NBA Capsules: Blazers fire GM Pritchard as draft starts
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The Portland Trail Blazers fired general manager Kevin Pritchard after six seasons with the team, ending months of speculation that he had fallen out of favor with billionaire owner Paul Allen.
The Oregonian newspaper reported about an hour before the Thursday's NBA draft started that Pritchard had been dismissed. The team confirmed the firing at the conclusion of the night.
"This process was more public and took longer than any of us would have liked, but that was indicative of how critical a decision this was for the franchise," Allen said in a statement. "We want to thank and acknowledge Kevin for his solid work in getting us to where we are today. Parting ways with a popular general manager is not something we take lightly. In the end, we decided to make a change."
Pritchard ducked out of the Blazers' practice facility before the conclusion of the draft. He did not return phone messages.
Blazers president Larry Miller said Pritchard met with Allen, the co-founder of Microsoft and owner of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks, earlier in the day. He would not specify why Pritchard was let go.
"I'm not going to get into any details as to what transpired or why," Miller said.
Pritchard is under contract through next season and the Blazers will honor his contract. A search firm had earlier been hired to vet candidates for the job.
A rumored possible replacement, Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti, recently denied that he had been contacted about the job. Miller said Denver Nuggets executive Mark Warkentien, also said to be interested, was not being considered.
Pritchard joined the Blazers as director of player personnel in 2004 and briefly served as interim head coach after the Blazers fired coach Maurice Cheeks in 2005.
He was promoted as general manager in 2007 and was charged with rescuing the Blazers from their "Jail Blazers" reputation as a team of malcontents who couldn't manage to stay out of trouble.
Pritchard built a promising young team around guard Brandon Roy, who was chosen the league's rookie of the year before becoming a three-time All-Star. Pritchard was also a staunch supporter of 7-foot center Greg Oden, the top pick in the 2007 draft who has been plagued by injuries.
Pritchard appeared to have the support of Portland's fan base. Several online petitions backing him surfaced when the rumors about his uncertain future began to swirl in late March, after the Blazers abruptly fired Tom Penn, Portland's vice president of basketball operations.
Penn was widely considered a salary-cap specialist and key to many of Pritchard's past player moves.
The Blazers said only that Penn was dismissed for "philosophical differences." But Warren LeGarie, who represents Pritchard and Penn, made comments to several reporters suggesting Penn's firing was a message to Pritchard.
At the time Allen issued a statement in support of Pritchard but added his performance would be evaluated at the end of the season. When word got out that the Blazers had hired a search firm, the firing seemed only a matter of when, not if.
Last week Pritchard spoke uncomfortably with reporters, suggesting he would fight for the job by repeating "may the best man win."
But ultimate timing of Pritchard's dismissal was awkward at best.
"I admire the professionalism he exhibited tonight. He deserves a lot of kudos. He ran the draft," Timberwolves president David Kahn said. "I just think that he deserves to be commended for acting that way. You would have never known from dealing with him on the phone tonight that this is a guy who that happened to. And he must be a pretty special guy to be able to withstand that. I admire him greatly."
Pritchard asked to lead the team through the draft.
"I would hope that the fans would trust that we are going to do everything we can to make this organization better, because that's what we're going to do," Miller said.
Bosh says free-agency is 'scary but ... exciting'
Chris Bosh believes there will be a clear order of priority when the most-awaited free agent period in NBA history opens at 12:01 a.m. on July 1.
LeBron James comes first. Everybody else comes second.
Appearing as a co-host on ESPN Radio Thursday morning, the Toronto Raptors' All-Star forward and marquee piece of this summer's sparkling class of NBA free agents said when the offseason-movement window opens, the entire league, himself included, will be waiting to see what decision Cleveland's two-time MVP makes about his future.
"Am I waiting on LeBron? Pretty much," Bosh said. "I think everyone has to. I have to as well."
And while he offered no hints about his own future, Bosh believes what James does could affect everything else that goes on this summer.
"He's a great player and I would be crazy to think that all the teams that are considering him, they would talk to somebody else first," Bosh said. "I think everybody is going to be going at him first.
"They'll probably call him at 12:01," Bosh added. "Hopefully they'll call me at 12:02."
Bosh, James and Miami's Dwyane Wade are the headliners of the class that's expected to opt out of their current deals and become free agents on July 1.
"This is something we've kind of been talking about for four years now," Bosh said. "And the day is finally here. It's kind of scary but it's exciting."
The No. 4 pick in the 2003 draft, Bosh averaged 24.0 points and 10.8 rebounds for the Raptors last season. Toronto hopes to keep Bosh, but is also preparing for the possibility of him joining another club.
Bosh insisted he could return to Toronto.
