OKC - Five-peat! Final summary

??/6/11

Oklahoma City Thunder [14-5] vs Miami Heat [14-6]

Thunder grab crucial win in game 5 and head home leading 3-2



OKC - 19 30 22 36 107
MIA - 21 17 28 34 100

Player of the Game: Kevin Durant


OKC _______ MIA
43-80 - FGM/A - 40-82
6-12 - 3PTM/A - 5-14
15-16 - FTM/A - 15-17
31 - Rebounds - 31
15 - Assists - 23
9 - Blocks - 9
8 - Steals - 4
13 - Turnovers - 15
9 - Fouls - 10


Top Scorers
Chris Bosh - 31
Kevin Durant - 23
Dwyane Wade - 22
Russell Westbrook - 20
Brook Lopez - 18
LeBron James - 18
Shannon Brown - 17
Mike Miller - 16
Al Horford - 13

Assists
LeBron James - 7
Dwyane Wade - 7
Chris Bosh - 5

Rebounds
Chris Bosh - 13
Brook Lopez - 7
Al Horford - 7
LeBron James - 6
Dwyane Wade - 6
Russell Westbrook - 5

Video Highlights
Westbrook finishes with a two-handed reverse dunk.
Flash

Durant is left open and makes a long three.
Flash

Big win with the pressure on.

I've just realised that the picture of Thabeet reminded me of MJ in Space Jam. He has long arms.

it does a bit, now that you mention it. Love the reactions in the Game 5 screenshots too, looks like you're going to make it two straight in front of your home fans.

Now go for the repeat.

??/6/11

Oklahoma City Thunder [15-5] vs Miami Heat [14-7]

Oklahoma City dominate game 6 to win second successive title



OKC - 38 33 26 22 119
MIA - 22 22 27 20 91

Player of the Game: Brook Lopez


OKC _______ MIA
48-88 - FGM/A - 36-85
3-14 - 3PTM/A - 2-12
20-20 - FTM/A - 17-22
36 - Rebounds - 31
30 - Assists - 23
11 - Blocks - 12
16 - Steals - 4
19 - Turnovers - 25
13 - Fouls - 14


Top Scorers
Dwyane Wade - 29
Kevin Durant - 27
Brook Lopez - 25
Al Horford - 20
Russell Westbrook - 19
James Harden - 18
Chris Bosh - 18
LeBron James - 15
Travis Outlaw - 13
Shannon Brown - 10

Assists
Russell Westbrook - 12
Dwyane Wade - 7
Brook Lopez - 6
Al Horford - 6

Rebounds
Al Horford - 14
Brook Lopez - 9
Udonis Haslem - 8
Mike Miller - 7
Kevin Durant - 7
Travis Outlaw - 6

Video Highlights
Durant denies Bosh emphatically on the Heat's first offensive play, setting the tone for the night.
Flash

Brown finishes a dominant first quarter with a four point play at the buzzer.
Flash

??/6/11

NBA Finals review

1. Oklahoma City [67-15] vs 1. Miami [61-21]



This Finals series was every bit as epic as last season's. These two emerging rivals pushed each other all the way.
Miami winning in double-overtime in the first game signalled how competitive the series was going to be.
Oklahoma City recovered from a slow start in game 2 to win and keep themselves in the series as it headed to Miami.
The Thunder came so close to getting a win in game 3 after trailing by 12 with a quarter to play. Miami held on though.
Again facing the possibility of going 2 games down, the Thunder started much better in game 4 and ran out 14 point winners.
They took the lead for the first time in the series after an impressive 7 point win in Miami in game 5.
Their second successive championship was then sealed after a crushing 28 point win at home in game 6.

Kevin Durant lead his team in only their second playoff series since the move to Oklahoma City.
He deservedly received his second straight Finals MVP award. He averaged nearly 25 points per game.



