Atlanta Hawks

In the whirlwind that is the Atlanta Hawks, not only did they not trade any of their draft picks away to land Amare Stoudemire (as rumored before the draft), they used them both to address needs by landing bruiser Al Horford and guard Acie Law IV.  News circulated that it was once again the Hawks dreadful soap opera ownership that nixed any deal involving the Suns, but Phoenix itself said that Amare was never going to leave in the first place, so all is good…or as good as it can be.  Both Horford and Law are signed and playing in the summer league with the likes of Shelden Williams and Solomon Jones.  They won’t start hooping it up until July 13th, so get your DVRs ready.

Boston Celtics

As you should all know by now, veteran shooting guard Ray Allen has been shipped to the Celtics for Jeff Green (who was the fifth overall selection in the draft), Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West.  This move will force Paul Pierce to play small forward full time, as he would switch to shooting guard at times due to Szczerbiak’s lack of speed.  Rajon Rondo will likely be the starting point guard this season and offers a boat load of potential for assists and steals.  But don’t count out Sebastian Telfair just yet.  After being rumored to have been exiled from all things Celtic, Telfair will apparently be given another shot (pun definitely intended).  All-Garbage time stud Allan Ray will now have to wait until August 1 to see if he’ll get his option picked up by Boston.  And Glen “Big Baby” Davis will likely have a contract presented to him soon as he and Leon Powe have been solid in the front court thus far in the summer league.

Charlotte Bobcats

One of the bigger-named free agents still out there is the high-flying Gerald Wallace.  Several teams are interested in the services of his hustle stats, but are waiting to see how negotiations go with Charlotte first.  One guy that’s playing for the ‘Cats regardless is newly acquired guard Jason Richardson.  J-Rich was dealt on draft day for the rights to Brandan Wright.  He’ll likely provide his 20+ points a night from the get-go as the main scoring option for Charlotte.  On the flip side, one guy that definitely will not be playing for Charlotte is veteran point guard Brevin Knight, who was waived.  This move will open up the full-time point guard slot for Ray Felton – who could easily be a top five point guard this season and lead the Eastern Conference in assists if the cards fall right.  

Chicago Bulls

With continued attempts to bolster their frontcourt, Chicago has set their sites on Joe Smith, Mikki Moore and Chris Mihm.  The draft landed them a big man in Joakim Noah, but scoring is about as far from his strength as any player in the league at this point, so a free agent acquisition still looms.  Meanwhile, Chicago has re-signed sixth man Andres Nocioni to a five-year deal worth about $38 million.  It was up in the air regarding the forward whose season was hampered by foot issues, but the Bulls hope that they have a Manu Ginobili-type player to come off of the bench for the next several years.  Now if they could only find that Tim Duncan-type player to play in the paint. 

Cleveland Cavaliers

With the abovementioned Nocioni off of the board, another foreign-born player has come up in talks in Anderson Varejao.  The Memphis Grizzlies were rumored to have offered the Brazilian rebound machine a decent contract, but that was quickly squashed by the Grizz brass.  The Cavaliers can match any offer given to the big man, but have gone on record saying that they’re not in the arena to overpay for a guy who will likely max out at 12 points a night given starters minutes.  While GM Danny Ferry has been given the green light on the luxury tax, he claims that it is not the issue as much as perceived value with Varejao and free agent guard Sasha Pavlovic.  It’s also rumored that the Cavaliers may be in the hunt for recently cut guard Derek Fisher, who would like to play in a city that has the capabilities to treat his ill daughter.  And while I’d like to report on the Cavs draft, that won’t be needed this season as they failed to acquire a draft pick.  The one they had was traded a few seasons ago for Jiri Welsch, who now plays in Spain. 

Detroit Pistons

In what was one of the worst kept secrets of the summer, point guard Chauncey Billups has re-signed with Detroit.  The terms of the deal are five years for $60 million, and will now set the bar for other guards such as Maurice Williams and Steve Blake.  Big news out of Pistons camp is not only the voluntary play of third-year forward Jason Maxiell in the summer league, but the fact that he showed up 30 pounds lighter and went 8-11 from the free throw line in his last game.  Maxiell has solid sleeper potential depending on how Detroit uses Antonio McDyess this season.  He had shown flashes of brilliance in the post season before being relegated to single-digit minutes late in the series against Cleveland.  Keep an eye on his play now and through the preseason.

Indiana Pacers

While Jamaal Tinsley is still the starting point guard in Indiana, it’s obvious that the Pacers aren’t exactly comfortable with his ability to stay healthy – or lack thereof.  The front office has contacted several other guard options including Chucky Atkins, Jason Hart, and Maurice Williams.  One guy that they have signed is somewhat forgotten guard Kareem Rush.  Rush was quite the baller in the Lithuanian League, and will bring his game back to the states for at least one more year.  Rush will get some time at shooting guard this season and could be a very deep sleeper if he pans out.  Meanwhile, I’m still feeling that we haven’t seen the best from Danny Granger just yet.  I’m thinking a Josh Howard-type season with even more threes.  Same goes for Ike Diogu, but we may be a little further away before his unleashing.

Miami Heat

Like many other teams, the Heat are looking to add to their backcourt.  The coveted Maurice Williams visited with Pat Riley on Saturday and may get an offer.  Unfortunately, the Bucks can match that offer and then some with the Heat only having the mid-level exception (about $5.5 million) to spend.  Thus, any acquisition of a guard of Williams’ stature would have to come in a sign-and-trade.  With Jason Williams’ health issues and Gary Payton contemplating retirement, the Heat may not have a lot of time to work on the guard situation.  One step towards rectification is the acquisition of Ohio State sixth man Daequan Cook.  Cook’s more of a scorer than anything and at least adds youth to the geriatric Heat team, save Dwyane Wade. 