"Toronto is a great place. ... They have a lot of good things going," Bosh said. "And they're definitely a team that I'm going to be looking at very hard because they can do things that other teams can't."
The Raptors can offer a six-year deal worth approximately $127 million. No other team could offer Bosh more than a five-year pact that would likely be worth around $97 million.
Bosh stressed he would also be happy alongside another elite player.
"I would like to contribute big to somebody," Bosh said. "Toronto made me their focal point and they've built around me for the last few years and just to have that feeling there, it was good, because going down into the stretch of the games I knew the ball was going to be in my hands and I knew that I was the guy who had to make my teammates better."
Bosh said he has not talked with other marquee free agents, though suggested that eventually he and James will speak.
James has been tightlipped about all things related to this summer, and Bosh doesn't have any insight into his thinking either.
"I really, honestly have no idea," Bosh said. "I think he's a very business-savvy guy that wants to win a championship, so he's looking at everything from each aspect. He wants to win, but at the same time, he wants to maintain his presence in the NBA market and really the athletic market around the world because he's one of the household names."
Unlike Wade, who insists he wants to stay in Miami if the Heat return to a championship-contending level, Bosh has not offered any favorites.
He believes Wade's top choice is to stay in Miami, but hinted it's still not certain.
"He killed a lot of noise with that," Bosh said. "But at the same time, before he goes to sleep at night, he has to think of different scenarios because he's a free agent and you hold the keys to your own success, your own future. It's just something that everybody thinks about and the scenarios that you run through is crazy."
Bosh and Wade share an agent, Chicago-based Henry Thomas, who has simply advised Bosh to "be ready" for anything on July 1.
Bosh said he'll have a bag packed in case a quick visit anywhere is arranged.
"I can kind of sit back and see what's going to happen and see what decision or what way guys are going to go," Bosh said. "So when they do make that move or whatever, I can look at things better."
Much like James and Wade, Bosh is getting wooed from all possible angles, hearing from people in just about every NBA city about why he should sign there for the next five or six seasons.
At first, Bosh said, it was overwhelming.
"It's just become part of my life, a part of my everyday life," Bosh said.
-- Tim Reynolds
Riley, Heat operating from position of strength
MIAMI (AP) — Pat Riley emerged from the Miami Heat draft room very early Friday morning, content in the belief that he just acquired three good players.
Here comes the Heat president's chance to land some great ones.
"I think we've got a pretty good idea what we're going to do," Riley said.
With more salary-cap space than any team in the NBA, the Heat are in position to make the biggest splash when free agency finally begins Thursday at 12:01 a.m. While other teams — most notably New York, New Jersey and now, after some draft-day trades, Chicago — also are loaded with spending cash, it's Miami with the deepest pockets.
So not only can the Heat offer Dwyane Wade about $127 million to stay — and he's said countless times that he wants to stay if the roster is upgraded to a championship-contending level again — but they can also woo LeBron James, Chris Bosh, Amare Stoudemire, Carlos Boozer or another highest-tier player of their choosing, and even then still add a whole slew of other talent.
"I want to build a team and it takes five guys to build a team," Riley said. "And whatever kind of room we've created, it's to build a team. And we have the ability to do that. There's going to be a foundation, a core foundation, and there's going to be whatever that foundation will support."
He paused for a moment, then added, "I don't care what anybody else does. I've been at this for two years now."
True, this decision to rebuild the Heat almost from scratch — entering the draft, Miami had only Michael Beasley and Mario Chalmers locked into deals for next season — was born in 2008, when Riley traded away Shaquille O'Neal, then shut down Wade with more than 20 games left in the season because of injuries. That was the year Miami finished 15-67, and Riley coached for presumably the final time.
Riley won five titles as a head coach, earning him a spot in the Hall of Fame. What he does during the most-awaited free agent period ever, however, will surely go down as part of his legacy, win or lose.
"We've stayed with the plan," Riley said. "And now, in another week, we'll go out there and see what the market's all about and where the pieces end up landing. We've thought a lot about it."
The Heat started the offseason overhaul with three second-round pickups, starting with center Dexter Pittman from Texas, shotblocking forward Jarvis Varnado from Mississippi State, and forward Da'Sean Butler — the West Virginia star who tore a ligament in his left knee during the Mountaineers' national semifinal matchup against eventual NCAA champion Duke. Butler was ranked No. 21 on the Heat draft board. Pittman was 25th, Varnado 28th.
"We feel like we got three first-round picks," Riley said.
Ah, but they're not. At least, not financially.
Every dollar counts for Miami right now, which is why Riley traded Daequan Cook and the No. 18 pick to Oklahoma City on Wednesday, a move that freed up around $3 million in salary-cap space. Second-round picks cost less to sign than first-rounders, another plus for the Heat. And the need for as much cap space as possible has led to speculation that Miami was trying to move Michael Beasley, the No. 2 pick in the 2008 draft, with eyes on carving out another $5 million or so in cap room. Not happening, Riley insists.
