13/11/13
Sources: Love wants out of Minnesota
Star Minnesota forward Kevin Love has apparently lost faith in the direction the team is going and wants an immediate trade to a contender.
This news has alerted the likes of the Lakers, Heat, Thunder, Knicks, Bulls and Nets. It's unclear at this stage if he has a preferred destination.
Love has been amongst the top tier of rebound grabbers in the league in the last few seasons. He also has added an outside shot to his game.
It's unlikely that the Timberwolves will be looking for young pieces as they are trying to break out on their seemingly endless rebuilding cycle.
This is another example of a small market team's star player wanting to move to one of the league's powerhouses. It happens a lot nowadays.
Dwight Howard, Chris Paul and Eric Gordon are just a few that have forced through trades in recent seasons. It's a shame for their team's fans.Twitter rumours
12/11/13Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
Breaking: Kevin Love has requested a trade to a contender. Allegedly stated lack of ambition from management as motiveAdrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
This news has alerted LAL, OKC, MIA, NYK. Also in the picture are BKN, BOS, LAC + CHI. No preference stated at this pointAdrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
Sources say he wants to play w/ college buddy Westbrook in OKC. Others say Lakers are front runners. We'll see in next few days
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13/11/13Marc J. Spears @SpearsNBAYahoo
Y! Sources: Lakers confirm interest in Love. Kupchak been in discussions with Kahn today. Looking for third team with assets to helpMarc J. Spears @SpearsNBAYahoo
Kobe only Lakers player off limits. Gasol + Nash could be shipped to third team. Talks still in early stages though, say Y! Sources
Mark. wrote:Yeah those are some crazy offensive numbers. Perhaps bump the difficulty level but at the same time increase your defensive and rebound sliders?
14/11/13
New Orleans Hornets [3-5] vs Washington Wizards [4-2]
Wizards get blown out for second straight game
NOH - 26 30 24 21 101
WAS - 25 17 24 16 82
Player of the Game: Kevin Seraphin
(19pts, 11reb, 1ast, 3stl, 3blk)
Top Scorers
DJ Augustin - 20
Kevin Seraphin - 19
Nerlens Noel - 17
Rudy Gay - 16
Bradley Beal - 14
John Wall - 13
Greivis Vasquez - 10
Ryan Anderson - 10
Rebounds
Kevin Seraphin - 11
Anthony Davis - 10
DJ Augustin - 7
Nerlens Noel - 7
Derrick Favors - 7
John Wall - 6
Al-Farouq Aminu - 5
Assists
John Wall - 12
Greivis Vasquez - 10
DJ Augustin - 5
Steals
DJ Augustin - 3
Kevin Seraphin - 3
Anthony Davis - 2
Blocks
Kevin Seraphin - 3
Durant35 wrote:Hope Love goes to OKC! Ibaka at the 5, Love at 4.
hova- wrote:Good run with your revamped team. Love should go to LA and be the new franchise player there
SuperHueyNewton wrote:I like the Love drama. Nice start, and who knew the Pistons would start off perfect?
15/11/13
Sources: Love dealt to Lakers
14/11/13Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
Tentative deal agreed between LAL, MIN + TOR. Lakers get Love, Kirilenko + Budinger from T-Wolves and Calderon from RaptorsAdrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
Raptors acquire Nash, Gasol, Meeks + Duhon from Lakers. T-Wolves get Lowry, Bargnani, Fields + A.Johnson from RaptorsAdrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA
T-Wolves also receive two future first round draft picks from the Lakers in the deal. Just awaiting league confirmation now
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15/11/13Marc J. Spears @SpearsNBAYahoo
Thunder were involved in talks. Allegedly offered Perkins, Martin, Tony Mitchell + picks. Timberwolves wanted more valueMarc J. Spears @SpearsNBAYahoo
OKC were unwilling to give up Ibaka + Lamb. KD + RW obviously off-limits. They didn't want to break-up a championship team that much
Full report to follow..
16/11/13
Lakers get Love, Nash returns home and T-Wolves reload
Mitch Kupchak has done it again. The man who got Dwight Howard to Los Angeles 15 months ago has today brokered a deal to land them Kevin Love.