Results
MIA @ OKC - 148-143 (2OT)
MIA @ OKC - 94-112
OKC @ MIA - 106-108
OKC @ MIA - 102-88
OKC @ MIA - 107-100
MIA @ OKC - 91-119

Thunder wins series 4-2



Stats Leaders
Thunder
Points: Kevin Durant - 24.7
Assists: Russell Westbrook - 11.1
Rebounds: Brook Lopez - 10.5

Heat
Points: LeBron James - 26.4
Assists: LeBron James - 6.8
Rebounds: Chris Bosh - 12.2



Finals MVP

Kevin Durant - Oklahoma City
24.7 PPG - 3.8 RPG - 2.1 APG - 1.4 BPG - 1.7 SPG



Route to the title
Record: 16-5
1st Round - Phoenix - 4-0
Semi Finals - Utah - 4-2
West Finals - Portland - 4-1
NBA Finals - Miami - 4-2

Gratulations for your second title , already know if you go for 3?

congratulations! back to back champs..

Congratulations for the title and the back to back!! 3-peat possible?

Wooohoooo ! Party time !

Congratulations man! Hope I can also win it all in my story

Back-to-back champions, superb job!

Another one. Now another three-peat

I've been following consistently, can't really remember the last time I commented, lol, but you're still doing a great job with this. Congrats on the re-peat! Good to see the same result and another hard fought (other than Game 6) series. You continue to deny LeBron that elusive championship.

Congrats on going back-to-back! A fitting end to the series, it's as though you got into their heads and broke their resolve with the wins in Games 4 and 5. Hope you'll try for a threepeat, it'd be pretty cool if you could meet up with Miami again three years running...kind of like the Celtics and Lakers in the 60s.

Gratulations for your second title , already know if you go for 3?

congratulations! back to back champs..

Congratulations for the title and the back to back!! 3-peat possible?

Wooohoooo ! Party time !

Congratulations man! Hope I can also win it all in my story

Back-to-back champions, superb job!

Another one. Now another three-peat

I've been following consistently, can't really remember the last time I commented, lol, but you're still doing a great job with this. Congrats on the re-peat! Good to see the same result and another hard fought (other than Game 6) series. You continue to deny LeBron that elusive championship.

Congrats on going back-to-back! A fitting end to the series, it's as though you got into their heads and broke their resolve with the wins in Games 4 and 5. Hope you'll try for a threepeat, it'd be pretty cool if you could meet up with Miami again three years running...kind of like the Celtics and Lakers in the 60s.

Thanks everyone. I will definitely be going for a three-peat. Worked too hard putting this team together to stop now.

This Miami rivalry is definitely overtaking my rivalry with the Lakers. I hope to continue to deny LeBron a ring.

2/7/11

Draft Lottery & Top 10 Prospects



Representatives from 14 NBA teams were in attendance tonight in New Jersey for the Draft Lottery ceremony.
The biggest winners on the night were Cleveland, who moved up 5 spots and secured the number one pick.
Houston were the unluckiest team. Even with the highest odds of getting the top pick, they only managed the fourth.




Lottery Chances





2011 NBA Draft Order





Top 10 Prospects

Cleveland lucks out again, just as they did in real life.

Comparisons to Kobe and LeBron can't go wrong... hopefully. Go Spurs!

Cleveland lucks out again, just as they did in real life.

Oh yeah. Kind of ironic too that they will probably use their number one pick on someone touted as the next LeBron.

Comparisons to Kobe and LeBron can't go wrong... hopefully. Go Spurs!

True, but they are both 25.

I'll post the full draft later on today.

24/7/11

2011 NBA Draft



GM's from all 30 NBA teams all converged on New Jersey this evening as the 2011 NBA Draft was held.
The general consensus from fans was that Cleveland were the big winners out of all the teams.
With their number one pick they selected 25 year old forward Vincenzo Carlos from UCLA.
At 208 cm and 105 kg he has inevitably been compared to former Cavs top pick LeBron James.



