dealer:  “The big man in the charcoal suit with the pink shirt and tie delivered a smile that could wipe the tears off even the gloomiest, wet Cleveland day. Shaquille O’Neal arrived at the Cavaliers practice facility today for a meet the town news conference, and he delivered a slam dunk to his critics who believe the future Hall of Fame center will destroy the chemistry of the team that won an NBA-best 66 games. ‘We all know this is LeBron’s team, he’s the captain,’ said O’Neal. ‘My motto is ‘Win a Ring for the King.’‘ Yes, O’Neal knows that LeBron James rules the pro basketball kingdom in Cleveland. He knows that this was a very talented team, even before last week’s trade with Phoenix bringing O’Neal to Cleveland in exchange for Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, a 2010 second round draft pick and $500,000. He also knows that James has everything in the basketball world except a championship. Even more important, winning does follow O’Neal around.”

Mitch Lawrence of the Daily News:  “All over Ohio, basketball fans are no doubt wracking their fertile minds, trying to come up with a new nickname for Shaquille O’Neal. Let me save everybody all the mental gymnastics. Just call the new Cav, the ‘Big Delusional.’ Arriving with the motto, ‘Win a Ring for the King,’’ Shaq wasn’t in Cleveland five minutes when he dropped the E-bomb on Cavs owner Dan Gilbert. It’s always been about the dough for O’Neal and he didn’t hide his desire to get two more years after this one. That would take him through his 40th birthday. ‘I’ve been in it for 17 years but I’ve missed three years because of injury,’’ he said of his storied NBA career. ‘If you do the math, I’ve still got three years left. You got that?’ Hey Big Guy, how about winning some games first? Go help Cleveland win its first title in any sport since 1964 before you look to add to your bank account. Go do what you did for Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade before you start asking for another $70 million extension. Somewhere, Laker owner Jerry Buss must have shook his head and said, ‘He hasn’t changed a bit.’”

Brian Windhorst of The Plain Dealer:  “The dominoes starting falling in the NBA on Day Two of free agency. Some of the players the Cavaliers had significant interest in appear to be headed other places but they are still very much in the free-agent game. According to a league source, the Cavaliers have begun homing in on Toronto Raptors free-agent guard Anthony Parker after both Ron Artest and Trevor Ariza appeared set to go to other teams. Another source said the Cavs also have spoken to another Raptors free agent, former All-Star Shawn Marion, though it was not clear late Thursday if the two sides had gotten serious. Both players are unrestricted free agents. Any scenarios with the Raptors’ free agents might take a little time as the Raptors, who own both players ‘Bird’ rights, can outbid the Cavs if they choose. Toronto is reportedly close to re-signing guard Carlos Delfino, who played last season in Europe, and might not put up much of a fight for Parker.”

Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle:  “Finally, we’re going to have an Adelman team that plays like an Adelman team. I’m so giddy about Ariza that I’m willing to forgive and forget with T-Mac. OK, so we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s take a deep breath and go one step at a time. Ariza is a first-rate defensive player, threw in almost 50 percent of his 3-pointers in the playoffs, and is still only 24. Yes, there’s still that hole at center. Give Daryl Morey a couple more days to take care of that issue. Maybe you’ve heard Ariza wasn’t Morey’s first choice. You would be right about that. In fact, I’m guessing Morey took a flyer on Ariza, never figuring he had a chance to land him. Ariza told the Lakers and other teams it wasn’t going to be about the money, but that’s what people say. He apparently meant it, however; one source esti-mates he left $9 million on the table to join the Rockets.”

Mike Barrett of Blazers.com:  “Turkoglu is the best option available. As we saw in the playoffs, this team needs not only a veteran presence, but needs a third scorer. It needs someone who can create their own shot, creative mismatches, handle the ball on the perimeter, and shoot with range. Mostly though, it needs another player who makes his teammates better. Plain and simple, Turkoglu would make Greg Oden better. He’d take pressure off Brandon Roy, and his offense would result in more quality looks for LaMarcus Aldridge. If you know the NBA, you know the bread-and-butter play for most teams is the side pick and roll. If you watched the Orlando Magic in the playoffs, you saw that few players initiate the side pick and roll better than Turkoglu. Dwight Howard, who’s offense is very close to what Oden’s will be, absolutely loved Turkoglu. He, above any other Orlando player, stands to lose the most if they lose Hedo (Howard called Turkoglu on the phone at least three times on Thursday alone, begging him to come back to Orlando). Oden has already become pretty good at setting the pick, and rolling, and with Turkoglu in the mix, he’d be getting the ball.”

Frank Isola of the Daily News:  “A person close to the veteran point guard confirmed that the Knicks presented Kidd with a three-year contract worth approximately $18 million Saturday. The Mavs offered Kidd a three-year contract worth between $25million and $30million. Kidd could take at least one more week to make a decision. Signings do not become official until this coming Wednesday. Mavs owner Mark Cuban is optimistic that Kidd will re-sign with Dallas. The Knicks, who entertained Kidd on Wednesday, showed their commitment by offering three years. They originally planned to offer Kidd a one- or two-year contract but added a third year in order to stay competitive with Dallas. Several league executives are convinced that Kidd is using the Knicks in order to squeeze more money out of Dallas. But a source close to Kidd claims that he is excited by the challenge of helping to turn around the Knicks. Also, Kidd believes that he could help lure LeBron James to New York if James becomes a free agent next summer.”

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:  “To a degree, an Allen Iverson-Heat marriage makes sense. For years, Pat Riley has run a last-chance saloon. But it’s not going to happen the first week of free-agent negotiations. It’s not going to happen at the July 8 start of the free-agent signing period. And it’s not going to happen until after the July 12 window opens for Dwyane Wade to be eligible to sign an extension. Iverson makes sense because Iverson may not have many other options. But until the Knicks spend their mid-level exception, until Larry Brown gets an official rejection from Bobcats management, and until the remaining precious little cap space around the league is spent, Iverson doesn’t have to move to Plan B. With the Heat already into the dollar-for-dollar luxury tax, anything paid to Iverson will be doubled on the books next season. So even with a $2 million contract, is he worth $4 million at this stage?”

Geoff Calkins of the Memphis Commercial Appeal:  “Of course the Grizzlies should sign Allen Iverson. Then they should sign Dennis Rodman, too. Why not at this point? What do they have to lose? I see Iverson and Zach Randolph as the team co-captains. Running voluntary practices. Or not. I see Rodman springing out of retirement and off the bench. Same with J-Will. There’s another good bench guy. Stephon Marbury could help out. And don’t give me that nonsense about Iverson (or Rodman or J-Will or Marbury) not fitting into the community or the three-year plan. This team is bringing in Randolph, sports fans. Three-year, schmee year. It’s not like the Grizzlies could care much about image, either. The team of Shane Battier has morphed into the team of Z-Bo.”

Tim Buckley of the Deseret News:  “All was quiet Thursday on the Paul Millsap front, with Millsap’s camp seemingly hunkered down for the long haul and the Jazz banned by NBA rule from discussing their free-agency plans until early next week. Millsap, the Jazz’s backup power forward and a restricted free agent, still had no formal offers as of early Thursday night. Oklahoma City apparently remains Millsap’s primary suitor, with the Jazz still planning to match any offer sheet he signs with another team — unless, that is, they deem it to be financially outrageous. Millsap’s camp had been seeking a deal starting at more than $10 million, but no such offer was made when the league’s summer shopping market opened late last Tuesday night. If Millsap does not sign another team’s sheet, the Jazz might not be willing to offer much more — if any — than the amount Milwaukee Bucks unrestricted free agent Charlie Villanueva will be getting to sign with the Detroit Pistons.”

Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman:  “Gerald Green, the 6-foot-8 swingman who surrendered a scholarship to Oklahoma State in 2005 to jump straight to the NBA, is now a four-year veteran. He’s played for four different coaches on four different teams. ‘It’s been a roller-coaster,’ said Green about the start to his career. ‘It’s gone up and down and in circles. But I don’t ever give up.’ It’s low-risk, high-reward players like Green that Thunder general manager Sam Presti has become known for targeting. Green turned only 23 in January and figures to be four years from entering into the prime of his career. For now, he’s seemingly a cost-effective option that potentially could provide Oklahoma City with another perimeter shooter and rangy defender on the wing. And after four seasons of instability, Green is out to established himself as more than a dunker and better than a bust.”

Doug Smith of the Toronto Star:  “His leg was bad, his finger was bad, his game was bad and his team was bad as the 2008-09 NBA season got away from the Raptors, the 27-year-old point guard a lightning rod for criticism. But he knew what they were saying and he concurred; he also knows it was an aberration, and as the days pass in Spain, the No. 1 task at hand is restoring some life to those legs, some explosiveness to the body, some peace to his mind. That is the single-minded goal of Calderon this summer: Become the Calderon of old. He may not be one to play the ‘everyone’s-against-me-I’ll-prove-them-wrong’ card; he is simply supremely confident that given good health after a summer of work, that people will go back to lauding him as they were the season before last. ‘It was not me, I knew it, I was like 50 per cent,’ Calderon said in a telephone conversation from Spain yesterday. ‘My numbers were good but I was not playing. And I knew it.’”

Matthew Sekeres of the Globe and Mail:  “Speaking yesterday in suburban Vancouver, where he presided over the opening of the Steve Nash Sports Club, his second athletic complex in B.C.’s Lower Mainland, Nash said his agent, Bill Duffy, is scheduled to meet with Suns general manager Steve Kerr next week. Nash also suggested a deal could be announced in the near future. But the Victoria, B.C. native, who is heading into the final year of a contract that will pay him $13.1 million U.S. in 2009-10, acknowledged that if the sides can’t reach a consensus, ‘than a trade would always be a possibility.’ And if that’s the case, the point guard said he would like to play in New York, where his family spends its summers. ‘I would preface it by saying that I love Phoenix and that’s what I’m focusing on right now,’ Nash said. ‘But I live in New York City, and I love it there, and [Knicks head coach] Mike D’Antoni was one of my favourite coaches. If it didn’t work out in Phoenix, obviously that would be a place I’d consider.’”

