The five most interesting stories, rumors and notes in the NBA:
1. The final piece? It might not quite be a feeding frenzy, but there's certainly a buzz building around the recruitment of a free agent center we in Portland are well familiar with -- Greg Oden.
Oden, the former Blazers' No. 1 pick, worked out for several teams in Indianapolis last week, and according to ESPN's Marc Stein, witnesses said Oden looked "lean" and was "moving well."
And there was this from Heat scout Tim Hardaway, who tells FoxSports' Chris Tomasson: "If we get Greg Oden, I think we will win a third (straight) title."
As it always seems to be with Oden, any glimmer of decent health creates hype. Two years ago, then-Blazers GM Rich Cho was talking about making Oden the team's off-season priority. That was before Oden had his third microfracture surgery, on Feb. 20, 2012.
A year and a half after that procedure, teams are being drawn in by Oden, hoping they might be getting a steal for what figures to be a small contract.
Multiple reports say New Orleans, San Antonio, Dallas, Sacramento, Atlanta and Miami are interested in Oden, although the Mavericks added free agent center Samuel Dalembert and re-signed Bernard James.
The Heat seem particularly committed to Oden, having already passed on the chance to add another former Blazers center, Marcus Camby, who signed a one-year, veteran's minimum deal with Houston. Camby played 19 games for the Rockets in 2012 after they got him from the Blazers in a trade deadline deal.
The Heat, after amnestying Mike Miller, might need some sort of boost to help their three-peat chances, with the Eastern Conference seemingly getting tougher. The Nets have gathered a star-studded roster, and Indiana figures to be better with Danny Granger back and with newly-acquired Luis Scola, whom the Pacers received in a deal with Phoenix.
But is Greg Oden really the answer to keeping up with the up-and-comers? His representatives are trying to downplay the kind of impact Oden could have.
Oden has two agents who have been speaking for him, and one, Mike Conley Sr., tells the Sporting News' Sean Deveney, "I expect him to come back and be someone who in short periods of time can dominate a game. Just let him build up and get back to himself. I think it would be a little unfair to put him out there and give him 40 minutes."
Oden's other representative, Bill Duffy, tells NBA.com's Steve Aschburner: "We?ve looked at all the scenarios. There might be less pressure if he tries this with a team that?s rebuilding. Then again, the quality of the medical staff will matter. Maybe a winning team has chemistry that?s good or his role would be clearly defined."
As usual, there's not a lot to go on with Oden. One decent workout hardly means he's ready to go, especially when expectations had to be pretty low. The most telling words ? might have been a fake report in The Onion with this headline:
Greg Oden Suppresses Severe Shooting Pain All Over Body During Meeting With Heat
It's funny, but in many ways it really isn't.
2. Shooter's chance: One team making some nice off-season improvements is Memphis. The Grizzlies' outside shooting deficiency was exposed by San Antonio in the Western Conference Finals.
The Grizzlies agreed to terms with Miller, who previously played six seasons for them and should help their three-point shooting, provided he can stay healthy. The deal was reported last week, but has not been officially announced.
One reason could be because that the Grizzlies are trying to finesse another acquisition first. ESPN's Marc Stein reports that Memphis is in the mix for free agent point guard Mo Williams, who has been a prolific three-point shooter, particularly in his Cleveland years.
Other reports have Miami and San Antonio also interested in Williams, who played for Utah last season.
3. Inside move: The other conference final loser, Indiana, appears to have made a serious upgrade in obtaining Scola.
The Pacers sent Miles Plumlee, Gerald Green and a 2014 first-round draft pick to Phoenix to get Scola. They were reportedly high on Plumlee, but apparently feel they are close enough to a championship that he was worth sacrificing to get Scola.
Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz summed it up this way: "They?re going for it. Not two years from now. Not eventually. Now."
The Pacers were a slow-paced, physical team, and the style took Miami to seven games in the conference finals. By getting Scola, they get more of what they already have -- a lot of post and mid-range baskets.
They also signed forward Chris Copeland to a two-year, $6 million deal. Copeland shot 42.1 percent on three-pointers for the Knicks last season, although any shooter's numbers will be slightly inflated playing for New York, which led the league in attempts. It's also hard to know where his playing time will come from, with Paul George and Danny Granger already in the lineup.
Indiana added C.J. Watson as George Hill's backup point guard, with the hope that he'll be a upgrade from D.J. Augustin.
Does it all add up to an Eastern Conference title??
4. Still vacant: More than three months have passed since Doug Collins stepped down as 76ers coach, and they still have not hired his replacement.
Philadelphia legend Charles Barkley, breaking from his norm of keeping his opinions to himself -- or am I thinking of Matt Barkley? -- unloaded on the team in a TV interview.
"I think that's one of the silliest things that I've seen in sports in a long time," Barkley told Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. "I'm in Philly during the summer as you know, and I'm watching and reading every day -- to not have a coach under contract by now, I think that's a joke. I don't know what they're waiting on."
Last week, Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the 76ers received permission to interview Blazers assistant coach David Vanterpool.
Supposedly, incumbent assistant coach Michael Curry and Spurs assistant Brett Brown are the favorites, but they've been the favorites for weeks.
Public ridicule is no reason to rush hiring a coach, but a lot of public ridicule might be, and the 76ers are taking that right now.
5. Setting the bar: Last week at the USA Basketball mini-camp, Blazers point guard Damian Lillard told us about how he has developed a friendship with Wizards point guard John Wall, with whom he traveled to China on a promotional tour for Adidas.
That's fitting as Wall could play a role in Lillard's future financial well-being.
Multiple reports says the Wizards are preparing a five-year, $80 million extension offer to Wall, who could become a restricted free agent next summer if Washington doesn't extend him by Oct. 31. As Mike Prada of SB Nation writes, giving Wall a max deal is a controversial topic in Washington.
Wall is a spectacular athlete, but has still not shown he has developed a consistent three-point shot, shooting a career 24.3 percent behind the arc.
Wall could end up making a lot more money than Stephen Curry (who is on a four-year, $44 million deal) and Jrue Holiday (four years, $41 million), and in the process could set the bar for future extensions for other young point guards, notably Cleveland's Kyrie Irving and Lillard.
Extension talk for Irving will come up in 2014. Then Lillard comes up in 2015 -- at the same time the contracts of LaMarcus Aldridge and Wesley Matthews are set to expire.
Note: The NBA High-5 will return later this week.
-- Mike Tokito
Source: http://www.oregonlive.com/nba/index.ssf/2013/07/nba_high-5_395.html
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