NBA Rumors Chat With Steve Kyler 9/22/11

1. AJ

   What are the rules regarding restricted free agents who play overseas and then want to return in March? Say Wilson Chandler wants to come play the end of season. Does Denver have the right to match any offers, but then he becomes an UFA the next year?

   • Steve Kyler

     We still don’t know that restricted free agency exists in the next labor deal… assuming it does, it would work like this:

     The Nuggets would have to issue a qualifying offer, so they would retain his rights for the entire year. If he is cut or released in China and tries to come back to the NBA, Denver would have first rights to match whatever he is offered on the open market.

     They will retain his rights all year, so if he waits and tries to return next year they can start the process all over with another Qualifying Offer.

     The only way he becomes Unrestricted is if Denver does not offer a Qualifier next year or pulls their offer this year.

2. Lakers fan in Portland

   What do you think of the rumor about John Stockton wanting to come back to basketball and play for the Lakers? We need a PG and he could bring veteran leadership as well as 3 Pt shooting.

   • Steve Kyler

     There is no rumor other than the one you’re clearly trying to perpetuate… Not sure why you keep asking everyone this question, but let me give you two comments… he is 49 this year… there is no possible way a 50 year player is playing in the NBA… no chance that happens.

     Second he is pretty happy being retired. If he makes a return it would be to coach or be an executive, and having talked with people who know him, he is not at all interested in returning to the NBA life.

3. Zack

   Hypothetical situation here, assuming there is some what of an NBA season wither it’s shortened or full (highly unlikely). If Cavs land a top 5 pick this year who would you pick to go along with Kyrie and Tristan to start a nice “core”? I know they need a wing of some kind and Andre Drummond would be a dream to have if he lives up to the hype.

   • Steve Kyler

     A lot of “ifs” in that question… let me put it this way… if you go back and look at who the masses had being the top 2 players this year, most had Harrison Barnes and Jared Sullinger as the top guys coming into the season last year and neither came out.

     I think Cleveland will be markedly better, not just because of their draft but because of the moves they have made and the guys they get back from injury, namely Anderson Varejao. I wouldn’t count on a top five pick, but they should end up with a decent lottery pick in a very deep class.

4. devonte wilson

   the whole thing with chris paul coming to ny york would it work if amare and carmelo take pay cuts?

   • Steve Kyler

     The Odds Chris Paul lands in New York are immediately tied to where sign and trade deals are allowed in the next labor deal and if there is NOT a franchise player clause.

     The Knicks could get Chris or any other big salary player for Chauncey Billups at the trade deadline, so assuming the Knicks don’t have to meet a hard cap number, they have options with Billups’ expiring deal, but there are a lot of things that would have to break New York’s way in the next labor deal, and almost none of them seem to be on the table in the labor talks right now.

5. devonte wilson

   who would you had gotten with the knicks 17 pick in the draft out of these three? iman who got picked or marshon brooks or reggie jackson

   • Steve Kyler

     I like the Iman pick. I would not have drafted Marshon, and Reggie was hurt and did not work out for teams.

     I wouldn’t waste a quality pick if I wasn’t sure who the guy was.
     Marshon is a great talent, but kind of a knucklehead and as good as Reggie is, not sure he fits what the Knicks were looking for as well as Iman does.

6. devonte wilson

   robin lopez to the knicks for 3 millions dollars and a second round pick?

   • Steve Kyler

     No deal… Size is a premium in the NBA, and Robin has size and toughness… if he can get and stay healthy he is a solid role player. There is no chance I trade him for cash and a 2nd rounder… the Suns don’t need that kind of deal.

7. devonte wilson

   earl clark has length size good defense, hes young and hes a unrestricted free agent when the season starts i think he would be a inexpensive addition to a knicks team who needs size and length take some of the load off of carmelo or even amare what do you think?

   • Steve Kyler

     He is signed for the season in China, so unless he gets injured or gets cut, he is in China through at least March… if his team makes the post-season in China it could be late April before he gets free to return.

     Earl is not going to come at a discount unless that’s all that’s available to him. Remember he did not get his rookie deal extended and he went to China because he needed the money.

     When he comes back, he’ll go where he can be paid the most; he hasn’t earned enough money yet to be taking discounts to be in one city or another.

     Keep in mind Earl and Amar’e share the same agent, Happy Walters, who also has Shawne Williams and Iman Shumpert so you can bet if Earl hits the open market, the Knicks will get a chance to sign him, but it won’t be for cheap unless that’s all that’s out there for Earl.

8. devonte wilson

   what do you see in iman shumpert that you like and some things you think needs some more work?

   • Steve Kyler

     Iman is a very smart player. He has NBA size, he is amazingly quick. He is crazy athletic, but more importantly he understand to get minutes in New York he’ll need to be a lock down defender and hit open threes.

9. devonte wilson

   theres a rumor that jamal crawford said he would like to rejoin the knicks if he doesnt get an extension with the hawks. say he doesnt get the extension how would getting him in a knicks uniform work out?

   • Steve Kyler

     The window to get an extension for Jamal has closed. He could get a new deal, but from what I have heard neither side of that equation is eager to do a new deal at the dollars that would work for both sides.

     Jamal would have to take a serious pay cut, as it looks like Sign & Trade deals will get nixed in the new labor deal. A lot depends on what if any cap exceptions exists, and how high the cap is… If the Cap goes down, the Knicks are hosed, as they are over the cap now.

     Let’s be real for a minute, every players says they’d love to play for this team or that team, but at the end of the day it’s about dollars. When the money becomes equal, that’s when you pick a team based on preference or roster makeup.