Marc J. Spears of The Boston Globe:  “Celtics free agent guard Stephon Marbury said to The Globe early Friday morning that he doesn’t expect to be returning to Boston after receiving a disappointing one-year contract paying $1.3 million using the veteran’s minimum. Marbury said his representative, National Basketball Players Association deputy counsel Hal Biagas, called to tell him about the Celtics offer on Thursday night. The 32-year-old said three other teams, which he would not disclose, are currently interested. The two-time All-Star signed with the Celtics on Feb. 27 for the rest of the season after working out a buyout of his contract with the Knicks that paid $21.8 million after dealing with a soap opera-like situation that kept him sidelined over a year. Marbury averaged 3.8 points and 3.3 assists in 18 minutes per game during 23 contests last season with Boston.”

Chris Mannix of SI.com:  “The Boston Celtics made their pitch to Rasheed Wallace on Thursday. And Wallace was receptive. A contingent from the Celtics organization — including owner Wyc Grousbeck, President Danny Ainge, head coach Doc Rivers and All-Stars Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen — descended on Wallace’s suburban Michigan home on Thursday for a three-hour meeting with the free-agent forward. ‘Solid, thorough, cogent and very impressive,’ Wallace’s agent, Bill Strickland, told SI.com about Boston’s recruiting trip. ‘[They] definitely gave Rasheed and his wife something to think about.’ During the course of the meeting the Celtics offered Wallace a contract using their entire mid-level exception. It is unclear how many years Boston offered Wallace, who will be 35 at the start of next season. Multiple league executives believe Wallace is deciding between Boston and San Antonio.”

Ian Thomsen of SI.com:  “This new era was launched in November by the Pistons’ painful decision to move Chauncey Billups to Denver for the expiring contract of Allen Iverson. By breaking up a unit that had reached six straight conference finals, Dumars made it clear that he was planning to reload the franchise with younger players without plummeting deep into the lottery. It is an ambitious goal that will be difficult to execute. But these free-agent agreements amount to a good start for Detroit — so long as they are viewed as opening moves, rather than finishing pieces. As replacements, Gordon and Villanueva don’t measure up to the departed Billups or soon-to-be gone Rasheed Wallace, but consider the value of the latter stars before they arrived in Detroit more than five years ago. Billups had been with five teams in five years when he signed with Detroit for the mid-level exception starting at $4.6 million in 2002-03. Wallace’s value was so low that the Pistons stole him in 2004 for several role players and a couple of draft picks.”

• Ron Artest says he’s signing with the Lakers. Given Ron-Ron’s recent behavior, I’m going to take this report with a grain of salt. Though I’m a Ron Artest believer. He was a model citizen last season, and remains one of the league’s elite defenders. Pairing Artest with All-NBA defender Kobe Bryant would give Phil Jackson the same type of defensive options he enjoyed with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.  Those two — combined with a healthy Andrew Bynum patrolling the paint  — would transform the Lakers into the league’s top defensive team. But there are downsides as well. Signing Artest marks the end of Trevor Ariza’s time in LA. Ariza, who is six years younger than Artest, is a much better shooter, and carries far less baggage. Jonathan Feigen at the Houston Chronicle reports Artest’s time with the Rockets is over.

• Kobe or Michael? The commander in chief has spoken.

• The Celtics have offered Rasheed Wallace a contract. CelticsHub and 48 Minutes of Hell (Spurs) contemplate Wallace’s value.

• Marcin Gortat has given a verbal agreement to the Dallas Mavericks for the full MLE.

• Sekou Smith of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:  “From Athens to Milwaukee and back to Atlanta, the name Josh Childress is being tossed around in every direction these days. Childress is in Milwaukee today visiting the Bucks with his agent, Jim Tanner. What that means for the Hawks is that they might get a do-over with Childress, a restricted free agent again this summer as he was last summer. Last summer they lost him as an asset when he chose to sign with Greek power Olympiakos (for $20 million post taxes). What the Hawks didn’t lose was the right of first refusal on Childress if he decided to return to the NBA this summer. And two of my spies have made it clear that were Childress to receive any sort of ‘reasonable’ NBA offer (the $5.6 million mid-level exception or below), the Hawks would match it before Childress finished signing his name on the offer sheet (the aim, however, is to work out a sign-and-trade deal to appease both sides since Childress has made clear his desire to play elsewhere, per a source).”

• Jeremy Schmidt of Bucksketball pens an open letter to Piston fans:  “This is a guy who needs to be hitting his shots to be effective.  Remember when I mentioned him and Rasheed Wallace in the same sentence earlier?  I did that because as fun as it may have been to can the occasional three, I’m sure it was frustrating for a lot of you that he would so often settle for those with all that talent he had.  Well imagine having a player with more offensive talent (not compared to Sheed at 25, but Sheed at 300 or whatever he is) do the same thing and shoot an even worse percentage on threes.  That is what you’re in for.  Oh, and the comparison also had nothing to do with their defense. This is where Pistons fans are really in for something.  Bucks coaches have been fond over the years of saying they like to bring Villanueva in off the bench to ‘provide a spark’ or ‘give us instant offense.’  That is NBA code for he is a terrible defender.  It doesn’t even really make sense.  He seems to try most of the time and he has pretty good athletic ability, but I’ve seen him get abused time and time again by numerous power forwards.  His poor positioning and timing on defense usually lead to quick fouls and erratic performances when he’s lifted early in the game.”

• Visit NBA.com for a sneak peak at Shaq in the wine and gold, sporting #33.

• Brian Windhorst of The Plain Dealer:  “There was some laughter and fun this afternoon at Shaquille O’Neal’s official introduction to Cleveland. With Shaq, there always is. But there was also plenty of business. Wearing a black suit with a pink shirt and pink tie, O’Neal wanted to make two points as he spoke to media, team personnel, children from St. Martin DePorres school and season ticket and suite holders. One was his intention to help the Cavaliers and his friend LeBron James win a championship next season. The other is he’s still hoping to land a two-year contract extension. He made both points with his brand of humor with firmness. ‘My motto is simple,’ O’Neal said. ‘Win a Ring for the King.’

• Greg Esposito at Fanster writes to Cavalier fans:  “With the introduction of Shaquille O’Neal as a member of the Cavaliers today, we here in Phoenix thought it would be an appropriate time to have a little talk. We understand what you are going through today. We went through it on February 7, 2008. You feel excited, enthralled with every word Shaq has to say and dreams of championships are dancing in your head. It’s like Christmas, minus the fat guy in the red suit (that was a different introduction when Denny Green came to town). You’ve come so close over the last four years but were always missing one piece. With the introduction of the Big Aristotle you feel you have found that missing part. That one thing that will help win a title and keep King James in a Cleveland uniform for the long run. We felt it all here in Phoenix just a short year and a half ago and boy that championship parade felt even better. During the press conference today, Shaq said all the right things. He talked about fitting in, being able to play any style of basketball and knowing his roll. All things that sound oddly familiar to the tune the Big Shaqtus sang when he arrived in the Valley. Too bad it was all talk.”

• Piston powered breaks down the salary cap ramifications of the Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva signings.

• Headline of the day:  Wilt Chamberlain was so smooth, he bedded Barnes AND Noble

• UPDATE: From Ken Berger:  “Lakers spokesman John Black declined to comment on Artest’s assertion, but another person with knowledge of the situation corroborated Artest’s account that he will sign with L.A. pending the financial parameters being finalized.”

• UPDATE: Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times says the Lakers are close to a deal with Artest.

FOXSports.com’s NBA analyst Charley Rosen tackles that question and more in his latest mailbag. Here’s a snippet:

Pippen was an extraordinary team defender, but he was “only” a very good one-on-one defender. His ability to rotate, anticipate and provide judicious defensive help are very subtle endeavors that are beyond the ken of too many media folks.

He was an erratic 3-point shooter (32.6 percent lifetime) and could be counted on to force at least two trey attempts per game.

While Pippen was an empathetic and supportive teammate, he was frequently aloof, curt and unavailable to the media.

How often do second bananas get into the Hall of Fame? Especially since he only averaged 16.1 points per game for his career.

Most HOF voters are still unduly influenced by Pippen’s refusal to enter that infamous playoff game against the Knicks because Phil Jackson wanted him to be the inbounder and not the win-or-lose shot-taker. That’s why Pip has the undeserved reputation of being a selfish player.

There are plenty of “second bananas” in the Hall of Fame. Joe Dumars, who averaged 16.1 points with the Detroit Pistons, was enshrined in 2006. Not to mention Sam Jones, James Worthy, and Kevin McHale. Rosen questions Patrick Ewing and David Robinson HOF credentials, among others, and criticizes voters for focusing on numbers. Pippen’s career numbers are anything but stellar. However six rings, two gold medals, and multiple All-NBA and All-Defensive teams speak volumes. Pippen’s contributions deserve a space in Springfield.

Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press reports:

The Minnesota Timberwolves’ top draft pick, Ricky Rubio, 18, will remain in Spain to play for his DKV Joventut basketball team for the remaining two years of his contract rather than try to move to the NBA this season, El Periodico reported today.

The Barcelona newspaper also says Rubio, who was paid $97,000 last season, plans to withdraw his contract lawsuit against DKV Joventut.

Whether this is mere posturing on agent Don Fegan’s part is unclear, but it’s worth passing along.

Blazers assistant coaches Bill Bayno and Kaleb Canales have “thrown everything but the kitchen sink” at Oden over the last two weeks to prepare the former #1 pick for the upcoming season. Bayno reports the workouts have been divided equally between offense and defense, with an empasis on Oden’s lateral quickness, footwork, and balance. Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune has the story:

“I give Greg an A-plus,” Bayno says. “His effort has been fantastic. I’ve been pushing him hard. He has accepted it. He has worked with very little rest, but he doesn’t ask for a lot of rest.

“Today we went for an hour and 20 minutes straight. That’s a killer for one guy to go that long at the pace we’re going. We had two water breaks and shot free throws in between, but he’s been working really hard.”

Bayno says the workouts have been divided about equally between defense and offense.

“On defense, we’ve worked on lateral quickness, where he has to read and react and block shots,” the Portland assistant says. “Greg has surprised me how quick he is laterally. This is the first time I’ve put him through a lot of this stuff.

“Offensively, we’ve worked on counter moves, (such as) his go-to jump hook over the left shoulder. We’ve tried to get him as many repetitions as we can, and we’re adding counter moves, (such as) the spin back to the left hand. Also, an up-and-under move, where you’re trying to get (a defender) to go for the shot fake, and then use a step-through move back to his left hand.”