First Round

Pick	Team	Player	Age	Position	Height	Weight	College	NBA Comparison	Rating
1	Cleveland	Vincenzo Carlos	25	SF	208 cm	105 kg	UCLA	LeBron James	82
2	San Antonio	Cameron Hunter	25	SG	203 cm	108 kg	Memphis	Kobe Bryant	78
3	Milwaukee	Richard Fortsen	23	PF	203 cm	111 kg	Kansas	Elton Brand	64
4	Houston	Jesse Stearn	20	SF	198 cm	114 kg	Taiwan	Ron Artest	72
5	Minnesota	Bert Baker	22	SF	208 cm	98 kg	Louisiana Tech	Lamar Odom	67
6	Chicago	Toby Hughes	24	PG	193 cm	86 kg	Duke	Delonte West	61
7	Indiana	Caleb O'Connor	21	SG	203 cm	105 kg	LSU	Tracy McGrady	61
8	Dallas	Noble Flanagan	21	SG	195 cm	79 kg	Boston College	Rudy Fernandez	64
9	Memphis	Rodney Kearley	22	PF	200 cm	108 kg	Temple	Antawn Jamison	64
10	Chicago	Irwin Currie	26	C	218 cm	122 kg	Oklahoma State	Brad Miller	60
11	Washington	Dom Fitzpatrick	22	SG	198 cm	105 kg	New Mexico	Joe Johnson	66
12	Golden State	Jasper Curry	22	C	210 cm	112 kg	Connecticut	Nazr Mohammed	61
13	Cleveland	Javed Abdur Salem	22	PF	200 cm	115 kg	Pakistan	Carlos Boozer	68
14	Utah	Demitri Warren	21	SF	203 cm	103 kg	UNLV	Shane Battier	57
15	New Orleans	Phillip Cook	23	PG	187 cm	82 kg	St.John's	Earl Watson	59
16	Washington	Andres Da Silva	21	SG	205 cm	93 kg	Spain	James Posey	59
17	Houston	Jess Griffin	22	C	210 cm	119 kg	New Mexico	Andrew Bynum	59
18	Philadelphia	Sebastien Carlos	23	PF	213 cm	98 kg	UNLV	Yi Jianlian	61
19	Detroit	Theo Jeffries	21	SG	198 cm	104 kg	Mississippi	Jason Richardson	61
20	Sacramento	Logan Bradshaw	25	SG	198 cm	88 kg	Arizona St.	Anthony Parker	60
21	Phoenix	George Christian	24	C	205 cm	108 kg	UNLV	Nick Collison	60
22	Denver	Benjamin Buckley	24	PG	180 cm	86 kg	Kentucky	Chris Duhon	58
23	Boston	Toby Lynch	19	SG	203 cm	95 kg	Missouri	Richard Hamilton	61
24	Charlotte	Bradley Leroy	22	PG	190 cm	82 kg	Washington	Steve Blake	60
25	Utah	Leo Hogan	23	PG	177 cm	75 kg	USC	Brevin Knight	57
26	Denver	Justin Billups	21	C	208 cm	104 kg	Temple	Darko Milicic	57
27	Charlotte	Elias Dale	25	PF	205 cm	114 kg	North Carolina	Antonio McDyess	62
28	LA Lakers	Bryan North	19	C	213 cm	109 kg	Ohio St.	Jeff Foster	58
29	Miami	Moyo Chrima	23	C	203 cm	107 kg	Ivory Coast	Stromile Swift	54
30	New Jersey	Mahamoud Ateba	21	PF	208 cm	101 kg	India	Tyrus Thomas	59