     Jamal wants a paycheck, so he’ll end up where he can be paid the most and that won’t be New York or Chicago.

10. tony

    First of all let me say this is easily the best basketball website there is. With the report of an amnesty clause, will this enormously help teams? Or really only the big market teams? because they will still have to pay the player they just save on the luxury tax. Thanks!

    • Steve Kyler

      I doubt seriously that there will be an amnesty, mainly because there won’t be luxury tax… Amnesty happened in the last deal to help teams avoid the dollar for dollar penalty associated with being over the Tax… no tax means no amnesty.

      Given where the talks ended today, I am more concerned with there being no season than I am with teams cutting players, mainly because I don’t believe and no one I talked to believes there will be cuts.

11. BeeMagic

    Love the changes to HW. DW wants to stay I agree. Do you know of any top talent that wants to (or rumored to) play here and would any be willing to sacrifice early to win now and be payed later?

    • Steve Kyler

      Don’t believe the hype… no one takes a pay cut to be paid later unless they have no other options. Every player is a Shaun Livingston knee injury away from being out of the league. You have to get as much as you can as quickly as you can because you never know when it ends because of injury.

12. erik

    With mcdyess retiring, do you think the spurs could package gary neal and bonner and pick up a starting 4 like millsap or taj gibson?

    • Steve Kyler

      I think they “could”… not sure they will. Gary Neal is their only reliable point guard after trading George Hill for the rights to Kawhi Leonard. They have two nice bigs in DeJuan Blair and Tagio Splitter, not sure they wreck the team just to get a big they really don’t need.

13. erik

    do you think that deshawn stevenson to the bulls could put them over the top to win a championship next year?

    • Steve Kyler

      No, but it would make them a little tougher defensively. DeShawn is not a game changing player… as a wise man said to me, he is just a guy. He is a good guy, but there are a lot of guys like DeShawn.

14. Mike

    Omer Asik for Landry Fields. A small trade, but one that I think works for both sides. Fields is an upgrade at SG, combining the skill sets of Brewer (defense) and Korver (3s), for Chicago and NY gets what they desperately need; a tall guy who rebounds and defends.

    • Steve Kyler

      It amounts to trading Big for Small, which rarely happens. Equally, Landry fits the Knicks system perfectly, not sure he is such a good fit in Chicago.
      The Bulls will upgrade at the SG spot once the season gets underway, and I think they can do better in trade than Landry Fields.

15. Zack

    Who do you think will be back to the playoffs first? The Pistons or the Cavs?

    • Steve Kyler

      Pistons… they are further along with their talent… they also have more proven NBA guys than Cleveland.

16. devonte wilson

    if robin lopez isnt worth just 3 million and a second round pick then what would we have to give up to get him?

    • Steve Kyler

      It amounts to Big for Small… Landry fits the Knicks system perfectly, not sure he fits as well in Chicago. He is no a stretch the floor shooter and what the Bulls need is a player other teams are afraid of… that’s not Landry Fields.

17. Anthony

    I’ve looked at minny’s roster a million times (only a slight exaggeration). I’ve contemplated dealing for r Lopez, j smith, Kaman, ty Thomas and many others. The best I can see is dealing Beas for an athletic defender to guard the post and maintain the pace. What would you do to alleviate minny’s logjam of forwards?

    • Steve Kyler

      At some point they will have to cash in some chips… but Beasely’s value is low mainly because he is viewed as a talented knucklehead… most teams want nothing to do with a head case. The risk reward is simply too low. I love Bease as a player and agree he may be the best talent on the roster to trade, just not sold there is a team willing to give up a real chip for him.

18. Aaron

    For how many more years can Dirk be the best player in the NBA and how many more titles can the Mavs win? People forget that his second best player, Caron Butler, did not even play in the postseason.

    • Steve Kyler

      Not sure its about Dirk has much as it is about him getting help. Dirk isn’t beating anyone athletically, so like the old guy at the park, as long as his body holds up he is beating you being very good shooting the ball. He is not out working you.Not sure I agree that Caron is the second best player, Jason Terry is typically that guy. But if I had to put a number on Dirk’s career, maybe three more years before he’s more like Tim Duncan – a support player.

19. Dong of Dayton

    Hey Steve,

    What do expect from Evan Turner this year. He had a pretty miserable rookie season. Are the sixers still high on this guy?

    • Steve Kyler

      He came around last year, but for the most part he looked like he did his first year at Ohio State… lost. He has talent, but some of it will be him getting up to speed in the NBA and his teammates getting used to him. He is a guy that needs the ball and he’ll have to learn how to play without it more than he ever has in his life… I expect more in year 2, but how much more we’ll see.As for their commitment to him, keep in mind d Stefanski is out and Rod Thorn;s role going forward under new ownership is still unclear. They owe him money, but he may not have the voice and power he once had. Jason Levien will be running that team, and he's a very smart guy, I don;t think he'll dump Evan unless he gets better pieces back for him.

20. Daniel

    The Clippers obviously need a SF. Now that Portland has Gerald Wallace, it seems Nic Batum is a good trade chip and would be a great fit for the Clips. Can the Clippers make it work in a deal centered around Kaman?

    • Steve Kyler

      Not sure Portland is a player for the Clippers. They have had so many injuries until they can go 40 games without losing a core player I think they play overstocked rather than risk blowing the season for a trade they really don;t need to make.

      That is all the time I have. Thanks for the questions. Make sure you are following me on Twitter @stevekylerNBA. I will catch you same time next week.