Oden’s greatest strengths in college were his quickness and leaping ability, but microfracture surgery and added weight (listed at 285) affected his athleticism last season. He moved awkwardly, with a lumbering gait that led to silly fouls on the defensive end. I’d like to see him lose 20-30 pounds, but Bayno insists that’s not a concern. At any rate, it’s good to see Oden is working hard to silence the critics who have questioned his work ethic.

Ken Berger of CBSSports.com:  “There must be more than meets the eye when it comes to the trade reported by the Los Angeles Times in which the Clippers send Zach Randolph to the Memphis Grizzlies for Quentin Richardson. Z-Bo makes $6.6 million more than Q-Rich and has two years left on his contract as opposed to Richardson’s one. Memphis is under the cap, so the trade doesn’t have to satisfy the 125 percent rule. Still, the Clippers should feel fortunate to have found such a willing taker. But let’s not let that get in the way of our euphoria — our flat-out ecstasy — over this trade. Quentin Richardson was one of the first bad contracts acquired by Isiah Thomas when he took over as president of the Knicks. Zach Randolph was another one. One of the worst. It was a miracle that Isiah was there to take Z-Bo from the Clippers on draft night a couple of years ago. Now we have one bad Knicks contract traded for another one. Eureka! Mike Dunleavy and Chris Wallace, the respective GMs, have found the holy grail. Next they will pay down the federal debt, cure cancer, and meet in the Western Conference Finals.”

Chip Crain of 3 Shades of Blue: “Michael Heisley has pulled off a remarkable feat.  The Pau Gasol deal made him a national laughingstock around the NBA when he traded 20 & 10 for nothing, yet now he has managed to again become a national laughingstock by trading nothing for 20 & 10. And to add insult to injury, Heisley got absolutely punked by Donald Sterling and Mike Dunleavy.  On draft night, Sterling turned down Z-Bo for Marko Jaric’s contract.  Sterling wouldn’t take the much cheaper second most untradeable contract in the NBA for the more expensive most untradeable one.  So Heisley gave Sterling a better deal – Richardson’s expiring instead of Jaric’s 2-year deal.  He didn’t even foist Greg Buckner’s Voidable Contract on the Clippers.  So not only did Heisley take on something that no one else in the NBA wanted – he overpaid for it. So the small market Grizzlies now have the 2 most most unmoveable contracts in the NBA (Randolph & Jaric) that will cost almost $50 million over the next 2 years representing about 50% of the team’s entire payroll over that time.”

Brian Windhorst of The Plain Dealer:  “Two players who didn’t seem like they were going to be available to the Cavaliers ended up in the team’s crosshairs at the end of day one of the NBA free-agency period. According to several league sources, the Cavs are attempting to land Houston Rockets free-agent forward Ron Artest, and the pitch included a meeting with LeBron James on Tuesday night in Los Angeles as both were in Southern California for various events. In addition, a league source indicated the team is trying to attract Los Angeles Lakers swingman Trevor Ariza, who appears to be disgruntled with the Lakers’ early attempts to re-sign him. Ariza’s agent, David Lee, told the Riverside, Calif., Press-Enterprise Wednesday, ‘I think I’m being optimistic when I say it’s not going anywhere.’ He added that Ariza might be ready to sign elsewhere.”

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:  “In the debate about whether Dwyane Wade should even consider extending his contract this summer (and therefore fast-tracking the Heat’s rebuilding program), there is only one argument Pat Riley can offer. At 27 and coming off a career year, does Wade want to sacrifice a prime year for another season of slow-go? While there might never be another season like 2008-09 from a statistical standpoint for Wade, it is safe to say Dwyane is capable of about five or six seasons of such personal productivity. Is he willing to surrender one while waiting to see if there is a better 2010 situation during free agency? That, if I was Pat Riley, is what I would hammer home. Make it all about now. Now. Now. The one thing about Riley is that when given the go-ahead, things happen. Shaq extended, suddenly James Posey, Jason Williams, Antoine Walker, Gary Payton and a championship appeared. Yes, Dwyane has every right to watch and wait, just as LeBron and Bosh are prepared to do. But he’s never going to get 2009-10 back.”

Jeff Eisenberg of The Riverside Press-Enterprise:  “Less than 24 hours after free agency opened late Tuesday night, the Lakers’ chances of keeping their championship team intact went from hopeful to nearly hopeless. Trevor Ariza may be on the verge of leaving the team after his agent emerged from a lengthy phone conversation with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak on Wednesday convinced that the team isn’t as interested in re-signing his client as it claims to be. Agent David Lee said Kupchak did not make a firm contract offer, nor were the Lakers willing to pay him more than the $5.6 million mid-level exception. ‘I think I’m being optimistic when I say it’s not going anywhere,’ Lee said. ‘Actions speak louder than words.’ Ariza already has firm offers from several other teams, according to Lee, and will begin speaking with opposing coaches today. Asked if he could envision Ariza accepting a deal from another team without speaking to the Lakers again, Lee said, ‘Yes, we have no choice. That’s the position they’ve put us in.’”

Michael Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press:  “No other general manager in the NBA has done it. And here is Joe Dumars, trying to do it twice. Advertisement Dumars built the 2004 NBA champion Pistons without one sure Hall of Famer on the roster. How difficult is that? Those Pistons are the only team in the last 30 years to pull it off. Obviously, Dumars would love to have a Hall of Famer on his team. But they are hard to land. So instead, he is doing what he has done exceptionally well in the past: finding high-caliber, high-character, unappreciated talent that fits into a system, and — this is crucial — signing reasonable contracts to maintain flexibility. So Ben Gordon, the Chicago Bulls’ best player, has agreed to become a Piston. Charlie Villanueva, a rising talent, has done so as well. Their arrivals put the Pistons back in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference, and they allow Dumars to keep maneuvering until he has all the right pieces. Remember, he didn’t add the final starter on the 2004 champs, Rasheed Wallace, until February of that season.”

K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune:  “The Bulls, opting to be reactive rather than proactive, didn’t call, content to use the assets acquired at February’s trade deadline. John Salmons will slide into Gordon’s shooting guard spot, forming a backcourt rotation with Derrick Rose and Kirk Hinrich. And the Bulls own roughly $25 million of expiring contracts for the stellar 2010 free-agent class. ‘I always said since the jump this was somewhere I would’ve liked to retire, have a 15-year career, get a couple of rings,’ Gordon said. ‘That was my idealistic thing the day I got drafted. But you never know in this business.’ Once presented with Dumars’ formal offer, Brothers contacted the Bulls. But management chose not to enter luxury-tax territory to re-sign someone who averaged 18.5 points per game, shot 41.5 percent on three-pointers and became the first player in NBA history to win Sixth Man of the Year Award as a rookie in 2005.”

Frank Dell’Apa of The Boston Globe:  “Danny Ainge was on the telephone at his HealthPoint office when the NBA free agent market opened at midnight yesterday. Among Ainge’s first calls was to Bill Strickland, agent for center-forward Rasheed Wallace. ‘I made some calls,’’ said Ainge, the Celtics’ president of basketball operations. ‘Rasheed is a guy we have interest in. We made calls with quite a few free agents’ representatives late last night from my office to let them know we have interest. We contacted 10 free agents and tried to get some feedback in what they are looking for and their interest long term. But that’s about it. Mostly for something down the road.’ The Celtics’ interest in Wallace is not for the long term, though. Wallace, 34, might be the most intriguing of free agent candidates, his relationship with Celtics forward Kevin Garnett a possible advantage.”

Jason Quick of The Oregonian:  “The ‘news’ that Rudy Fernandez is ‘infuriated’ with the Trail Blazers for their interest in Hedo Turkoglu comes as a surprise to coach Nate McMillan and general manager Kevin Pritchard, both of whom had separate conversations with the guard earlier this week on the phone. … Pritchard also noted that Casey Holdahl from blazers.com is in Spain following Fernandez. Holdahl has also said that Fernandez has been in nothing but good spirits all week. There are some factions who are implying that Fernandez last season was unhappy with his playing time, which simply is not true. He averaged 25.6 minutes a game, which he felt was about right. There was a point in the season when he was simply tired and couldn’t take the minutes. And sure, there were some games he didn’t like being taken out - Game 3 against Houston comes to mind - but show me a player who hasn’t griped. Can Fernandez play long term here when he plays the same position as Roy? Considering how much Roy plays point guard, and even small forward at times, yeah, maybe. Maybe not. But right now, it is not a problem.”

Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle:  “Marcin Gortat told the Rockets he wanted playing time and to be part of a winning team. Welcome to the intersection of opportunity and availability. Now, if his agent will stop yapping about money long enough to let the young man sign the contract Daryl Morey offered, the Rockets will have taken a step in the right direction. ‘We really believe in this kid,’ a member of the Rockets’ brain trust said. ‘We see him as a draft pick.’ That’s because the 6-11, 245-pound Gortat has played just 825 NBA minutes, because he’s only 25 years old and because he has many of the skills the Rockets are looking for in a big man. The Rockets have been tracking him closely for the last 18 months and believe he has the size to be a presence in the low post. He has the mobility Rick Adelman wants in a center, and maybe best of all, he has gotten steadily better.”

Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News:  “In April, just after the Dallas Mavericks sent the Spurs to their earliest playoff exit in more than a decade, members of the Spurs braintrust gathered to compile a specific wish list for the offseason. ‘No. 2 on the list,’ Spurs general manager R.C. Buford said, ‘was ass-kicking forward.’ The Spurs just didn’t expect to find such a player in the second round of the NBA draft. On Wednesday, the 20-year-old who the Spurs hope can fill that bill walked through the doors at the team’s headquarters for the first time. DeJuan Blair says he will be all too happy to oblige. … Blair, a 6-foot-7 All-American from Pittsburgh, has no doubts as to why he is here. The Spurs ranked 18th in the league in rebounding last season. Blair hopes to help remedy that. ‘I’m going to rebound,’ Blair said. ‘I go get the ball. I don’t let it come to me. If I’ve got to knock you out of the way to go get it, that’s what I’ll go do.’”

Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune:  “It’s taken 24 hours to collect my thoughts on the subject, but there is a very good reason why it’s so damaging for the Jazz to be luxury-tax payers. For every fan who says it’s the Millers’ money and who cares if they have to write a $12 million check in penalties next season, I think it has long-term implications for the very notion of what it means to be a small-market team in the NBA. The idea behind the NBA’s luxury tax system is to help level the playing field between small- and large-market teams. Were it not for the luxury tax, the Lakers and a handful of others could spend the rest of the league into oblivion. When the Jazz push their payroll past $70 million - - and maybe even $80 million - - it becomes much more difficult for Greg Miller to someday sit at a league meeting and advocate for more protections for small-market teams.”

Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News:  “NBA fans and team officials often have July 1 circled. It’s the first day of free agency, when the opportunity to better a team is a pen stroke away. There are those who think free agency is the ticket to excellence, when in fact, it’s a voucher for mediocrity. Players who are average, at best, turn a season of production into lifetime security, courtesy of overzealous general managers looking for a quick fix. Don’t blame the players for maximizing their earning potential. The culpability lies with those who overbid for pedestrian production or flawed talent. … Still, the best way to acquire great players is through trades, or the draft. Free agency is better for plugging holes, and even that is a hit-or-miss proposition. But many fan bases aren’t patient enough to stick around through the process of rebuilding. So some general managers make panic moves to appease rabid supporters, which leads to their demise. Buyer beware.”

Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post:  “Moments after J.R. Smith was sentenced to 30 days in jail, the mother of the man he accidentally killed in an auto accident approached Smith with tears in her eyes. She hugged him. Squeezed him. ‘I told him I loved him,’ Wanda Bell said. ‘And then I walked away.’ The emotions have overwhelmed Bell ever since the Nuggets guard’s reckless driving killed her son, Andre, two summers ago. Andre Bell and Smith were tight. Naturally, Wanda Bell was devastated by the loss of her son. But her actions since have been amazing. She signed off for her son’s organs to be donated. The man who received Andre’s heart survived his near-death experience, and is now happy and healthy with his wife and three children. And even though her son died because of Smith’s actions, Bell told prosecutors she didn’t want Smith indicted for criminal charges.”

John Canzano of The Oregonian:  “The Chinese government turned him into a science project. They monitored Yao Ming’s birth. They gave him the best nutrition, training and instruction. He became the face of China’s national basketball team. He never missed a practice, or a tournament, and why should he? Yao represented the hopes of a billion-plus people. The Houston Rockets confirmed Tuesday that Yao’s recovery from a broken foot is behind schedule, and the team doctor raised the possibility that the 7-foot-6 center would miss the entire season. His career could be over, even. Think about that today, and also consider what Yao’s patriotism might have cost him. Because in an attempt to engineer the world’s greatest center, the Chinese sports machine broke him down and ran him into the ground.”

Fran Blinebury for NBA.com:  “If anyone was faithfully keeping a scorecard on Misery’s Team, it only stood to reason that the news on Yao Ming would eventually be bad. Now, after consulting with the Rockets’ medical staff and a handful of specialists on the East Coast, a decision has been made to have Yao undergo surgery once more to repair the stress fracture in the tarsal navicular bone of his left foot, according to several sources. What has not yet been determined is the exact method for the repair. By having the surgery soon, the hope is that Yao will be able to return to the basketball court by the second half of the 2009-10 season and possibly be at full strength for the playoffs. ‘What I do is stay positive as much as I can, waiting, waiting for the hope,’ Yao said. ‘Right now, just like everything else, my heart is hanging there.’”

• Henry Abbott:  “Already it seems a thousand articles have been written about the intricate dance unfolding between Ricky Rubio and the Minnesota Timberwolves. One thing that really impresses me: Minnesota GM David Kahn has skillfully removed the Rubio camp’s biggest threat. In any normal situation they would have said give us what we want or we’ll stay in Europe. But before the music even really started, right there on draft night, Kahn was assuring everyone that Rubio might stay in Europe and that’s just fine. The Timberwolves, he said, are more than willing to wait. That sends the message to everyone that the Timberwolves are ready for good offers, but not bad ones. The Rubio camp does still have a big hammer, though, and it’s one that has almost never been used. Rubio can sit out a year, and re-enter next year’s draft. The way the collective bargaining agreement works, the Timberwolves hold Rubio’s NBA rights so long as they make him an offer, and he plays professional ball in some FIBA-sanctioned league, which is just about all of the leagues he’d consider playing in. But if he doesn’t play professionally anywhere, then he can be right back in next year’s draft.”

• Chris Sheridan:  “Portland’s pursuit of a certain player from Turkey has infuriated the Trail Blazers’ lone remaining Spanish player, Rudy Fernandez, to the point where he’d prefer to play in Greece, Russia or even Spain again, ESPN.com learned Tuesday. A league source told ESPN.com that Fernandez has already been courted informally by European powerhouses Olympiacos, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and CSKA Moscow as word spread that the Blazers had become the apparent front-runners to land free agent Hedo Turkoglu.”

• The Knicks’ summer league roster features four former lottery picks.

• Chris Perkins’ interview with Michael Beasley starts out like this:  “Beasley extended his hand as we walked down the hallway outside the Heat lockerroom Wednesday afternoon. ‘What’s up, man?’ he asked as he shook my hand. Beasley, in the year I’ve known him, has almost always been that way. Cordial. Polite. Decent. And I’ve always liked dealing with Beasley. But there’s also that other side, not being immature, being unprofessional and it surfaced seconds later when someone volunteered to get us a couple of chairs. ‘I don’t need a chair,’ Beasley said before turning to me. ‘How long is this going to take?’ ‘Maybe 10 minutes,’ I said, being conservative because I sensed his mood. ‘I’ll give you five,’ Beasley responded. ‘I’ve got stuff to do.’ He was serious.”

• Kurt Kragthorpe of The Salt Lake Tribune:  “For all of Millsap’s admirable qualities, he will never score at Boozer’s level, or demand the same defensive attention that frees center Mehmet Okur and others to shoot from outside in coach Jerry Sloan’s system. The Jazz thrived without Boozer for much of this past season, but that was a function of a favorable middle section of the schedule, as much as Millsap’s fill-in contribution. So while keeping Millsap is important to the Jazz’s future, in surrounding Deron Williams with some talent, they already have their starting power forward for 2009-10. A healthy, motivated Boozer can only help them. While I occasionally overvalue statistics, there’s no convincing me that the Jazz would be better off without Boozer’s 20 points a game. Boozer is one of only five players in franchise history with multiple All-Star selections. While there’s a lot to like about Millsap’s rebounding ability and overall approach to his job, he’s limited enough offensively that projecting him as an All-Star in Utah, Oklahoma City or anywhere else is still difficult.”

• Kelly Dwyer on Portland’s pursuit of Hedo Turkoglu:  “What am I missing here? The team was, statistically, the best offensive team in the NBA last year. Possession to possession, nobody scored more. Defense is this team’s weakness, so they’re spending all sorts of dough on a defensive liability? The team, for years, has been one of the better closing squads in the NBA. They don’t make a lot of comebacks, not with Nate McMillan’s snail-slow pace, but with Travis Outlaw and Brandon Roy in the fold, they do just about lead the league in game-cinchers in the last 90 seconds. Statheads can talk about Carmelo Anthony(notes), TV talking heads can talk up Kobe Bryant, but no team is better in the clutch than the Portland Trail Blazers. And they’re trying to add a guy who made his hay as a late-game finisher? Read that again. His value is inflated because of his late-game heroics. The team would be overpaying for something it already has in spades.”

• Dwyer also questions Detroit’s interest Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva, and takes a good look at Lamar Odom’s considerable talents.

• Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post:  “The negotiations between Chris Andersen and the Nuggets have begun. Nuggets vice president of basketball operations Mark Warkentien is currently in Los Angeles, meeting with Andersen’s representatives, notably Denver-based attorney Mark Bryant and agent Steve Huemann of the Los Angeles-based Creative Arts Agency. Bryant said the goal is to try to get Andersen a five-year deal around the mid-level exception (in the $5 million range annually). ‘I think that’s possible. But we’re a team player,’ Bryant said this morning. ‘We’ll make the necessary adjustments if we can and find the right fit.’ There are numerous teams inquiring about the NBA’s No. 2 shot-blocker from last season, notably Houston, which has all-star center Yao Ming shelved indefinitely, as well as Dallas, Portland and Memphis. But Andersen, who lived in Denver during his two-year banishment for drug abuse, adores the city of Denver and has publicly said he wants to return home.”

• Rod Thorn says the Nets will be in position to offer two max deals in 2010.

• Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports:  “Armed with more than $20 million in salary-cap space, the Pistons will be one of the most active franchises, attempting to retool their roster on the fly and return to championship contention. To do so will take more than just bringing in good players. It will be finding the good people with whom the Pistons have long tried to surround themselves. Some big names are potentially available: Hedo Turkoglu, Charlie Villanueva, Ben Gordon, David Lee. Dumars will pursue some, but not all. It’s about finding the necessary fit to win a championship, not just adding a stat line. ‘The hardest thing is to convince people that fantasy basketball and running a team are two different things,’ he said. ‘You can’t just write down names that look good on paper. We’ve seen in the past that’ll get you a ways, but not all the way.’ What Detroit is trying to do, rebuild in motion, is one of the most difficult things in sports. The natural flow of a sports franchise is to build to a championship level, bottom out and then build again with all new parts.”

The list takes into account on and off the court/field/course/track earnings, including salary, bonuses, endorsements and appearance fees, and is made up primarily of basketball players. LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, and Allen Iverson crack the top ten. Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Tracy McGrady, Tim Duncan, Stephon Marbury, Jason Kidd, and Jermaine O’Neal round out the top twenty.

Click here to view SI.com’s list.

(Via Dime)

Mike McGraw of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald:  “The feeling is Bulls management would prefer to re-sign Gordon, keeping all of the team’s assets on hand for a potential blockbuster trade in the next 12 months that might bring a quality big man in return. When it comes to paying the luxury tax, though, the only opinion that counts belongs to chairman Jerry Reinsdorf. He has been strongly opposed to paying the tax in the past, but there are a couple of circumstances this year that would soften the blow. Since the Bulls have about $23 million in expiring contracts between Brad Miller, Tim Thomas and Jerome James, they would only have to pay the tax for one year. Also, paying the luxury tax brings a double whammy in the NBA because the tax money is distributed to the teams below the threshold. When New York and Portland used to pad their payrolls incessantly, the payoff grew to around $4 million per team. Now, teams have become much more cost-conscious - even the New York Knicks - which means next year’s tax distribution will most likely be less than $1 million per team.”