Second Round

Pick	Team	Player	Age	Position	Height	Weight	College	NBA Comparison	Rating
31	Houston	Ivan Nikolic	23	C	215 cm	115 kg	Portugal	Joel Przybilla	57
32	San Antonio	Monty Vick	24	SG	198 cm	83 kg	UNLV	Larry Hughes	59
33	Minnesota	Clement Tate	19	SF	208 cm	100 kg	Oregon St.	Peja Stojakovic	57
34	Chicago	Frank Holding	21	PG	177 cm	81 kg	Boston College	Chucky Atkins	57
35	Indiana	Rufus Werner	21	SG	198 cm	101 kg	Oregon St.	Kyle Korver	56
36	Cleveland	Samuel Ross	25	C	213 cm	122 kg	Duke	Desagana Diop	54
37	Dallas	Tom Brennan	23	SG	200 cm	96 kg	Connecticut	Kareem Rush	53
38	Oklahoma City	Al Cunningham	22	PF	208 cm	117 kg	Oregon	Ronny Turiaf	60
39	Toronto	Vince O'Mahony	22	SG	203 cm	96 kg	Illinois	Kareem Rush	50
40	New Orleans	Loren Kruger	21	PG	182 cm	79 kg	UNLV	Jason Williams	56
41	Milwaukee	Zachary Hartley	23	PF	203 cm	101 kg	California	Eduardo Najera	54
42	Atlanta	Pete Johnston	19	SF	210 cm	95 kg	Arkansas	Vladimir Radmanovic	59
43	Golden State	Kurt Myers	21	C	210 cm	118 kg	Temple	Mark Blount	56
44	LA Clippers	Tyler Jordan	21	SF	213 cm	99 kg	Providence	Vladimir Radmanovic	58
45	Golden State	James Ullrich	24	C	218 cm	121 kg	Romania	Mark Blount	57
46	Washington	Neil Bryant	23	PF	208 cm	107 kg	Colorado	Kenyon Martin	57
47	Phoenix	Maxwell Schwarz	22	C	210 cm	122 kg	Georgia	Jake Voskuhl	56
48	Philadelphia	Horace Regan	23	SF	198 cm	91 kg	Arizona St.	Morris Peterson	55
49	Detroit	Keenan Shannon	21	C	210 cm	116 kg	Louisville	Jake Voskuhl	53
50	Sacramento	Cam Cameron	21	SF	208 cm	88 kg	Syracuse	Gerald Green	55
51	Orlando	Justin Carter	23	C	205 cm	123 kg	Utah	Adonal Foyle	57
52	Denver	Bert Mullan	22	C	210 cm	119 kg	Tennessee	Kwame Brown	55
53	Boston	Kyle Bradford	23	SF	208 cm	82 kg	Syracuse	Gerald Green	55
54	Charlotte	Dorgan Nicolas	25	PF	205 cm	100 kg	California	Robert Horry	51
55	Utah	Marcus Coutts	22	SF	200 cm	91 kg	Oklahoma St.	Ricky Davis	52
56	Denver	Dom Robin	23	SF	203 cm	87 kg	Utah	Bruce Bowen	51
57	New Orleans	Damon Griffiths	21	PG	190 cm	94 kg	Oklahoma	Daniel Gibson	52
58	LA Lakers	Marcus Warren	24	SF	205 cm	88 kg	Boston College	Jason Kapono	57
59	Miami	Martin Moore	23	SF	208 cm	94 kg	Pacific	Jason Kapono	55
60	Oklahoma City	Ian Griffiths	20	PG	182 cm	87 kg	LSU	Anthony Carter	54

Draft Highlights

Steal of the Draft:
#13 - Javed Abdur Salem - Cleveland

Most NBA Ready:
#1 - Vincenzo Carlos - Cleveland

Highest Potential:
#1 - Vincenzo Carlos - Cleveland

Questionable Pick:
#25 - Leo Hogan - Utah



Top pick: Vincenzo Carlos will play for the Cleveland Cavaliers.




Joining the Dynasty: New Thunder players Al Cunningham & Ian Griffiths.

Richard Fortsen sure shot up in the Draft. Looks like there's only two players who are likely to be immediate stars, taken with the top picks. Hopefully you can get some quality minutes from at least one of your picks, good idea going big and small so they've both got a chance to have a bit of a run.

Wow, Cavs drafted another LeQuit? and then steal of draft

Yeah, seems like the Draft turned out pretty well for them.

14/8/11

Free Agency Summary



The biggest surprise this off-season wasn't really that Derrick Rose left Chicago, it was where he ended up.
After the Bulls only won 29 games last season, Rose was expected to test the waters on free agency.
Another great shock was San Antonio stalwart Tim Duncan deciding to end his time in Texas.
There were a lot of aging veterans available and most of them found new teams.
A trend that was adopted by the majority of teams was signing players to one year deals.
Maybe this has to do with Deron Williams, Chris Paul and Dwight Howard being available next season.