He has acted quickly to acquire a star player to replace the recently departed Howard. Dwight signed with San Antonio as a free agent last month.
In the trade the Lakers get Love, Andrei Kirilenko and Chase Budinger from the Timberwolves. They also got Spaniard Jose Calderon from the Raptors.
Toronto acquired Canadian hero Steve Nash, Pau Gasol, Jodie Meeks and Chris Duhon from the Lakers. Gasol and Duhon are on expiring contracts.
Minnesota received Kyle Lowry, Andrea Bargnani, Landry Fields and Amir Johnson from the Raptors. Also two future first rounders from the Lakers.
Early media and fan reaction is that Kupchak has outplayed both David Kahn and Bryan Colangelo in this deal. Should that really be a surprise though?
The Lakers were labelled as championship favourites by some people last season after acquiring both Dwight Howard and Steve Nash in the off-season.
It didn't go as planned for them though as they only managed the third seed and were knocked out in 7 games by Love's Timberwolves in the first round.
Things got even worse in the off-season when Howard opted to test free agency and subsequently signed a long-term deal with the San Antonio Spurs.
No real effort was made to replace him at the time. Now their 2-7 start to this season has forced them to reassess their direction and make this move.
Luckily for them a superstar player became available. Kevin Love had become increasingly unsettled in Minnesota recently and finally demanded a trade.
Their main aim in this deal was to fill the giant hole in their frontcourt left by Howard. They did that and also improved other areas in their team too.
Kirilenko gives them an alternative to Metta World Peace at the small forward position. He can also play power forward if they want to play small ball.
They also got themselves a productive veteran to replace Nash as the team's play-maker. Calderon has shown that he can get triple-doubles in the past.
Kobe Bryant is still the centrepiece of the franchise, but his deal is expiring and they had to look to the future. Love gives them an insurance policy.
Most people expect them to be big players in the free agent market next season, with Hill, Jamison, Blake, Kirilenko and Kobe coming off the books.
They still have flexibility to sign a star player or two, but also have Love who they can build around after Kobe decides to retire in the coming years.
It's something of a homecoming for Love, who was born in Santa Monica and attended UCLA for a season before nominating for the 2008 NBA draft.
Minnesota come out of this deal having lost their superstar, but they have ensured that they won't drop off by acquiring some established players.
Replacing Love in their frontcourt are two solid contributors, former number one pick Andrea Bargnani and former Pistons big man Amir Johnson.
It's the worst position a small market team can be in; their star player demanding a trade. Minnesota is just the latest team to experience this.
Usually teams just try to get draft picks and young prospects to facilitate rebuild projects. The Timberwolves wanted to remain competitive though.
They replace the 32 year old veteran Kirilenko, whose deal was expiring this season, with the 25 year old Landry Fields who is on a reasonable deal.
Getting Lowry too gives them a very nice backcourt rotation combining with Shved, Rubio and Roy. Luke Ridnour isn't the worst fifth option either.
They actually reached the conference semi finals last season, but were eliminated by the Clippers. They're 4-4 so far this season and looking good.
Toronto complete a move that they tried to do at the start of last season and that has been talked about his whole career, bringing Steve Nash home.
Canadian basketball's favourite son will play for a team from the country where he grew up for the first time. Merchandise has been selling quickly.
He may be 39 and in his 18th NBA season, but he is still an elite point guard who can control games. It's pretty likely that he'll retire with the Raptors.
These days he is averaging just short of a double-double per game with 7 points and 8 assists. He can still be dominant on any given night though.
Many fans have wanted the Raptors to trade Bargnani for a while and get rid of his big contract. It's been done now and the Raptors shed more too.
Getting the expiring deals of Gasol and Duhon in return saves them nearly $17 million next season. Meeks is on a cheap deal too which helps them.
A bonus of acquiring Gasol is that he can mentor Jonas Valanciunas and help him develop into the powerful big man that the Raptors need him to be.
With Bargnani now gone, the team will be built around a talented core group of Valanciunas, Terrence Ross, Ed Davis and high-flyer DeMar DeRozan.
Toronto haven't made the playoffs since 2008 and it was probably time for a fresh start. Hopefully their new-look team can get them a top 8 seed.