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports:  “Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon and Milwaukee Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva flew to Detroit on Wednesday morning for a mid-day meeting with team president Joe Dumars and indications are both are moving rapidly toward deals with the Detroit Pistons, league and sources close to the two players told Yahoo! Sports. Gordon, a restricted free agent, and Villanueva, who’s unrestricted, would be significant strikes on the first full day of NBA free agency. Gordon and Villanueva have history together, and are good friends. They played for the University of Connecticut, although never together. The Pistons have nearly $20 million in salary-cap space and it’s believed that the offers to these two players would come close to expending that money. The Bulls would have a chance to match a Detroit offer to Gordon, but league sources believe Chicago has its limits on how far it’ll go to keep the guard, who scored 20 points a game last season. Gordon turned down a $54 million extension last summer.”

Brian Windhorst of The Plain Dealer:  “Warren Buffett, a friend of LeBron James and a rather established expert in making acquisitions, can certainly relate to the situation the Cavaliers are now in. One of the billioniare’s core philosophies and known quotes is to ‘attempt to be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful.’ In listening to sources within the organization and across the league, despite being in a challenging climate for professional sports that has prompted fear with good reason, the Cavs fully intend to be greedy. It seems the team is expected to act quickly to add to their already well-heeled roster in an attempt to win their first title next season, which is famously the last on James’ contract. They are going to make their pitch and look to spend about as much as the league rules will allow them, within reason. Their product already has James and now Shaquille O’Neal, and another All-Star in Mo Williams in residence. Plus it owns some of the best facilities in which to play and train in the league, even if it isn’t located in a glamour city.”

Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune:  “Nobody beat the Jazz to Paul Millsap as free agency opened Tuesday night. Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor was on the phone with Millsap’s agent, DeAngelo Simmons, right at 10 p.m., which Simmons called a ‘class act’ gesture. It bodes well for the Jazz as they try to retain Millsap, even as their payroll went up, up and away with Carlos Boozer’s and Mehmet Okur’s decision to return this season instead of opting out to become free agents. The Jazz’s plan seems to be to bite the bullet as luxury tax payers this season - - it’s inevitable at this point - - and re-sign Millsap no matter how much that bill climbs. The Jazz seem to acknowledge they can’t lose Millsap and Boozer in subsequent seasons. Maybe it’s appropriate that the Jazz own the New York Knicks’ first-round draft pick next season, because their luxury-tax bill is going to be astounding. They have more than $73 million in salary commitments to only 11 players after Tuesday.”

John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News:  “Today would be one of those days where it would be good for the 76ers if point guard Andre Miller were a little less unusual. Miller has never revealed a lot about himself during his tenure with the Sixers, and it was always hard for fans, management and his teammates to get a read on what exactly was going through his mind. Does he like Philadelphia? Does he want to remain a Sixer? Is he happy with the progress of the program? Yes, no, maybe so. It depended on how you interpreted what Miller might have said on any particular day. And that was fine when Miller was under contract and the Sixers had final say in whether he would stay or go. That all changed at the end of the season when Miller became an unrestricted free agent with the autonomy to decide his next NBA destination.”

Tom Ziller of FanHouse:  “The Rockets have targeted Orlando center Marcin Gortat as a desirable pick-up. Whether this had been the plan all along, or whether Yao Ming’s injury has forced management’s hand(s), it doesn’t matter. It only matters that the Rockets are seriously serious about landing Gortat, who caddied for Dwight Howard this season. How serious? Right around midnight, Houston GM Daryl Morey posted a message on Facebook and Twitter imploring Rockets fans to tell Gortat how much they love him. … Four minutes before midnight ET, the Rockets also let loose a love letter to Gortat on the team’s official Web site. It is the top story on the Web site as of 1 AM ET. (Yes, four minutes before midnight. Hmmm. The odd thing is that the post, clearly timestamped 11:56 PM ET, says Morey rang Gortat’s doorbell at precisely 12:01AM ET, which indicates that Morey potentially possesses a time machine.)”

Mike Wise of the Washington Times:  “Wednesday signals the beginning of the NBA’s free agency period, and although teams are free to begin courting and negotiating with players, don’t expect the Washington Wizards to spring into action. Instead, the Wizards are expected to wait, then comb the leftovers to add the final pieces to their roster. ‘We’re going to start making calls, and we’ll monitor the situation, but the teams like Detroit, Oklahoma City, Memphis and Portland - the teams with a lot of [salary] cap room - will be doing the big spending in free agency,’ Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld said Tuesday. ‘The whole situation will shake itself out, and we’ll see what presents itself and carefully go from there. I expect this to be a drawn-out process.’ The Wizards are expected to use a conservative approach because of the luxury tax and a deep roster at most positions.”

Frank Isola of the Daily News:  “It is believed that the Mavs will offer Kidd a contract starting at $8 million per over two years with an option for a third. Unless the Knicks negotiate a sign-and-trade with Kidd and Dallas, the club can offer him only its mid-level exception starting at approximately $5.8 million. Knicks president Donnie Walsh and coach Mike D’Antoni are hoping to convince Kidd that he can rejuvenate a doormat franchise the same way he did nearly 10 years ago in New Jersey. Kidd is intrigued by the possibility of playing and living in New York, which is both good and bad for the Knicks. He would provide leadership, assuming the 36-year-old point guard is committed to the team and not just spending the twilight years of his career enjoying Manhattan. The Knicks, however, believe the addition of Kidd would bring instant credibility and would strengthen their chances of possibly adding LeBron James or Dwyane Wade when the two superstars become free agents in 2010.”

Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times:  “Tuesday was the last possible day for Bryant to become an unrestricted free agent, but he did not terminate his contract because he wanted to ‘let Lamar [Odom] and Trevor [Ariza] have their day,’ according to a source who was not authorized to speak publicly about the decision. Indeed, the Lakers, who won the NBA title 17 days ago, made preliminary contact Tuesday night with representatives for both of the unrestricted free-agent forwards, as General Manager Mitch Kupchak tried to live up to his recent promise to ‘make quick decisions . . . and hopefully we can bring this team back intact.’ Odom was on the Lakers’ books for $14.1 million last season but will have to take a substantial pay cut. Ariza, who turned 24 Tuesday, will get a solid pay raise from the $3.1 million he made last season. No verbal agreements were struck with either player Tuesday night, though negotiations will continue throughout the week. San Antonio and Phoenix are interested in trying to sign Odom. Both teams are trying to clear salary-cap space to see if they can get a deal done with Odom, who is looking for at least a four-year deal worth an average of $10 million a year.”

Sekou Smith of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:  “Everyone knows about the Hawks’ (quasi-internal) targets - Mike Bibby, Zaza Pachulia and Flip Murray are all unrestricted free agents while Marvin Williams, Solomon Jones and Mario West are all restricted free agents, as is Josh Childress (who remains under contract with Greek power Olympiakos, though he has an opt out that he must exercise by July 15) . But there’s more going on that just that. After year’s of failing to grab the attention of the league’s best free agents on the market, the Hawks are suddenly in the mix for some of the most coveted players on the market, per several of my most well placed sources around the league. ‘The only thing missing all these years was a winning team,’ a former Western Conference executive told me Tuesday night. ‘And now that they’ve got that. So they’re going to be in the mix for guys if they want to be in the mix. Half the league lives in Atlanta [during the offseason] anyway.’”

Jason Quick of The Oregonian:  “Wednesday is the day Trail Blazers general manager Kevin Pritchard has been pinpointing for years: The opening of the 2009 NBA free agent market. With calculated trades and contract decisions, Pritchard has positioned the Blazers to have a payroll of $50 million, making them one of five teams that expect to come in under the NBA’s salary cap, which is expected to be announced July 8. Because the Blazers will be under the cap, they can lure a free agent by offering the amount they are under, which is expected to be between $7 million and $9 million. Or the Blazers could opt to make an uneven trade, meaning they can execute a deal without having to match the salaries of the players involved. Other teams that will come in under the cap are Detroit, Oklahoma City, Memphis and Toronto. Negotiations can start today, but teams cannot sign a player until July 8, after the salary cap figures are announced.”

Michael Grange of the Globe and Mail:  “The last time the Toronto Raptors made a splash in free agency, they made it fast. Team president Bryan Colangelo and assistant general manager Maurizio Gherardini picked up a phone at their Air Canada Centre offices the moment the NBA’s free agency period started. Minutes later, then-Raptors coach Sam Mitchell, at home in Atlanta, was linked in on a conference call. Together they made Jason Kapono very rich, using their quick-strike approach to lay a four-year, $24-million (all currency U.S.) contract at the journeyman’s feet. The whole deal took about 10 minutes. Times have changed. Not only is Kapono, who agreed to his deal in the wee hours of July 1, 2007, now with the Philadelphia 76ers, but the NBA’s economic landscape has shifted so much that players of his pedigree don’t get plush offers any more.”

Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel: “Too many times in recent years — from Shaq to T-Mac to Grant Hill — there has been bitterness and animosity when the Magic break up with one of their stars. Magic fans almost always end their love affairs feeling like Mia Farrow after Woody Allen dumped her to marry her daughter. It’s different with Turk, who is being cheered instead of booed on his way out of town. When Turk leaves, there will be a soft spot in Magic hearts instead of a gaping hole. Maybe this is because Magic fans know Turk doesn’t really want to leave; it’s just part of the business of sports. There’s nobody to blame. As a 30-year-old veteran, Turk wants to make as much money as he can for as long as he can. As financially astute business people, the Magic front office wants to pay a 30-year-old veteran as little as possible for as briefly as possible. Sadly, there is no room for loyalty in professional sports.”

Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee:  “Mental toughness? Physical toughness? Blue-collar workers? Granted, these are not concepts normally associated with the Kings basketball president, whose conversations are dominated by references to backdoor cuts, ball and body movement, and the fluid beauty of the game – all elements he still values. But after watching his club’s incremental descent to a 17-win season, coupled with its amazing capacity to chase fans out of the building with feeble, uninspired performances, Petrie underwent a not-so-subtle offseason change in philosophy. You can feel it. You can sense it. You can look at the three players drafted by the Kings last week – Tyreke Evans, Omri Casspi and Jon Brockman – and understand his thinking. The plan is for the Kings to be competitive and entertaining and endearing enough that earplugs once again will be required at Arco Arena.”