Atlanta
Re-Signed
Kirk Hinrich - 30 - PG - $25.88m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Chris Kaman - 29 - C - $5.85m - 1 year
JJ Hickson - 23 - PF - $1.26m - 1 year
Yi Jianlian - 24 - PF - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Grant Hill (Free Agent)
Jannero Pargo (Miami)
Anthony Parker (Retired)
Sean May (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Chris Kaman - Marvin Williams - Josh Smith - Joe Johnson - Jamal Crawford

Boston
Re-Signed
Kevin Garnett - 35 - PF - $3.02m - 1 year
Nate Robinson - 27 - PG - $42.77m - 4 years
Jamario Moon - 31 - SF - $1.26m - 1 year
Glen Davis - 25 - PF - $31.22m - 4 years
Othello Hunter - 25 - PF - $18.90m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Nene - 29 - C - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Jermaine O'Neal (Memphis)
Ray Allen (San Antonio)
Shaquille O'Neal (Free Agent)
Luke Harangody (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Nene - Troy Murphy - Jamario Moon - Von Wafer - Rajon Rondo

Charlotte
Re-Signed
Leandro Barbosa - 28 - SG - $51.79m - 4 years
Carl Landry - 28 - PF - $40.04m - 4 years
DJ Augustin - 23 - PG - $39.49m - 4 years
Boris Diaw - 29 - SF - $46.17m - 4 years
Shaun Livingston - 26 - PG - $8.34m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
-

Released
Marko Jaric (Free Agent)
Aaron Miles (New York)
Kwame Brown (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Joel Przybilla - Carl Landry - Boris Diaw - Leandro Barbosa - DJ Augustin

Chicago
Re-Signed
-

Free Agents Signed
Tim Duncan - 35 - PF - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Derrick Rose (Milwaukee)
Keith Bogans (Portland)
Matt Barnes (Free Agent)
Kyle Weaver (Toronto)

Projected line-up: Joakim Noah - Carlos Boozer - Luol Deng - Ronnie Brewer - CJ Watson

Cleveland
Re-Signed
-

Free Agents Signed
Vince Carter - 34 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Marreese Speights - 24 - PF - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Antawn Jamison (Minnesota)
JJ Hickson (Atlanta)
Joel Anthony (New York)
Cedric Jackson (Free Agent)
Joey Graham (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Anderson Varejao - Marreese Speights - Vincenzo Carlos - Baron Davis - Ramon Sessions

Dallas
Re-Signed
Craig Smith - 27 - PF - $35.90m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Mike Bibby - 33 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year
Ronald Murray - 32 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Jason Kidd (Detroit)
Jason Terry (Portland)
Ian Mahinmi (Free Agent)
Steve Novak (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Tyson Chandler - Brendan Haywood - Dirk Nowitzki - Rodrigue Beaubois - Jose Barea

Denver
Re-Signed
Raymond Felton - 27 - PG - $53.94m - 4 years
Danilo Gallinari - 23 - SF - $18.30m - 2 years
Julian Wright - 24 - SF - $7.62m - 1 year

Free Agents Signed
-

Released
Nene (Boston)
Al Thornton (Phoenix)
Josh Boone (Free Agent)
Gary Forbes (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Danilo Gallinari - Al Harrington - Arron Afflalo - JR Smith - Raymond Felton

Detroit
Re-Signed
-

Free Agents Signed
Jason Kidd - 38 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Michael Conley (New York)
Nenad Krstic (Miami)
Ben Wallace (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Greg Monroe - Charlie Villanueva - Jason Maxiell - Ben Gordon - Rodney Stuckey

Golden State
Re-Signed
Caron Butler - 31 - SF - $27.87m - 2 years
Chris Hunter - 27 - PF - $8.49m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Mickael Pietrus - 29 - SG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Charlie Bell (Free Agent)
Eddie Curry (Free Agent)
Rodney Carney (Free Agent)
Brad Miller (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Andris Biedrins - David Lee - Caron Butler - Monta Ellis - Stephen Curry

