Joe Johnson has the Atlanta Hawks contending now in the Eastern Conference, but several league sources say they wouldn’t be surprised if the All-Star guard leaves this summer, specifically to sign with the Chicago Bulls. The Hawks’ perch near the top of the East would likely keep them from moving Johnson – or any of their other core players – before next month’s trade deadline, but rival team executives wonder if they’d at least be willing to listen to offers if they aren’t certain Johnson will return. - Yahoo! Sports
Said one source with knowledge of the Mavs’ thinking: “They are looking hard.” But they are also still strongly weighing whether it’s smarter to keep Josh Howard past the trading deadline. That would preserve the option to package Howard (who becomes an $11.8 million expiring contract for 2010-11 once his team option is picked up) with Erick Dampier (whose $13.1 million salary next season is fully unguaranteed) as a combo-pack of assets for an offseason trade splash. - ESPN
The Dallas Mavericks figure to be among the most active teams before the trade deadline. The Mavericks’ attractive trade chip: center Erick Dampier, whose contract isn’t guaranteed beyond this season. Rival teams also say to keep an eye on the Minnesota Timberwolves, who continue to struggle and are also suffering in the attendance and sponsorship departments. - Yahoo! Sports
With the trade deadline approaching, Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh can expect to hear his name discussed amongst all the speculation of possible deals. Multiple sources, however, said the Raptors don’t expect to trade the future free agent prior to the deadline. Team officials are optimistic about their chances to re-sign Bosh, and, if they can’t, the Raptors could potentially use him in sign-and-trade deals since they can offer the biggest contract. “I know pretty much what’s going on,” Bosh said. - Yahoo! Sports
Sixers guard Andre Iguodala is already in the thick of rumor mills across the country, and HOOPSWORLD has been told by numerous sources that a team willing to take on Samuel Dalembert's contract could get Iguodala as part of the deal. It seems the Sixers are among the teams looking to make drastic moves, and we anticipate they'll find one before the trade deadline . . .now just 20 days away. - HoopsWorld
League executives list Phoenix forward Amar’e Stoudemire and Philadelphia 76ers swingman Andre Iguodala among the biggest names most likely to be moved before the trade deadline – and there’s even a chance they might be dealt for each other. If the cost-cutting Sixers did such a deal, they could try to use Stoudemire in a sign-and-trade during the offseason and not re-sign him. - Yahoo! Sports
Reggie Miller: The Knicks are headed in the right direction, hopefully. They have a lot of money under the salary cap and hopefully they can get one or two of these free agents. It won’t be LeBron, but maybe they can get two others, and maybe they’re going to get on the right track. Q. So the Knicks aren’t getting LeBron James? Reggie Miller. No. They’re not getting LeBron. - New York Times
One GM said he wouldn’t be surprised if Washington Wizards guard Javaris Crittenton is out of the NBA next season. Crittenton was suspended for the rest of the season for his role in the gun incident with Gilbert Arenas(notes) and will be a free agent this summer. “There are a lot of point guards that can do what he does without his drama,” the GM said. Arenas, sources said, remains optimistic he’ll receive probation and no jail time when he’s sentenced on March 26. - Yahoo! Sports
We've already fast-forwarded once past all of the above complexities to examine where Arenas will be able to turn if he does become an unexpected big-name addition to the Summer of 2010 free-agent class. And Orlando continues to be mentioned more prominently than any other potential destination, thanks largely to Arenas' close relationship with Magic general manager Otis Smith. I was assured earlier this month that the Magic will give the matter legit consideration this summer, even if Arenas figures to be the party pushing hardest for it. - ESPN
The Oklahoma City Thunder are drawing trade interest for their two 2010 first-round draft picks: one is theirs; the other they picked up from Phoenix in the Kurt Thomas trade in 2007. The Thunder also own Minnesota’s second-round pick this season. - Yahoo! Sports
Phil Jackson on whether the Lakers front office is thinking about the few years Kobe has left and if they would rather have a finished product of Chris Bosh or keep Bynum: “I think obviously there is a great deal of speculation about Chris this year because he is at the end of a contract. The looming feeling is that he is going to leave Toronto, whether he does or not who knows? That is kind of like the feeling. Everything is speculating who would be a reasonable situation in that regard. It doesn’t make any sense in the structural way to run a basketball team to take that kind of a risk... - Sports Radio Interviews
Western Conference scout on whether the Cleveland Cavaliers would be better off acquiring Antawn Jamison or Troy Murphy: "Jamison can help them more short-term, but I like Murphy's contract better. "Jamison is better around the basket. He can shoot 3s like Murphy can. But the last year of Jamison's deal -- $15 million when he'll be 35 -- would scare me. So I'd go with Murphy. "He doesn't play defense like the Cavs [expect], but he only has one season left after this one [at nearly $12 million]. If I'm the Cavs and I end up losing LeBron, I'm not going to want Jamison on my books in that last year at $15 million." - ESPN