A. Sherrod Blakely of MLive.com:  “All the talk about building a franchise that can consistently compete at the highest level sounds good. But that’s not going to happen until this franchise stops acting like a junior college for head coaches who get the boot after a year or two. President of basketball operations Joe Dumars’ reasoning for firing Curry was legitimate. Players began to sour on Curry near the end of last season, and Curry didn’t make the kind of strides needed to mend those relationships. The Pistons finished 39-43 and were swept out of the first round of the playoffs by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Coaching has as much to do with managing egos as it does managing a player’s minutes. But there was a greater concern. There will be a lot of talk in the coming days about the strained relationships between Curry and key Pistons such as Richard Hamilton. But there was an even bigger concern that those same issues might be magnified with a revamped roster that should be bolstered via free agency, which begins today.”

Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News:  “Two high-placed NBA sources this afternoon said that Amare Stoudemire has little interest in joining the Warriors and indicated that the likeliest scenario at this point is for him to stay with the Suns this season. It is not clear whether Stoudemire has expressed this to the Warriors, or relayed it to them, or if it’s a change of attitude from the hectic minutes during the draft, when it was widely assumed (by me, too) that the Warriors were close to acquiring Stoudemire. It was also assumed that Stoudemire was either agreeable to the deal–and a potential max contract extension from the Warriors–or that he was at least willing to consider the notion of staying with the Warriors for the long-term as a condition to this deal. But Stoudemire can become an unrestricted free agent next summer and it’s extremely unlikely that the Warriors or any team would give up bundles of talent to acquire him only to risk losing him after one season.”

Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman:  “Much has been made in recent days of the players who the Thunder drafted last week, and with the free-agent market now open, much will be made in coming days if the Thunder make any trades or acquire any veterans. But the truth is, none of those players would have any more impact on the team next season than an improved Kevin Durant would. Barring some unexpected blockbuster trade, nothing is more important for the Thunder this summer than the team’s best player getting even better. Durant is committed to doing just that. He returned to Austin last month, and for two hours a day, he entrusts himself to the strength and conditioning coaches at Texas. They push him through weights and agility and drills of all kinds. ‘There are days where I’ve sweated through my whole outfit, my whole uniform,’ Durant said. ‘That’s the kind of days I need.’ Durant is also eating better. Eating more, too. ‘He’s eating himself out of house and home,’ his mother joked. The wiry swingman won’t be mistaken for Mr. Universe any time soon, but he looks a thicker through the shoulders and broader in the upper body.”

Jason Quick of The Oregonian:  “Aldridge flew from Dallas to Portland last week to add on to an existing tattoo of cupped hands in prayer. The finished product has intricate, web-like lines of red that extend from the top of his shoulder to the bottom of his biceps. But the message of the artwork is bold. In black cursive it reads Faith. Why Faith? This time, there is no nonchalant, food-in-the-mouth answer. Aldridge makes sure this answer is clear and understood. ‘Because I’m a man of strong faith. Strong beliefs,’ Aldridge says, holding eye contact. His faith and beliefs will be tested in the coming weeks. Along with team leader Brandon Roy, Aldridge is eligible this summer for a contract extension ranging from one to five years. Both Roy and Aldridge are expected to ask for maximum contracts, which figure to start in the ballpark of $13 million in the first year and inflate to around $18 million within four years. But while Roy’s voluminous resume will produce a resounding thud on the bargaining table, Aldridge’s worth is more difficult to define.”

Ian Thomsen of SI.com:  “Here’s my motivational slogan for next season,’ said Shaquille O’Neal last Saturday by phone from his home in Orlando. ‘A ring for the King. He wants one, and I want another one. A ring for the King, baby!’ O’Neal sounded rejuvenated as he prepared for the newest role of a celebrated 17-year career. Having won three rings as a Laker with Kobe Bryant and a fourth with Dwyane Wade in Miami, Shaq is making another stop in his Forrest Gump–like run through the NBA: He is moving to Cleveland to assist the King, LeBron James, in pursuit of his first crown. ‘Everybody is going to say, Whose team is it?’ said O’Neal, two days after the Cavaliers acquired him from the Suns for Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, a second-round pick and $500,000. ‘It’s his team. I want you to print that in double-black-bold print: It’s his team. He’s the King, and the Cavs have hired a known hit-man bodyguard. My job is to protect him. The team is his team, he’s the s—, and I’m his backup.’”

• Chris McCosky of the Detroit News on Michael Curry’s dismissal:  “Now, I knew, everybody knew, that Curry was on a short leash. I honestly thought the Pistons would wind up having to fire him early to middle of next season, but I expected him to be here at the start. That thought was reinforced Monday when he was out front as the Pistons introduced their three draft picks. I talked to him for a long time, about last year, about all the Rip Hamilton stuff, about his mistakes and how he grew from them, how he would be better this coming season. There was no hint that he was about to be fired. But, here’s what I think happened. Dumars told Curry after last season that he had to mend fences with his players. He had to get Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince, and even younger players like Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo back on board with him. He essentially gave Curry the early part of the summer to reach out to those guys and convince them that things would be better next season. By all accounts, none of that happened. He and Hamilton still haven’t spoken. Dumars looked around, on the eve of a most important free-agent summer, and saw a bunch of still un-mended fences. He looked at three wide-eyed rookies, a roster that was in complete transition and wisely, if not belatedly, decided that Curry wasn’t experienced enough for this challenge and fired him.”

• Carlos Boozer will not opt out of his contract.

• Chris Mannix:  “Rubio’s camp is not about to put Rubio in a minutes-sharing situation with Flynn. It wants Flynn gone, and it has come to the bargaining table with a pretty big stick: the possibility that Rubio could sign a lucrative contract in Europe. Kahn sounds prepared for that. He has said all the right things, praising Rubio and his agent, the high-powered Dan Fegan, and talking about how he looks forward to the day when Rubio is in a Minnesota uniform. If that’s this season, great. If it’s next season, well, that’s OK, too. Even two years is within Kahn’s time frame. But there is a factor that may be getting overlooked. According to sources close to the situation, top European teams like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Tau Ceramica have been coming hard after Rubio. And there is a real chance that one of those teams will be willing to make the popular Spaniard the highest-paid player in Europe.”

• Rubio has reportedly filed a lawsuit against DKV Jonvent in order to alleviate his buyout.

• Pedro Moura for the Los Angeles Daily News:  “Clippers assistant general manager Neil Olshey’s phone rang at 8:30a.m. Saturday. Surprise, surprise. It was Blake Griffin. The newest Clipper, selected first overall in Thursday’s NBA draft after more than a month of buildup, had flown into Los Angeles and was ready to get to work. ‘I got a call from him asking if I could track down the strength and conditioning coaches to get him into the gym,’ Olshey said. ‘And by 11a.m. he went through a full weight workout, got treatment, was on the floor for two hours and was right back at it again. How many guys,’ Olshey asked, ‘are going to get a full 2-hour workout in prior to their press conference?’”

• Indy Cornrows:  “One thing I don’t expect is for Larry Bird to consider all of the racist hoop fans in Indy when trying to fill out the roster. Fortunately, he doesn’t care what anyone thinks, he just wants to work with players that want to work to improve the team while also keeping the roster’s financial situation in check and under the luxury tax. So there you go. Make sure you understand me. I’m not saying there’s racial harmony in Indiana nor any hoop fans who view the game through a personal racist lens. I’m also not saying the Pacers won’t add white players in the future. In fact, I’d love it if they could swing a deal with a bridge player or two to land Ricky Rubio and Brian Cardinal’s expiring contract from Minnesota.  We can dream, right? What I am saying is that Larry Bird has enough factors involved in trying to build a roster for the future without also trying to execute some sinister conspiracy to make the team white. And if you actually take an honest look at the basketball decisions which led to the current roster (not to mention who was making the decisions), that line of thinking based on a general, current snapshot unravels. In fact, looking at the core future, if Bird’s desire is to ‘whiten’ the Pacers, then he’d be failing miserably.”

• Coach K says he’s not going to the Lakers.

• The Wall Street Journal helps explain China’s adoration for Kobe Bryant:  “China’s embrace is largely an appreciation of Mr. Bryant’s basketball talent—he won his fourth NBA title earlier this month with the Los Angeles Lakers. ‘He reminds everyone of Michael Jordan,’ says Shen Zhiyu, a senior basketball writer for Titan Sports, China’s largest sports daily. But it is also a reflection of a deliberate campaign by Mr. Bryant to make inroads in the world’s most-populous country. In addition to his frequent visits to China (a planned trip in late July will be his fourth in as many years) and his considerable work on behalf of sponsor Nike, he’s assuming another identity: philanthropist. In an attempt to tap into the Chinese government’s growing interest in promoting charity, Mr. Bryant is establishing the Kobe Bryant China Fund. The organization will partner with the Soong Ching Ling Foundation, a charity backed by the Chinese government, to raise money within China earmarked for education and health programs. Mr. Bryant’s existing fund, the Kobe Bryant Family Foundation, will also work to strengthen ties between the two countries by teaching middle-school students in the U.S. about Chinese language and culture.”

• Mike Bresnahan:  “If Bryant wants to opt out of his contract, he needs to officially notify the Lakers via fax by the end of today. The Lakers declined to comment. Bryant’s agent, Rob Pelinka, did not return a phone call. Knowing Bryant’s flair for the dramatic, it could be a wait-until-the-last-minute decision. It wouldn’t be the first time. As a free agent in 2004, he made the Lakers and Clippers wait until the last possible second before announcing he would sign a seven-year contract with the Lakers.”

• The New Orleans Hornets have the league’s highest payroll, followed by the Lakers, Wizards, Cavaliers, and Celtics.

• Chinese sports officials question whether Yao’s injury is real.

• Check out my thoughts on Yao’s injury, J-Kidd’s free agency, Rubio, and the Amare to Golden State trade rumors in today’s Scoop Du Jour.

• Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle:  “Hours before free agent negotiations can begin, Artest’s agent David Bauman said Yao’s condition has not changed Artest’s desire to return to the Rockets next season. ‘Our first choice is to do a deal with Houston, Bauman said. Yao’s situation doesn’t change that. It has not affected us one way or another. He’s concerned more for Yao than anything.’ With Yao, Artest had considered the Rockets to be contenders and cited that potential as one of the reasons he hoped to sign with the Rockets as a free agent this summer. Bauman said that he and Artest are confident that if Yao does miss much or all of next season, the Rockets have the depth and roster flexibility to make moves without stepping back to rebuild. ‘The beauty of what Daryl (Morey, the Rockets general manager) has done, is the Rockets are not just Yao Ming,’ Bauman said. ‘They are Ron. They are Aaron (Brooks). They are Shane (Battier) And they are (Luis) Scola. That’s the great thing about this team. They can fire on five or six different cylinders.’”

• UPDATE: Bryant will not opt out of his contract.

News that the Milwaukee Bucks decided not to extend a qualifying offer to Charlie Villanueva yesterday was met with the widespread speculation that the Cavaliers would target the talented free agent forward. The Cavaliers, who have their mid-level exception, could tender an offer to Villanueva as early as Wednesday, but the decision would leave them with little cap space next summer. The always excellent Waiting For Next Year breaks down the Cavs’ cap situation:

For Danny Ferry’s part, he has to weigh the long term ramifications of signing a player like Villanueva. Assuming Ferry signs CV for the full Mid Level Exception, and then re-signs Anderson Varejao using his Bird Rights, the Cavaliers will essentially be eliminating any chance of having enough cap space to offer a max level deal to a superstar like Chris Bosh.

The question is whether or not that’s really a realistic goal for the Cavaliers anyway. In the past when we were projecting that the Cavaliers would have a ton of cap space in 2010, we were basing it on a $60+ million salary cap. That’s not going to happen anymore. We’re still waiting to see what the cap number is for next season, but projections actually have it slightly decreasing, but many experts expect 2010 to be the offseason when the economic decline really hits the cap space. As we discussed prior to the trade deadline, ESPN’s John Hollinger has projected a 2010 cap number as low as $55.2 million. We went a little more optimistic in our projections and went with $56.93 million. If we can assume that’s the cap figure, the Cavs roster in that offseason would be:

• Mo Williams - $9,300,000
• Delonte West - $4,658,500 (only $500,000 guaranteed)
• Daniel Gibson - $4,015,334
• JJ Hickson (team option) - $1,528,920
• Darnell Jackson - $854,389 (fully unguaranteed)
• Danny Green - ~$730,000 (approximated)

That’s a total of only $21,087,143. If you include LeBron’s “cap hold” of $16,073,488 (based on a $56.93 million cap figure), the Cavalier’s salary goes to $37,160,631, leaving them with $19,769,369. The Cavaliers have already said they want to re-sign Anderson Varejao anyway, and if his salary in 2010 is even $7 million, that already knocks the Cavaliers’ cap space down to close to $13 million, which isn’t enough to offer anyone else a max contract.

WFNY also details Villanueva’s strengths and weaknesses. It’s well worth the read. I like Villlanueva’s game, but this is a band aid solution that will only compromise Cleveland’s future roster flexibility.

Howard Beck of The New York Times:  “On this day next year, the N.B.A. will launch the most lavish free-agent party in modern history. Red carpets will roll. Private jets will crisscross the continent. Obscene amounts of money will be promised. Franchise fates will be altered. LeBron James will be the guest of honor, flanked, perhaps, by Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, Amare Stoudemire and Shaquille O’Neal, Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash. It should be a glorious time for teams with cap space and superstars with good realtors. The summer before the Summer of LeBron will not be quite so glorious. A variety of factors — including a poor economy, weak season-ticket sales, a declining salary cap and the LeBron sweepstakes itself — could conspire to make this an unhappy off-season for most free agents.”

Alan Hahn of Newsday:  “As one NBA personnel director, who has watched Kidd closely, said to me, ‘He’s still a major asset at his age. Still makes teammates better, but a liability on defense against younger, quicker guards. Still sharp and smart defensively, though.’ The Knicks need some credibility and leadership and Kidd still can provide both to a team with a young core. Let’s also not overlook the fact that LeBron James loves playing with Kidd. And while that may suggest having Kidd on the roster could be considered another lure for LeBron in 2010, if Kidd would consider a mid-level exception (around $5.5 million) to play for the 32-win Knicks, why wouldn’t he take the MLE to have a shot at an NBA championship with LeBron (and Shaq) in Cleveland? One possible reason? Kidd’s children live in the New York area.”

Eddie Sefko of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:  “You will read from New York this morning that the Knicks plan on meeting with Jason Kidd on Wednesday morning to begin their sales pitch for luring the Mavericks’ point guard to New York. That confirms the Knicks’ interest that we detailed on Monday to our loyal readers. And the Knicks will be late in their flirting with Kidd. Word has it that Mark Cuban will be in New York at midnight tonight to start the process of conveying the Mavericks’ interest in retaining the free agent. Cuban has never been shy about making recruiting pitches in person. He did so in Miami with Alonzo Mourning a few years back. This should be viewed as a sign of just how important retaining Kidd is. The Mavericks are making him their No. 1 priority - before Rasheed Wallace or Charlie Villanueva or Ben Gordon or anybody else.”

Jeff Eisenberg of The Riverside Press-Enterprise:  “Jerry Buss paid $50,000 to play in a World Series of Poker tournament last weekend in Vegas, outlasting some accomplished pros before busting out in 36th place. Lakers fans had better hope he wasn’t betting with money earmarked for Trevor Ariza. While Ariza has maintained that he hopes to wear purple and gold again next season, agent David Lee said Monday that the Lakers won’t receive any hometown discount from his client. Lee declined to reveal how much of a raise Ariza will seek when he becomes an unrestricted free agent Tuesday night at 9:01 p.m., but he said the young forward’s upside should make him the most coveted wing player on the market.”

Frank Dell’Apa and Marc J. Spears of The Boston Globe:  “Free agent guard Stephon Marbury said he would like to re-sign with the Celtics if he is offered a fair deal. Marbury will be an unrestricted free agent beginning tomorrow and is excited about the possibility of making a title run again next season. Celtics coach Doc Rivers has said he hopes Marbury will be back. ‘I’m not trying to get a bunch of money,’’ Marbury said. ‘I know Boston doesn’t have a bunch of money. I’m not seeking out teams with more money. I want to play for a championship-contending team. I can’t play for a young team that’s not in a position to compete for a championship. I want to play in Boston. I’m not going to say that I don’t. But I know the way that business works. If I don’t come back it won’t be because of me.’”

Chad Ford of ESPN.com:  “A few months ago, Boozer was much more confident about his decision. He told ESPN.com’s Chris Sheridan that he was opting out in December. ‘I’m opting out. No matter what, I’m going to get a raise regardless,’ Boozer told ESPN.com. ‘I am going to opt out. I don’t see why I wouldn’t. I think it’s a very good business decision for me and my family, but I’d also like to see what happens with the Jazz and stay here.’ The landscape has changed a lot since Boozer made his statement in December. The financial meltdown has caused owners to pull back on spending. The free agent landscape is pretty dicey. Only three teams — the Pistons, Thunder and Grizzlies — have enough money under the cap to offer Boozer a substantial deal. Two of those teams, the Thunder and Grizzlies, are young teams in the process of rebuilding. Boozer is not in either team’s plans, according to sources.”

Kate Fagan of the Philadelphia Inquirer:  “Miller, who last season averaged 16.3 points and 6.5 assists, is represented by Andy Miller, who has said his client’s No. 1 option is to remain with the Sixers. ‘He’s the main free agent, an important free agent,’ said Sixers president and general manager Ed Stefanski. ‘Neither of us is going to be at each other’s doorstep at 12:01 a.m., but we will talk on July 1. There’s no doubt.’ After Miller, Stefanski will fill the remaining gaps - the complementary pieces - to form the 2009-2010 roster. There are nine players under contract, plus first-round pick Jrue Holiday. Last season, the Sixers had 14 under contract, including center Jason Smith, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in July. That means the team knowingly entered the season with 13 healthy players.”

Adam Lauridsen for the San Jose Mercury News:  “Stoudemire’s rocky relationship with the Suns stems not only from such lack of on-the-court chemistry (the man’s nickname is “Stat,” if you had any doubts as to his interests), but also from locker room drama not present with Maggette.  Amare has developed a reputation for being tough to coach, provided inconsistent effort and pouted when things haven’t gone his way.  Sounds like a perfect match for Nelson — and a great influence on our roster full of impressionable youngsters.  We can argue in circles all day long about the statistical impact of swapping Andris for Amare, but there’s little argument I can see when it comes to the intangibles.  And just because those intangibles don’t get recorded by the official scorer doesn’t mean they don’t have a large impact on a team’s performance under pressure, when it matters the most.”

Michael Grange of the Globe and Mail:  “Shawn Marion’s nickname is The Matrix, but after the clock strikes midnight tonight, starting the NBA’s free agency period, perhaps something along the lines of The Domino is more appropriate. What Marion and his agent, Dan Fegan, decide will go a long way toward shaping the Toronto Raptors’ roster for next season. If the forward is open to being re-signed by Toronto or even agreeing to a contract and immediately being dealt to a preferred team, the Raptors have a lineup similar to the one they finished with last season, though with much more robust depth. If he leaves, everything is on the table, and the Raptors could conceivably end up with more star power, but a barebones second unit.”

Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune:  “With Kyle Korver opting in for the upcoming season Monday, the Jazz are in danger of seeing their payroll skyrocket should Boozer opt in as well Tuesday, citing the slim possibilities out there as a free agent looking for an eight-figure annual deal. The Jazz have approximately $51.9 million in salary committed to nine players for next season after Korver’s decision. There’s no official number, by the way, since we don’t yet know what salary will be set for the first year of Deron Williams’ max contract. Should Boozer opt in at $12.7 million, the Jazz’s payroll would climb to $64.6 million. That’s for just 10 players, not counting Mehmet Okur and Paul Millsap. Remember you have to carry at least 13 players according to NBA rules. The Jazz’s nightmare scenario would be having Boozer opt in with another team swooping in to make a significant offer to Millsap. A $9 million offer to Millsap next season would cost the Jazz more like $16 million in salary and luxury-tax penalties.”