Houston
Re-Signed
Marcus Williams - 25 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year
Roko Ukic - 27 - PG - $18.39m - 4 years
Mike Harris - 28 - SF - $17.29m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Sonny Weems - 25 - SG - $826k - 1 year

Released
Goran Dragic (Utah)
Courtney Lee (Washington)
Chase Budinger (New Jersey)

Projected line-up: Jordan Hill - Luis Scola - Kevin Martin - Chuck Hayes - Kyle Lowry

Indiana
Re-Signed
Roy Hibbert - 24 - C - $39.01m - 4 years
AJ Price - 25 - PG - $9,00m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Carlos Arroyo - 32 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year
James Singleton - 30 - PF - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Sebastian Telfair (Sacramento)
Brandon Rush (Memphis)
Lance Stephenson (Free Agent)
James Posey (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Roy Hibbert - Mike Dunleavy - Danny Granger - Darren Collison - TJ Ford

LA Clippers
Re-Signed
Eric Gordon - 22 - SG - $23.03m - 2 years
Antoine Wright - 27 - SG - $21.14m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Chauncey Billups - 35 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year
Aleksandar Pavlovic - 27 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Chris Kaman (Atlanta)
Larry Hughes (Free Agent)
Brian Cook (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: DeAndre Jordan - Blake Griffin - Declan Giles - Eric Gordon - Mo Williams

LA Lakers
Re-Signed
Ronnie Price - 28 - PG - $20.45m - 2 years
Mardy Collins - 27 - PG - $19.41m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
-

Released
DJ White (Free Agent)
Jamaal Tinsley (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Andrew Bynum - Pau Gasol - Ron Artest - Kobe Bryant - Eric Maynor

Memphis
Re-Signed
OJ Mayo - 23 - SG - $39.65m - 4 years
Andrei Kirilenko - 30 - SF - $28.84m - 2 years
Daequan Cook - 24 - SG - $9.59m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Ersan Ilyasova - 24 - SF - $1.26m - 1 year
Luc Mbah a Moute - 25 - SF - $5.85m - 1 year
Jermaine O'Neal - 33 - C - $1.26m - 1 year
Brandon Rush - 26 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Darrell Arthur (Free Agent)
Sam Young (Free Agent)
Ryan Hollins (Free Agent)
Damien Wilkins (Free Agent)
Xavier Henry (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Marc Gasol - Andrei Kirilenko - Rudy Gay - Brandon Rush - OJ Mayo

Miami
Re-Signed
-

Free Agents Signed
Nenad Krstic - 28 - PF - $1.26m - 1 year
Robin Lopez - 23 - C - $5.85m - 1 year
Jannero Pargo - 32 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Mike Bibby (Dallas)
Roger Mason (Toronto)
DeShawn Stevenson (Free Agent)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Free Agent)
Marquis Daniels (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Udonis Haslem - Chris Bosh - LeBron James - Mike Miller - Dwyane Wade

Milwaukee
Re-Signed
Keyon Dooling - 31 - PG - $8.95m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Derrick Rose - 23 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year
Luther Head - 28 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Kendrick Perkins (Oklahoma City)
Carlos Delfino (Sacramento)
Chris Douglas Roberts (Phoenix)
Ersan Ilyasova (Memphis)

Projected line-up: Andrew Bogut - John Salmons - Michael Redd - Derrick Rose - Brandon Jennings

Minnesota
Re-Signed
Sergio Rodriguez - 25 - PG - $34.97m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Antawn Jamison - 35 - PF - $5.85m - 1 year
Curtis Jerrells - 24 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Kevin Love (Oklahoma City)
Anthony Tolliver (Free Agent)
Kosta Koufos (Free Agent)
Jason Hart (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Darko Milicic - Zach Randolph - Michael Beasley - Martell Webster - Jonny Flynn

New Jersey
Re-Signed
-

Free Agents Signed
Chase Budinger - 23 - SF - $1.26m - 1 year
Jason Thompson - 25 - PF - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Brandan Wright (Washington)
Joe Smith (Free Agent)
Stephen Graham (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Kris Humphries - Jason Thompson - Jeff Green - Anthony Morrow - Deron Williams