"I'm sure anybody would take him, so as soon as that story got out, I must have gotten 25 calls from people thinking, 'Wow,'" Riley said. "But that's not going to happen. We want to build around him and Mario, add those players to the guys we just drafted and add those guys to the core that during the period of free agency will bring us. That's what it's about."
-- Tim Reynolds
Pistons owner expects sale before season opener
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Detroit Pistons owner Karen Davidson looked and sounded giddy, walking away from the team's practice facility Thursday night with an ear-to-ear grin.
Her mood didn't seem to be tied to drafting Georgetown's Greg Monroe seventh overall in the NBA draft.
"You're going to have a new owner pretty soon," Davidson enthusiastically told two reporters.
Despite a weak economy and the threat of a work stoppage after next season, Davidson said she was "absolutely" encouraged by the interest in buying the team and expects the deal to be done by the opening game in late October.
"It's a major franchise," she said.
The Pistons announced earlier this month that Citi Private Bank's Sports Finance and Advisory team was assisting in the potential sale of the team.
Davidson has said she's considering a sale of the franchise by itself or as part of a package with Palace Sports and Entertainment, which includes The Palace of Auburn Hills, DTE Energy Music Theatre and Meadow Brook Music Festival.
Her husband, Bill Davidson, died last year. The late owner known as "Mr. D" helped the Pistons win NBA titles in 1989, 1990 and 2004. Davidson said during an interview two years that a succession plan was in place to keep the team in the family and it would not be sold
"The Pistons won't be for sale," he told The Associated Press in 2008.
Forbes has valued the Pistons at $479 million.
Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars, who helped the franchise win its first two titles as a player and its third as an executive, wants to and intends to be busy this offseason to fix a franchise that missed the playoffs last season for the first time since 2001.
The team will be about $10 million under the salary cap, including the midlevel exception, and Dumars expects to be able to spend every dollar available to try to make the team better despite a possible ownership change.
"I'm not under any restrictions," Dumars said.
-- Larry Lage
Bobcats' Wallace hopes Felton, Brown return
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Gerald Wallace doesn't want to see a lot of changes for the Charlotte Bobcats this offseason.
Raymond Felton? He wants the impending free-agent point guard to re-sign.
Larry Brown? Wallace credits the Hall of Fame coach with his first All-Star appearance and hopes he returns for a third season.
Wallace even thinks volatile Stephen Jackson gets a bad rap, and is looking forward to another season with Captain Jack.
Wallace was back in town Thursday to attend a fan draft party at Time Warner Cable Arena, even though the Bobcats entered the night without a pick. Wallace is readying to hit the court again after two months off to begin preparations for his first appearance at the U.S. national team training camp ahead of this summer's world championships.
"Whether I make (the team) or whether I don't is not a big concern for me," Wallace said. "It's just for me the experience to say I was a part of it and I was there."
After decompressing with fishing and his son's baseball games, Wallace is starting to think about basketball again after the disappointed of Charlotte's four-game sweep to Orlando in the franchise's first playoff appearance.
The series featured a one-sided matchup at point guard, with Jameer Nelson outplaying Felton. General manager Rod Higgins has called Felton's impending unrestricted free agency a "delicate situation" and it's possible he won't be re-signed.
"He's a major piece for our puzzle," Wallace said. "He was one of the pieces that helped us get to where we got for the first time in franchise history. Hopefully, he'll be here. If not, I wish him the best in his career in whatever he decides to do."
While Brown has worked out draft prospects all month and was deep in draft discussions Thursday night, he hasn't come out and said he's definitely returning for a third season.
Wallace was quick to praise Brown for his development. Wallace averaged 18.2 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in 76 regular-season games. He was selected as the Bobcats' first All-Star and was voted to the NBA's all-defensive first team.
"The past few years he's been here has been probably the best years of my career as far as a player," Wallace said. "I've improved both years. ... He did a lot for my growth in this league. In my opinion, I'd love for him to be here. I'd love for him to stay here as long as he wants to coach. But at the end of the day, that's his decision."
Wallace, the last remaining member of the expansion club's inaugural team in 2004-05, saved his highest praise for Jackson.
After off-court issues ranging from feuds with coaches to his role in the infamous brawl in Auburn Hills, Mich., Jackson was considered a risk when Charlotte traded for him early last season. But Jackson helped the Bobcats to the playoffs and played well with Wallace.
"I sat down and talked to him many times about the bad rep around the league and how people thought about him and everything," Wallace said. "I told him, point blank, 'I don't see you as that person.'