Milwaukee Bucks

Since I’ve mentioned Mo Willaims’ name about 10 times, I won’t get to bold it here.  Regardless, he’s right up there with Gerald Wallace in terms of big-named free agents and will also be a very rich man in the near future.  The guard will meet with Bucks decision-makers this week to see what sort of offers he will receive.  Draft selection Yi Jianlian has yet to even contact the Bucks as he’s obviously pouting from the team’s selection.  This is a tough situation for all involved as the Bucks chose the best player available despite his wishes.  Milwaukee has gone on record saying that they have no intention of trading the disgruntled rookie, and appear to be perfectly comfortable watching him score with ease in the summer league for Team China.  Jianlian could sit out the year if he chooses, and then reenter the draft next season – thus costing Milwaukee a lottery selection.  The NBA almost has to back the Bucks up on this one if they want to show that they’re behind teams in the East remaining competitive, so this is far from over.  Paging David Stern.

New Jersey Nets

Similar to the Varejao situation in Cleveland, the New Jersey Nets would like free agent big man Mikki Moore to return, but are not willing to apply a premium for his services.  The 32-year old Moore has rejected the Nets initial offer of $10 million over three years. The Nets appear to be banking on Nenad Krstic coming back 100%, which is a lot of “banking” given his size and the injury sustained.  The Nets drafted troubled-yet-talented shot-blocker Sean Williams out of Boston College and may be giving him the reigns, assuming he plays to the level anticipated in the summer league.  And after all sorts of trade speculation, it appears that the trio of Jason Kidd, Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson will led the way for yet another season.  It will be interesting to see how it pans out, but for fantasy purposes, Kidd shouldn’t fall below the 15th selection, even with his aged knees in tow. 

New York Knicks

After breaking down the “character player” barrier by acquiring Zach Randolph on draft day (for Channing Frye and Steve Francis), the New York Knicks are hot on the trail for oft-mental forward Ron Artest.  It’s rumored that the Knicks would have to part with reboundaholic David Lee, but GM Isiah Thomas is attempting to pull Artest from Sacramento for a package that includes Malik Rose and Jared Jeffries.  Good luck, Zeke.  In the backcourt, the Knicks will have some decisions to make now that they have a plethora of guards.  Mardy Collins’ play at the end of last season earned him a spot on the roster, and now Dan Dickau and Fred Jones are in the Big Apple as well.  This leaves Nate Robinson in between a rock and a hard place – one that he’ll have to wiggle out of before the end of the summer league. 

Orlando Magic

One of the biggest deals this summer has been the Magic’s signing of 6’10” forward Rashard Lewis.  Lewis will bring his huge offensive game to the East to accompany stud big man Dwight Howard.  Lewis’ signing allowed the Magic to part with Grant Hill, who has signed with Phoenix, but will also allow the team to test out players like J.J. Redick at the shooting guard slot.  The cost of the signing is the displeasure of former lottery selection Darko Milicic.  He and his camp are unhappy with the way things went with Orlando and are looking for a new home for the big man.  It looks like another season of Tony Battie in central Florida, but I wouldn’t go adding him to my cheatsheets just yet.  Also, this season is make-or-break for point guard Jameer Nelson.  If he can’t get it done with the current squad, it’s hard to imagine he ever will.  Jameer is possibly one of the bigger risk/reward plays this fantasy season.

Philadelphia 76ers

After quenching rumors of a possible team sale, the 76ers will take their newly drafted rookies into a season which they hope to make a splash in the East.  Small forward Andre Iguodala will be firmly planted in the 24-30 range of this season’s redraft leagues, and for good reason.  One of the bigger question marks will be how the Sixers use the 12th overall pick in Thaddeus Young.  He also plays small forward, so a rotation may push one or the other to the off-guard slot at times.  Forward Joe Smith (as mentioned above) is one of the many power forward names on the free agent market, and while several other teams are inquiring, the Sixers say that they’ll be bringing him back for another season.  He has double-double potential, and is a solid free throw shooter, but shouldn’t be considered before a round that ends in “teen.”  Center Samuel Dalembert will likely be taken as a C2 option yet again, but should only be counted on for blocks and rebounds regardless of any news you may hear of his “involvement.”  I’d leave him for someone else to draft and nab a DeSagana Diop-like player in the very last round.  Can you say “Contract Year?”

Toronto Raptors

If it’s any sign that this season’s free agent market has died down a bit with the signings of Rashard Lewis and Chauncey Billups, shooting guard Morris Peterson has quickly become one of the names swirling around rumor mills.  Both Utah and New Orleans are possible locations of the former Spartan as both teams could use the help from outside.  Ironically, it was the Hornets who offered Peterson a deal back in 2004, but the Raptors matched the offer only to limit his playing time two seasons later thanks to the emergence of Anthony Parker.  Guard Jose Calderon has seen his name hit the radar of several teams, including the Cleveland Cavaliers.  The Raps expressed some interest in Sasha Pavlovic, but that interest seems to have faded with the signing of three-point specialist Jason Kapono from Miami. 

Washington Wizards

DeShawn Stevenson appears to be the number one priority for the Wizards this offseason.  Stevenson’s camp turned down an offer a few weeks ago, but the team has since increased that deal to $15 million over four years.  I still can’t get over this given his poor performance in the playoffs – but it’s not like it mattered in the grand scheme of things.  Spanish guard Juan Carlos Navarro expressed a desire to come to the NBA as Washington owned his rights.  Upon hearing this news and owning one of the best point guards in the league in Gilbert Arenas, the Wiz quickly bought out his contract placing him on the free agent market.  The Cavaliers have expressed interest, but no deal has been offered to this point.

Have a question or comment for Scott? Email him at scottsargent@sportsgrumblings.com