FreshHoops.com
The latest and freshest news from the world of the NBA.
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Leandro Barbosa of the Toronto Raptors has picked up his $7.6 million player option for the 2011-2012 season, according to London Free Press.
The report states that Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo confirmed that Barbosa would be returning and beat a midnight deadline to make himself eliglbe to return to Toronto next season for $7.6 million.
There had been doubts about whether Barbosa would return with a possible lockout looming. He was reportedly thinking of playing in his native Brazil instead for the 2011-2012 season.
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Chuck Person will be returning to the Los Angeles Lakers as an assistant coach, according to Sam Amick.
Person was an assistant with the Lakers for the last two seasons, primarily brought in to help mentor his friend Ron Artest. He has since become somewhat of a defensive specialist on the team, and will be expected to continue that role for new head coach Mike Brown.
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The New York Knicks are only looking to offer a one-year deal to a center, according to the New York Post. That means that they will be out of the race this summer for players such as Marc Gasol, DeAndre Jordan and Samuel Dalembert.
So, who are the Knicks looking to sign as their starting center? It seems they may be looking in the direction of Kwame Brown.
*Stephen A. Smith voice* KWAME BROWN?!
Well yes, the ex-Laker and Pau Gasol trade piece may soon be starting for another legendary NBA team. The reasoning for this is so that the Knicks are in a great position cap-wise in the summer of 2012 when there is a potential free agent pool of players like Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Dwight Howard.
The report states that the only other real centers who could probably be had for a one-year deal are “Tony Battie, ex-Knick veteran Kurt Thomas, who filled in solidly in spots with the Bulls, Joel Pryzbilla, Aaron Gray and ancient Theo Ratliff.”
With some of those players being either too poorly conditioned to start, too old or retiring, maybe Kwame Brown is the best option - which can’t be a great thought for Knicks fans. It could all pay off in 2012 though if New York manages to land a big name in free agency to play alongside Amaré Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony.
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The Phoenix Suns made a qualifying offer to Aaron Brooks. However, it seems that the Sacramento Kings are also interested in his services and may be making a pitch to him to convince him to join the team, according to New York Daily News.
The Kings are in need a of a point guard now that Beno Udrih has been traded and they see Brooks as a player capable of being able to fill that void.
Don’t be surprised if other teams come out and make offers to Brooks too. It would make sense for the Los Angeles Lakers to make him an offer as they are currently in need of a quicker, younger point guard to replace Derek Fisher in the starting line-up who can also shoot the three. Brooks ticks all the boxes there and could probably be had for all or part of the MLE (as long as the MLE still exists after the new CBA) - the lure of being a starter for the Lakers would also have to be interesting for Brooks.
He had a fairly quiet season last year after being traded from the Houston Rockets to the Phoenix Suns. He spent most of the year on the bench too. The year before however he had career numbers of 19.6 ppg and 5.6 apg as a starter.
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Metta World Peace (Ron Artest) signs with basketball team in Finland?
Metta World Peace (Ron Artest) has signed with a basketball team in Finland? Apparently so, according to a Finnish newspaper report:
“Finland’s top league Korisliiga will witness some serious NBA talent in September 2011, when Los Angeles Lakers forward/multipersonality Ron Artest will join league newcomer LoKoKo Loimaa.
“The 31-year old Artest has three years left in his Lakers contract, but that doesn’t seem to bother LoKoKo sports director Aleksi Valavuori, who backs up the rumor in Tuesday’s Ilta-Sanomat newspaper.
“We have sorted things out and I can happily confirm that Artest will arrive in Finland,” Valavuori states in the Ilta-Sanomat interview.
Thanks for IamaGM.com for the heads up on this one.
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The Cleveland Cavaliers are trading J.J. Hickson to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Omri Casspi and and a future first-round pick, according to Ohio.com.
Could this be the last trade we see in a long time due to the probable lockout that will start Friday? We’ll have to wait and see.
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Teams trying to get in last minute trades before lockout at midnight
According to Adrian Wojnarowski, teams around the league are trying to make last minute trades before the lockout is here at midnight. Once the lockout is in effect, all basketball operations will be seized and teams will not be allowed to talk to each other about trades.
The Houston Rockets are the team that are pushing the hardest for a move, Wojnarowski said. It looks like time is running out for teams right now though and it appears that we might not see another trade for a while.
The latest and freshest news from the world of the NBA.