When the NBA hands the players' association its first proposal for a new collective bargaining agreement sometime in the next 10 days, the percentage of revenues that the league wants to give to the players will be "well below 50 percent," according to multiple league sources. The players currently receive 57 percent of basketball-related income, and the union's executive director, Billy Hunter, told SI.com earlier this month he thought the league was going to offer a 50-50 split. - Sports Illustrated
Common sense says the NBA would follow in the same path as the NHL and phase in a hard salary cap that would put in place an escrow account that would require players to pay back owners a pre-determined amount at the end of each season. "Damn. What is that, 12 percent lower?" George said. "Shoot. Well, save our money and just get ready to knuckle up, I guess." - Sports Illustrated
If a hard cap is the new reality, then everyone in the league will be taking a new view of player salaries. "I want to be careful about calling this collusion, because that's illegal," said agent David Bauman, who represents Ron Artest and other players. "But I do think it's being strongly suggested to teams that they should not give out long-term deals because the next CBA is going to look drastically different.'' - Sports Illustrated
Utah Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor announced today that the team has recalled second-year center Kosta Koufos from the Utah Flash of the NBA Development League (D-League). Koufos is expected to be in uniform when the Jazz hosts Sacramento on Friday, January 29, at 7 p.m. In one game with the Flash, Koufos scored 16 points, pulled down seven rebounds and had one assist in 29 minutes against the Maine Red Claws on Monday night. - The Hoop
Brook Lopez could care less that he didn’t make the All-Star team. He was sleeping when TNT announced the reserves last night and he also watched Willy Wonka. We asked which one? “The good one,” Lopez said. That means the first one. Not the Johnny Depp disappointment. “Gene Wilder is tough to beat,” Lopez said. - Bergen Record
Making it to the All-Star Game for the first time comes with a bonus for Grizzlies big man Zach Randolph. Randolph's selection by Western Conference coaches triggers a contract bonus of $333,333. Randolph won't receive that money -- and it won't be added to the Grizzlies' payroll -- until after the season. But the All-Star bonus in the 28-year-old's contract will now be classified as a "likely" bonus as opposed to an "unlikely" bonus, increasing Randolph's salary-cap number to $17,666,666 for 2010-11. - ESPN
"I can't deny that I'm highly disappointed that Chauncey, Ty and Afflalo didn't get more recognition," Karl said Friday afternoon. "I think all of them deserve to be. Arron in the 3-point contest, Ty I think has proven to be a top-five, top-10 rookie easily in my mind. But the abundance of guards probably forced him out, and the same reason for Chauncey. "I have no problems with Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Steve Nash being selected. But Chauncey in the last four weeks has been playing better than all of them. I think he has been incredible, holding our team together and lifting it into a very confident and successful team." - Denver Post
Jackson's comments Friday: -- He absolutely believes the $200,000-plus he was fined for publicly asking for a trade was money well-spent (although he says he's still trying to get some of it back on appeal). -- He doesn't mind being booed by Warriors fans tonight, but he wishes people better understood his motivation: "When I retire, that's when it will stop,'' Jackson said of being booed in most NBA arenas. "I still get booed in Detroit (over the brawl). I get booed in Indiana (over the strip-club incident). The only place I play where don't get booed is San Antonio (where) we won a championship. - Charlotte Observer
Co-host Bill Rohland asked the crucial question--whether Gilbert could play in Washington again--and his dad admitted that he didn't know but he thought it was possible. "There's a lot of other issues going on right now for the Washington Wizards," he said. "For Gilbert to come back and play for them, yes he could. For that to happen, Mr. Grunfeld, the new owner maybe, they all have to sit down and try to pound out what happened. But Washington moved on and I just feel like they're trying to move on. They stopped selling Gil's products, which is their way of saying, 'Hey look, we have to go in a new direction." - Washington Post
In the locker room, Stoudemire didn't appear to be concerned with his lack of late-game minutes. He was all smiles, and genuinely seemed happy that his team got the victory. "It's all good," Stoudemire said of his sitting out the fourth. "I brought out the pom poms for the last, for the fourth quarter. They did a great job out there on the court, so I just had to cheer them on." And had Stoudemire ever sat out an entire fourth quarter before? "Never," Stoudemire said. "That's the first time. But the guys did a great job and we got the win, which is most important. So we've just got to live with that." - FanHouse
An advertisement featuring the NBA's two biggest superstars includes a gun reference, the same week two players were suspended for carrying firearms to the locker room. The Nike ad, inside the cover of this week's editions of ESPN The Magazine and Sports Illustrated, has LeBron James on one page and Kobe Bryant on the other. Along with the slogan, "Prepare For Combat," is a quote from each player showing how tough he is. Bryant's blurb says: "I'll do whatever it takes to win games. I don't leave anything in the chamber." - ESPN