New Orleans
Re-Signed
David West - 31 - PF - $53.68m - 4 years
Rudy Fernandez - 26 - SG - $43.03m - 4 years
Andre Miller - 35 - PG - $2.92m - 1 year

Free Agents Signed
Donte Greene - 23 - SF - $5.85m - 1 year
Rashad McCants - 27 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Shelden Williams - 28 - C - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Tayshaun Prince (San Antonio)
Jerryd Bayless (Toronto)
Marcus Camby (Free Agent)
Allen Iverson (Free Agent)
Aaron Gray (Free Agent)
Joe Alexander (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Pops Mensah-Bonsu - David West - Trevor Ariza - Rudy Fernandez - Marcus Thornton

New York
Re-Signed
Carmelo Anthony - 27 - SF - $68.75m - 4 years
Ronny Turiaf - 28 - PF - $25.21m - 2 years
Bill Walker - 24 - SG - $31.13m - 4 years
Tiago Splitter - 26 - C - $1.26m - 1 year
Ike Diogu - 28 - PF - $7.67m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Michael Conley - 24 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year
Joel Anthony - 29 - C - $1.26m - 1 year
Aaron Miles - 28 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Chauncey Billups (LA Clippers)
Kelenna Azubuike (Philadelphia)
Patrick Ewing (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Ronny Turiaf - Amare Stoudemire - Anthony Randolph - Carmelo Anthony - Michael Conley

Oklahoma City
Re-Signed
Brook Lopez - 23 - C - $52.99m - 5 years
Russell Westbrook - 22 - PG - $51.86m - 5 years
Shannon Brown - 25 - SG - $14.98m - 3 years

Free Agents Signed
Kevin Love - 23 - PF - $22.16 - 4 years
Kendrick Perkins - 26 - C - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Ronald Murray (Dallas)
Rocco Roe (Free Agent)
Sonny Weems (Houston)
Byron Mullens (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Brook Lopez - Kevin Love - Kevin Durant - James Harden - Russell Westbrook

Orlando
Re-Signed
Ryan Anderson - 23 - PF - $8.80m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
-

Released
Vince Carter (Cleveland)

Projected line-up: Dwight Howard - Brandon Bass - Jason Richardson - JJ Redick - Gilbert Arenas

Philadelphia
Re-Signed
Spencer Hawes - 23 - C - $41.01m - 4 years
Derrick Brown - 24 - PF - $17.33m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Kelenna Azubuike - 27 - SG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Erick Dampier (Free Agent)
Marreese Speights (Cleveland)
Jodie Meeks (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Spencer Hawes - Thaddeus Young - Evan Turner - Andre Iguodala - Louis Williams

Phoenix
Re-Signed
Steve Nash - 37 - PG - $4.47m - 1 year
Earl Watson - 32 - PG - $10.13m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Chris Douglas Roberts - 24 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Al Thornton - 27 - SF - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Mickael Pietrus (Golden State)
Robin Lopez (Miami)
Carlos Arroyo (Indiana)
Matt Janning (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Hakim Warrick - Channing Frye - Al Thornton - Steve Nash - Aaron Brooks

Portland
Re-Signed
Nicolas Batum - 22 - SG - $40.24m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Keith Bogans - 31 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Jason Terry - 34 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Delonte West - 28 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Stephon Marbury (Free Agent)
Jeff Pendergraph (Free Agent)
Armon Johnson (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: LaMarcus Aldridge - Emeka Okafor - Gerald Wallace - Brandon Roy - Chris Paul

Sacramento
Re-Signed
Sean Williams - 25 - PF - $9.81m - 2 years

Free Agents Signed
Carlos Delfino - 29 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Sebastian Telfair - 26 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Jason Thompson (New Jersey)
Donte Greene (New Orleans)
Kenyon Martin (Free Agent)
Luther Head (Milwaukee)

Projected line-up: Yao Ming - Samuel Dalembert - Omri Casspi - Tyreke Evans - Beno Udrih