"I think his time in Charlotte was not only a great experience for myself, but for the rest of the team, too. I think he was a great leader on this team. He took the young guys under his wing."
Meanwhile, Wallace, left unprotected six years ago in the expansion draft by Sacramento, has developed into a player who has an outside chance at representing the U.S. this summer in Turkey.
"When you really look at it, the national team pretty much consists of all your heavyweight hitters in the league," Wallace said. "For them to even consider me to come is an honor for me. It just shows the work I've put in over these nine years."
-- Mike Cranston
Suns exercise option for Gentry, sign 3 assistants
PHOENIX (AP) — The Phoenix Suns have exercised the option year of coach Alvin Gentry for the 2011-12 season.
Gentry guided the Suns to a 54-28 regular season, third-best in the West. Phoenix eliminated Portland and San Antonio in the playoffs before falling to eventual NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals.
The Suns also have signed assistant coaches Bill Cartwright, Dan Majerle and Igor Kokoskov through the 2011-12 season. John Shumate, an assistant last season, is expected to return to scouting duties.
Phoenix is 71-42 since Gentry took over following the firing of Terry Porter at the All-Star break in February 2009.
Owner Robert Sarver said Gentry "has done a phenomenal job." The moves came after Steve Kerr announced he would not return as general manager. Kerr's contract expires on Wednesday.
Magic GM has had 'discussions' about Turkoglu
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Magic general manager Otis Smith says he has had "discussions" with the Toronto Raptors about reacquiring forward Hedo Turkoglu but that talks "never went anywhere."
Smith offered few other details about the trade talks Thursday night, and it wasn't clear who started the discussions. Smith wouldn't say if he has talked to Turkoglu about returning to the Magic.
Turkoglu was a pitvotal piece in the Magic's run to the NBA finals in 2009. But Orlando chose to part ways last summer with Turkoglu so they could trade for Vince Carter.
The Magic were eliminated by Boston in the Eastern Conference finals this season and are already over the luxury tax. Smith said they were merely discussions with Toronto and fans shouldn't read anything into it.
Cook thanks Heat, fans for 3 years in Miami
MIAMI (AP) — Daequan Cook turned to Twitter for his farewell to the Miami Heat.
Less than 24 hours after being traded to Oklahoma City, the shooting guard and former 3-point shootout champion at the NBA's All-Star weekend posted Thursday that he "had a Great 3yrs in Miami."
Cook also thanked "fans and Heat organization," and noted that going to Oklahoma City represents a great situation for him.
Cook was traded along with the No. 18 pick to the Thunder for the No. 32 pick in Thursday's draft, which largely amounts to a move that allowed the Heat to clear salary-cap space.
Elsewhere
Wade's wife will go forward with appeal
MIAMI (AP) — Dwyane Wade will have his long-sought divorce Friday. His soon-to-be-ex-wife contends that shouldn't be the case.
Siohvaughn Wade will quickly file an appeal, likely on Monday, citing that grounds do not exist for what's known as a "bifurcate judgment" — in short, an order that will end the marriage but not decide either custody of the couple's two children or how the marital assets will be decided.
Dwyane Wade and his high school sweetheart separated in 2007, and Siohvaughn Wade is now on her 10th attorney during the divorce process. A judge in Chicago, where the divorce will be granted, decided that cause exists for the marriage to finally end, and the thinking behind that decision is essentially what Siohvaughn Wade will appeal.
"There is not an appropriate circumstance to grant a bifurcation," attorney Michael Kalcheim said Thursday night in a telephone interview from Chicago.
Kalcheim said Siohvaughn Wade is prepared to start the next chapter in her life, but is concerned for her children. The appeal can be filed only after Friday's judgment is entered.
"All she wants is to have the mother and father raise the child," Kalcheim said.
Dwyane Wade is seeking sole custody of his sons, ages 8 and 3, and was awarded temporary custody earlier this month after a judge determined his visitation time with the kids "has been frustrated on an ongoing basis as a result of continual interference" by his estranged wife.
Wade is expected to become a free agent on July 1 and wants to remain with the Heat, who could offer a contract worth around $127 million.
-- Tim Reynolds
Chicago judge issues arrest warrant for Eddy Curry
CHICAGO (AP) — A judge in Chicago has issued an arrest warrant for New York Knicks player Eddy Curry because he's failed to appear in court in connection with a civil lawsuit.
Cook County sheriff's spokesman Steve Patterson says the agency received the warrant June 14 and has contacted Curry's attorneys. Curry grew up in the Chicago area and used to play for the Bulls.
Court records show the case was a personal injury lawsuit filed by Christina White. Her attorney, Larry Rogers, says Curry failed to make a payment but declined to give details because the case is under seal.
A message left for Curry's attorney wasn't immediately returned Thursday. A Knicks spokesman declined to comment.