Said one source with knowledge of the Mavs’ thinking: “They are looking hard.” But they are also still strongly weighing whether it’s smarter to keep Josh Howard past the trading deadline. That would preserve the option to package Howard (who becomes an $11.8 million expiring contract for 2010-11 once his team option is picked up) with Erick Dampier (whose $13.1 million salary next season is fully unguaranteed) as a combo-pack of assets for an offseason trade splash. - ESPN
The Dallas Mavericks figure to be among the most active teams before the trade deadline. The Mavericks’ attractive trade chip: center Erick Dampier, whose contract isn’t guaranteed beyond this season. Rival teams also say to keep an eye on the Minnesota Timberwolves, who continue to struggle and are also suffering in the attendance and sponsorship departments. - Yahoo! Sports
With the trade deadline approaching, Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh can expect to hear his name discussed amongst all the speculation of possible deals. Multiple sources, however, said the Raptors don’t expect to trade the future free agent prior to the deadline. Team officials are optimistic about their chances to re-sign Bosh, and, if they can’t, the Raptors could potentially use him in sign-and-trade deals since they can offer the biggest contract. “I know pretty much what’s going on,” Bosh said. - Yahoo! Sports
Sixers guard Andre Iguodala is already in the thick of rumor mills across the country, and HOOPSWORLD has been told by numerous sources that a team willing to take on Samuel Dalembert's contract could get Iguodala as part of the deal. It seems the Sixers are among the teams looking to make drastic moves, and we anticipate they'll find one before the trade deadline . . .now just 20 days away. - HoopsWorld
League executives list Phoenix forward Amar’e Stoudemire and Philadelphia 76ers swingman Andre Iguodala among the biggest names most likely to be moved before the trade deadline – and there’s even a chance they might be dealt for each other. If the cost-cutting Sixers did such a deal, they could try to use Stoudemire in a sign-and-trade during the offseason and not re-sign him. - Yahoo! Sports
Reggie Miller: The Knicks are headed in the right direction, hopefully. They have a lot of money under the salary cap and hopefully they can get one or two of these free agents. It won’t be LeBron, but maybe they can get two others, and maybe they’re going to get on the right track. Q. So the Knicks aren’t getting LeBron James? Reggie Miller. No. They’re not getting LeBron. - New York Times
One GM said he wouldn’t be surprised if Washington Wizards guard Javaris Crittenton is out of the NBA next season. Crittenton was suspended for the rest of the season for his role in the gun incident with Gilbert Arenas(notes) and will be a free agent this summer. “There are a lot of point guards that can do what he does without his drama,” the GM said. Arenas, sources said, remains optimistic he’ll receive probation and no jail time when he’s sentenced on March 26. - Yahoo! Sports
We've already fast-forwarded once past all of the above complexities to examine where Arenas will be able to turn if he does become an unexpected big-name addition to the Summer of 2010 free-agent class. And Orlando continues to be mentioned more prominently than any other potential destination, thanks largely to Arenas' close relationship with Magic general manager Otis Smith. I was assured earlier this month that the Magic will give the matter legit consideration this summer, even if Arenas figures to be the party pushing hardest for it. - ESPN
The Oklahoma City Thunder are drawing trade interest for their two 2010 first-round draft picks: one is theirs; the other they picked up from Phoenix in the Kurt Thomas trade in 2007. The Thunder also own Minnesota’s second-round pick this season. - Yahoo! Sports
Phil Jackson on whether the Lakers front office is thinking about the few years Kobe has left and if they would rather have a finished product of Chris Bosh or keep Bynum: “I think obviously there is a great deal of speculation about Chris this year because he is at the end of a contract. The looming feeling is that he is going to leave Toronto, whether he does or not who knows? That is kind of like the feeling. Everything is speculating who would be a reasonable situation in that regard. It doesn’t make any sense in the structural way to run a basketball team to take that kind of a risk... - Sports Radio Interviews
Western Conference scout on whether the Cleveland Cavaliers would be better off acquiring Antawn Jamison or Troy Murphy: "Jamison can help them more short-term, but I like Murphy's contract better. "Jamison is better around the basket. He can shoot 3s like Murphy can. But the last year of Jamison's deal -- $15 million when he'll be 35 -- would scare me. So I'd go with Murphy. "He doesn't play defense like the Cavs [expect], but he only has one season left after this one [at nearly $12 million]. If I'm the Cavs and I end up losing LeBron, I'm not going to want Jamison on my books in that last year at $15 million." - ESPN