John Denton of Florida Today:  “Turkoglu, who won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award in 2008 and was a driving force in Orlando’s run to the Finals in 2009, seemed to have all of the leverage as a free agent in the days after the most successful season in Orlando history ended. The Magic tested Turkoglu’s loyalty to the franchise when they offered him a four-year contract extension worth approximately $35 million just after the Finals. When Turkoglu declined and ultimately opted out of the final year of his Magic contract in order to become an unrestricted free agent, the franchise went ahead with the deal to acquire Carter and shooting forward Ryan Anderson. Getting Carter and the $33.6 million still left on his contract means Turkoglu’s likelihood of returning is slim at best. Team president Bob Vander Weide and general manager Otis Smith admitted as much, and they hinted the Magic might spend their remaining money on trying to bulk up an undersized frontline around all-star center Dwight Howard.”

Dave Krieger of The Denver Post:  “Owing to the general state of the economy, the cap and luxury-tax numbers (approximately $58 million and $71 million, respectively) are expected to be the same or slightly lower next season. The Nuggets already have $71 million committed to 10 players, one of whom, Antonio McDyess, will play for somebody else again. If they intend to bring back free agents Chris Andersen and Dahntay Jones, as they say they do, they will need most or all of their mid- level salary cap exception, which will take them close to $77 million. That doesn’t include Linas Kleiza’s qualifying offer or several minimum salaries to fill out the roster. So billionaire E. Stanley Kroenke is looking at a minimum luxury-tax bill in the $5 million to $6 million range without roster improvements, other than Lawson. Any further upgrade will cost twice its face value because of the dollar-for-dollar luxury tax. Kroenke keeps his own counsel, but having had such good results with cost-cutting lately, a new spending spree probably isn’t the way to bet.”

John Krolik of Cavs the Blog:  “A power forward’s main defensive responsibility is often to give help to the other four guys on the floor rather than try to shut his own man down, so opponent PER can often be misleading for power forwards. Defensive +/- is generally more reliable, but Villanueva’s backup this season was defensive maven Luc Rashard Mbah a Moute, who already looks like one of the best defensive ‘rovers’ in the league. Mbah a Moute’s defensive +/- was a positive 4.9, almost a direct mirror of Villanueva’s negative 4.7. In other words, Villanueva’s poor mark is as much a testament to Mbah a Moute’s defensive prowess as Charlie V’s lack thereof. But the bottom line here is that playing power forward for the Cavs means taking on a massive amount of defensive responsibility on a nightly basis. I’d much rather have that spot filled by someone whose defense would best be described as ‘good’ than someone whose defense would best be described as ‘bad, but with a valid excuse.’ There are also some causes for concern within Villanueva’s offensive game. Villanueva led the Bucks in PER this season, but that’s mainly because of his ridiculously high usage rate.”

Ken Berger of CBSSports.com:  “The sudden change of direction put into motion last Tuesday and Wednesday by Morey is all the proof you need to grasp the gravity of the situation. In the 48 hours leading up to last Thursday night’s NBA Draft, Morey suddenly began adding names to the obvious one on his roster that was available. Tracy McGrady, another broken-down former superstar, most certainly was available, along with his $23 million expiring contract and a knee that recently underwent microfracture surgery. No news there. But then Morey, who had no first-round picks, began making serious attempts to obtain a high lottery pick. He floated heretofore untouchable names like Shane Battier, Aaron Brooks and Carl Landry. His attempts rebuffed, Morey went about the smart business of buying three second-round picks, which is a very Rocket-like way to build.”

Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle:  “If you’re looking for good news, this is it. No team is better positioned to withstand the loss of a Yao Ming than the Rockets. They may not have a single major contract obligation after next season when LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki, Bosh and other premier players are set to be free agents. Keeping that financial flexibility suddenly is Morey’s first priority during a nightmarish offseason. If he can trade for a player worth a long-term investment, he’ll do it. Otherwise, we’ll see a small, fast, scrappy team next season. Do you know what small, fast and scrappy gets you in the NBA? It gets you the team that beat the Lakers twice in the playoffs but was also blown off the floor twice. Fasten your seat belts. Our wild ride is about to begin.”

• Kobe Bryant: Michael Jackson helped mentor me. TIME has more on their connection: “One of the things he always told me was, Don’t be afraid to be different. In other words, when you have that desire, that drive, people are going to try to pull you away from that, and pull you closer to the pack to be ‘normal.’ And he was saying, It’s O.K. to be that driven; it’s O.K. to be obsessed with what you want to do. That’s perfectly fine. Don’t be afraid to not deviate from that. One of the books that he gave me that helped him communicate with me was Jonathan Livingston Seagull, which was about that. Beyond the genius of what he was, he was just a genuinely, genuinely nice person. He got me hooked on movies that I would normally never watch. Fred Astaire movies. All the old classics. I would never, never watch those. I remember my fiancée and I telling him we were getting married, and him just being really excited and actually just offering up the ranch to have our wedding there, because privacy was going to be an issue. We wanted to get married in a church, so that’s what we wound up doing. But he made the offer. He was just a genuinely nice person who was exceptionally bright, exceptionally bright, and driven and talented. You mix those things together, man, you have Michael Jackson.” (Via BDL)

• Rob Mahoney of Hardwood Paroxysm:  “In spite of all of Jordan’s reasonable success in the recent past, having him as the head of an ownership group is not only ill-advised, but flat-out irresponsible.  He’s the head of basketball ops in Charlotte, and elevating him to the majority shareholder in the team bears one flaw of cataclysmic proportions: no matter how terrible of an executive Jordan is or ever will be, he holds his own purse strings.  That means Jordan himself would have to be resigned to stepping down from his duties if that time ever came, which is not exactly the kind of thing you’d like to bank on.  Jordan, as a player and a person, is renowned for his passion for the game, his refusal to quit, and his must-win mentality.  On the court, those things are an asset.  But in the case of an executive with a seriously blemished record, confidence becomes arrogance, resolve becomes stubbornness, and desire becomes insanity.”

• Houston’s team physician confirms the severity of Yao’s injury.

• Steve Kerr on the financial aspect of the Shaq trade:  “First of all, you got to understand that most NBA franchises are in exactly same position. You just have to tighten the belt and you probably can’t go over the tax too much. If the economy had been where it is now 2 years ago, we never would have made the Shaq trade. We’re just dealing with the rules and the guidelines that most teams are in the league. That’s just the job and that’s ok, that’s fine. That’s why we made this particular Shaq trade a couple of days ago, to get the financial flexibility, heading in that direction. At the end of the season for the first team, we’re going to be well under the cap and we’re going to have some opportunity to make some basketball decisions and I think that’s what I’ve been looking forward to the most, to make a basketball choice rather than a financial one.”

• Speaking of the economy, the Milwaukee Bucks have not extended a qualifying offer to Charlie Villanueva, which could open the door for the Cavaliers to sign the fifth-year forward. Charlie V. averaged 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds last season.

• Shaq says Blake Griffin is in the same class as Kobe, LeBron, and KG. Shoals:  “Let’s hope, for Blake’s sake, this one doesn’t stick.”

• Tom Ziller with some reasonable perspective on the Brandon Jennings-Joe Budden escapade.

• Is Larry Bird stockpiling white players?

• Dwight Howard:  “I’m happy we got Vince and sad that some other guys had to go. I’m still holding out hope that we can get Turk back, too. Turk has been here for five years and I feel like I owe part of my development as a player to him. He’s one of the best passers I’ve ever played with in my career. If we can get him back we could be the team to beat next season. Without Turk, that would hurt us.”

• All things considered, Chip Crain at 3 Shades of Blue is glad the Grizzlies selected Hasheem Thabeet instead of Ricky Rubio.

• Sam Smith:  “Here’s a reason the Heat cannot be too sure about retaining Dwyane Wade. USA Basketball invited 25 young prospects to begin the process of getting into the so called Olympic pipeline. Beasley was the only top five draft pick from last year not invited and also invited instead of him were: D.J. Augustin, Jerryd Bayless, Ronnie Brewer, Kyle Korver and Thaddeus Young. Not a great vote of confidence. Teammate Mario Chalmers also wasn’t invited. Both are said to frustrate Wade with their immaturity. Miami reportedly tried to trade both to Memphis for draft picks. The belief is they have to deal both before next year to retain Wade.”

• Peter Vecsey puts Donnie Walsh on blast, and includes this little tidbit about Cleveland’s front office:  “Anybody can put a franchise on hold for two years while LeJesus decides whether he wants to flat-leave the Cavaliers, who have never said no to anything he’s asked for (his words to me in late March) in owner Dan Gilbert’s spendthrift pursuit of a championship.” Similar sentiments have been echoed elsewhere.

• The numbers suggest San Antonio’s 51st pick in the draft, Jack McClinton, is a better shooter than Stephen Curry. Have the Spurs picked up their version of Eddie House?

• Charley Rosen says Coack K should stay at Duke:  “Krzyzewski is making a colossal mistake if he believes that coaching Team USA in Beijing would constitute even the slightest resemblance to coaching an NBA team through an 82-game season. Directing the fortunes of 12 highly motivated All-Stars over the course of a two-week tournament against mostly inferior opponents is one thing. Coaching a collection of less talented (overall), routinely ego-driven players for 6-8 months is another. How would Coach K deal with guys whining to the media about playing time and shot distribution? About gold-digging girlfriends, paternity suits and child-support payments? And what about possible and probable arrests, suspensions, fines, injuries to key players, dealings with agents and general managers, suffering disrespect and even face-to-face confrontations with players? Have any undergraduates ever tried to choke Coach K or curse him or criticize him in the media? If working with malleable college kids can be likened to coaching while sitting in an easy chair, working with NBA millionaires is like coaching while running at full speed.”

• Ben Q. Rock of Third Quarter Collapse on the Vince Carter trade:  “The San Antonio Spurs have angled for Carter since at least this year’s trading deadline, and only settled for Richard Jefferson, his former Nets teammate and an inferior player, earlier this week when the Nets made it clear they wanted more than just expiring deals for him. The Spurs have one of the best and brightest front offices in all the NBA, if not all of professional sports. If they’re targeting a guy, especially a perimeter guy to surround a franchise center, then there’s a damn good reason for it. If he’s good enough for the Spurs, he’s definitely good enough for anyone else. Surely some Magic fans on the proverbial fence regarding Carter can acknowledge that much.”