San Antonio
Re-Signed
George Hill - 25 - PG - $40.52m - 4 years
Marco Belinelli - 25 - SG - $33.17m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Ray Allen - 36 - SG - $1.26m - 1 year
Tayshaun Prince - 31 - SF - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Tim Duncan (Chicago)
James Singleton (Indiana)
Curtis Jerrells (Minnesota)
Antonio McDyess (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Al Horford - DeJuan Blair - Tayshaun Prince - Richard Jefferson - Tony Parker

Toronto
Re-Signed
Louis Amundson - 28 - PF - $16.07m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Jerryd Bayless - 23 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year
Roger Mason - 31 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year
Kyle Weaver - 25 - PG - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Delonte West (Portland)
Joey Dorsey (Free Agent)
Leon Powe (Free Agent)
David Andersen (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Amir Johnson - Andrea Bargnani - Tyrus Thomas - Jose Calderon - Jarrett Jack

Utah
Re-Signed
Randy Foye - 28 - SG - $45.59m - 4 years
Mehmet Okur - 32 - C - $10.18m - 2 years
Chris Wilcox - 29 - PF - $9.53m - 2 years
Jonas Jerebko - 24 - SF - $17.13m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Goran Dragic - 25 - PG - $5.85m - 1 year

Released
Shane Battier (Free Agent)
Nathan Jawai (Free Agent)
Antonio Anderson (Free Agent)
Sundiata Gaines (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: Al Jefferson - Derrick Favors - Paul Millsap - Randy Foye - Devin Harris

Washington
Re-Signed
Andray Blatche - 25 - PF - $45.34m - 4 years
JaVale McGee - 23 - C - $40.69m - 4 years

Free Agents Signed
Courtney Lee - 26 - SG - $5.85m - 1 year
Brandan Wright - 24 - PF - $1.26m - 1 year

Released
Luc Mbah a Moute (Memphis)
Maurice Evans (Free Agent)
Yi Jianlian (Atlanta)
Rasheed Wallace (Free Agent)
Adam Morrison (Free Agent)

Projected line-up: JaVale McGee - Andray Blatche - Rashard Lewis - Josh Howard - John Wall

-----

Thunder and Spurs complete sign and trade deal



San Antonio today managed to complete a sign and trade deal with George Hill and avoided losing him for nothing.
They actually came out of it pretty well all things considered. They now have an all-star center and still have quality guards.

With the arrivals of Kevin Love and Kendrick Perkins, Oklahoma City suddenly had a wealth of big men.
The duo join Brook Lopez, Al Horford, Serge Ibaka and Hasheem Thabeet in the Thunder's front court.
With six players competing for two spots, it seemed unlikely that they all would be satisfied sharing minutes.
Lopez established himself as one of the best centers in the league after his switch from the Nets last season.
Now the center spot is locked in with the arrival of Perkins as a backup and Thabeet in reserve.

Oklahoma City were actively seeking a deal for a backup point guard to balance out their roster.
It was thought that Hill was on top of a shortlist that included Rodney Stuckey and DJ Augustin.
Although Hill was seen as Tony Parker's successor, San Antonio will be happy to acquire an all-star calibre big man.
Since veteran forward Tim Duncan left in the off-season, the Spurs were looking rather short.

Horford spent one season with the Thunder after leaving Atlanta, winning a ring along the way.
But with the acquisition of Lopez and now the arrival of Love, he found his place in the starting line-up under threat.
Hill was playing shooting guard for the Spurs, but it's likely that Harden will keep his starting spot.
He will be used as backup from Westbrook and will lead an already strong second unit.

Thunder GM Sam Presti was full of praise for Horford, "He came here and played a big part in our second title."
"We wish him all the best in San Antonio and hope to see him again in the conference finals", He said with a smile.


Oklahoma City receive

George Hill - 25 - PG - $40.52m - 4 years (83)

Projected line-up: Lopez - Love - Durant - Harden - Westbrook
Sixth man: Hill/Brown


San Antonio receive

Al Horford - 25 - C - $41.28m - 4 years (83)

Projected line-up: Horford - Blair - Prince - Jefferson - Parker
Sixth man: Ginobili

Last edited by Phil89 on Mon Jun 13, 2011 9:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.