When the NBA hands the players' association its first proposal for a new collective bargaining agreement sometime in the next 10 days, the percentage of revenues that the league wants to give to the players will be "well below 50 percent," according to multiple league sources. The players currently receive 57 percent of basketball-related income, and the union's executive director, Billy Hunter, told SI.com earlier this month he thought the league was going to offer a 50-50 split. - Sports Illustrated
Common sense says the NBA would follow in the same path as the NHL and phase in a hard salary cap that would put in place an escrow account that would require players to pay back owners a pre-determined amount at the end of each season. "Damn. What is that, 12 percent lower?" George said. "Shoot. Well, save our money and just get ready to knuckle up, I guess." - Sports Illustrated
If a hard cap is the new reality, then everyone in the league will be taking a new view of player salaries. "I want to be careful about calling this collusion, because that's illegal," said agent David Bauman, who represents Ron Artest and other players. "But I do think it's being strongly suggested to teams that they should not give out long-term deals because the next CBA is going to look drastically different.'' - Sports Illustrated
Utah Jazz general manager Kevin O’Connor announced today that the team has recalled second-year center Kosta Koufos from the Utah Flash of the NBA Development League (D-League). Koufos is expected to be in uniform when the Jazz hosts Sacramento on Friday, January 29, at 7 p.m. In one game with the Flash, Koufos scored 16 points, pulled down seven rebounds and had one assist in 29 minutes against the Maine Red Claws on Monday night. - The Hoop
Brook Lopez could care less that he didn’t make the All-Star team. He was sleeping when TNT announced the reserves last night and he also watched Willy Wonka. We asked which one? “The good one,” Lopez said. That means the first one. Not the Johnny Depp disappointment. “Gene Wilder is tough to beat,” Lopez said. - Bergen Record
Making it to the All-Star Game for the first time comes with a bonus for Grizzlies big man Zach Randolph. Randolph's selection by Western Conference coaches triggers a contract bonus of $333,333. Randolph won't receive that money -- and it won't be added to the Grizzlies' payroll -- until after the season. But the All-Star bonus in the 28-year-old's contract will now be classified as a "likely" bonus as opposed to an "unlikely" bonus, increasing Randolph's salary-cap number to $17,666,666 for 2010-11. - ESPN
"I can't deny that I'm highly disappointed that Chauncey, Ty and Afflalo didn't get more recognition," Karl said Friday afternoon. "I think all of them deserve to be. Arron in the 3-point contest, Ty I think has proven to be a top-five, top-10 rookie easily in my mind. But the abundance of guards probably forced him out, and the same reason for Chauncey. "I have no problems with Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Steve Nash being selected. But Chauncey in the last four weeks has been playing better than all of them. I think he has been incredible, holding our team together and lifting it into a very confident and successful team." - Denver Post
Jackson's comments Friday: -- He absolutely believes the $200,000-plus he was fined for publicly asking for a trade was money well-spent (although he says he's still trying to get some of it back on appeal). -- He doesn't mind being booed by Warriors fans tonight, but he wishes people better understood his motivation: "When I retire, that's when it will stop,'' Jackson said of being booed in most NBA arenas. "I still get booed in Detroit (over the brawl). I get booed in Indiana (over the strip-club incident). The only place I play where don't get booed is San Antonio (where) we won a championship. - Charlotte Observer
Co-host Bill Rohland asked the crucial question--whether Gilbert could play in Washington again--and his dad admitted that he didn't know but he thought it was possible. "There's a lot of other issues going on right now for the Washington Wizards," he said. "For Gilbert to come back and play for them, yes he could. For that to happen, Mr. Grunfeld, the new owner maybe, they all have to sit down and try to pound out what happened. But Washington moved on and I just feel like they're trying to move on. They stopped selling Gil's products, which is their way of saying, 'Hey look, we have to go in a new direction." - Washington Post
In the locker room, Stoudemire didn't appear to be concerned with his lack of late-game minutes. He was all smiles, and genuinely seemed happy that his team got the victory. "It's all good," Stoudemire said of his sitting out the fourth. "I brought out the pom poms for the last, for the fourth quarter. They did a great job out there on the court, so I just had to cheer them on." And had Stoudemire ever sat out an entire fourth quarter before? "Never," Stoudemire said. "That's the first time. But the guys did a great job and we got the win, which is most important. So we've just got to live with that." - FanHouse
An advertisement featuring the NBA's two biggest superstars includes a gun reference, the same week two players were suspended for carrying firearms to the locker room. The Nike ad, inside the cover of this week's editions of ESPN The Magazine and Sports Illustrated, has LeBron James on one page and Kobe Bryant on the other. Along with the slogan, "Prepare For Combat," is a quote from each player showing how tough he is. Bryant's blurb says: "I'll do whatever it takes to win games. I don't leave anything in the chamber." - ESPN
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