They have started this season poorly though, sitting second bottom in the conference with a 2-6 record. Things can only get better at this point.
LA Lakers receive
Kevin Love - 25 - PF - $30.41m - 2 years (90)
Andrei Kirilenko - 32 - SF - $10.00m - 1 year (77)
Jose Calderon - 32 - PG - $15.89m - 3 years (73)
Chase Budinger - 25 - SF - $13.20m - 4 years (73)
Projected line-up:
Jordan Hill - Kevin Love - Andrei Kirilenko - Kobe Bryant - Jose Calderon
Bench:
Antawn Jamison, Chase Budinger, Metta World Peace, Samuel Dalembert, Lorenzo Brown, Mike Moser, Steve Blake
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Minnesota receive
Kyle Lowry - 27 - PG - $6.21m - 1 year (86)
Landry Fields - 25 - SF - $13.73m - 2 years (77)
Andrea Bargnani - 28 - PF - $23.00m - 2 years (74)
Amir Johnson - 26 - C - $13.50m - 2 years (72)
Lakers 2014 first round pick
Lakers 2015 first round pick
Projected line-up:
Andrea Bargnani - Derrick Williams - Landry Fields - Brandon Roy - Ricky Rubio
Bench:
Kyle Lowry, Alexey Shved, Amir Johnson, Luke Ridnour, Dante Cunningham, Greg Stiemsma, Gorgui Dieng
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Toronto receive
Steve Nash - 39 - PG - $19.00m - 2 years (82)
Pau Gasol - 33 - PF - $19.29m - 1 year (79)
Jodie Meeks - 26 - SG - $12.64m - 5 years (70)
Chris Duhon - 31 - PG - $3.92m - 1 year (66)
Projected line-up:
Pau Gasol - Ed Davis - Terrence Ross - DeMar DeRozan - Steve Nash
Bench:
Jonas Valanciunas, Jodie Meeks, Chris Duhon, Linas Kleiza, John Lucas, Alex Oriakhi, Aaron Gray
16/11/13
Kobe to remain a Laker for life after signing extension
Laker fans have something else to cheer about, with superstar Kobe Bryant signing a two-year extension only hours after they landed Kevin Love.
Negotiations had apparently been ongoing for several weeks and it's thought that Kobe was informed of the move for Love as it was happening.
Some questioned whether Kobe would move on to chase a sixth ring next year after Dwight Howard left him to carry the burden for the Lakers.
But with Love has joining him in Los Angeles, he has decided to remain with the team. He even selflessly took a 50% pay cut to help the team.
The extension is worth nearly $32m over two years. Considering that he's earning over $30m this year, it's a huge amount to leave on the table.
Despite being 35 years old, he is still averaging 25 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists per game. He is currently ranked sixth in the league in scoring.
The Lakers have started the season with a 4-7 record and will have to get a move on if they hope to make the playoffs and challenge for a title.
Durant35 wrote::applaud: classic Kobe. Sad that he's about to retire.
Mark. wrote:Love the blockbuster! Still feel the Lakers made out like Bandits once again though! How did they manage AK and Calderon on top of Love I dunno!
Thierry • wrote:Loving the Nash-Pau duo in Toronto. Will Gay join them too?
Phil89 wrote:For some reason I keep putting off my next game against the Thunder. I'll get round to it soon though.
17/11/13
Washington Wizards [4-3] vs Oklahoma City Thunder [7-3]
Defending champions prove too much for Wizards to handle
WAS - 24 22 25 31 102
OKC - 31 23 24 33 111
Player of the Game: Kevin Durant
(30pts, 5reb, 2ast, 5stl)
Top Scorers
Kevin Durant - 30
Jeremy Lamb - 25
Rudy Gay - 25
John Wall - 16
Nerlens Noel - 15
Bradley Beal - 15
Kevin Martin - 15
Serge Ibaka - 10
Russell Westbrook - 10
Rebounds
Serge Ibaka - 11
Kevin Durant - 5
Derrick Favors - 5
Assists
John Wall - 12
Russell Westbrook - 9
Kevin Martin - 5
Rudy Gay - 5
Steals
Kevin Durant - 5
Kevin Martin - 4
Jeremy Lamb - 2
Blocks
JJ Hickson - 2
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