Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
Kevin Love is expected to seriously study the free-agent market this summer and consider leaving the Cavaliers after one year with the franchise, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
“He’s got options,” the Yahoo! Sports NBA insider said in a radio appearance on The Jason McIntyre Show on Yahoo! Sports Radio. “He could stay another year [by not opting out] and go into free agency next year.
“But he’s had injuries, and he might just want to sign a four-year deal somewhere else,” Wojnarowski added.
Love, Cleveland’s starting power forward, is out for the postseason after suffering a shoulder injury in Game 4 of Cleveland’s first-round series in Boston.
Incidentally, those Celtics could be in play for Love this summer, along with the Lakers and Rockets.
“I think he’s going to look around,” Wojnarowski said. “I think he’s going to look closely at Boston. I think he’ll look at LA. I’m sure the Texas teams are going to try and get involved.
The Yahoo! insider referred to Boston in particular as a “real, legitimate possibility”.
“I think Boston would be interesting, because Stevens and Danny Ainge are a very interesting recruiting duo to sell him on how they’d use him there,” he said.
Sheridan Hoops (h/t Celtics Blog)
I’m with Woj on this one. Kevin Love is leaving Cleveland.
He didn’t fit. It’s that simple.
And I’m pretty sure Love heard LeBron’s comments about Tristan Thompson. Can the Cavs really throw max money at Love and Thompson?
I know some C’s fans soured on Love following his run-in with Kelly Olynyk and the whiny comments that followed.
Not me.
Los Angeles may be a suitor, but as long as that stumblebum Byron Scott is head coach, advantage Boston.
In other news, Danny Ainge has started talking draft day trades:
The Celtics’ president of basketball operations has discussed a number of possible draft-day scenarios and anticipates there will be many more conversations in the coming weeks.
“We’ve had conversations about both moving up and down,” (Danny) Ainge told CSNNE.com. “Usually those don’t get serious until draft day.”
And of course the Celtics can always pursue trading one or more picks.
“It’s hard to move up or ask a team to move down until they know who they like,” said Austin Ainge, Boston’s director of player personnel. “Everyone is still in that process. Those are usually day-of-the-draft or day-before-the-draft type deals.”
File this under: No surprise.
On Page 2, it doesn’t look like Brandon Bass is ready to leave.
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When asked about his exit interview with the Celtics Bass said, “It’s a business. They have to do their due diligence. And I have to do my thing, spend time with my family and wait for those calls and negotiations to start.”
But don’t get it twisted. Bass isn’t your typical free agent-to-be with one foot out the door whose ready and willing to embrace whatever team is flashing the biggest dollars or the team that’s most poised to win a championship.
In fact, Bass is still fully engaged as a Celtic in the community, knowing full well his days with the team might be numbered.
Bass hosted 50 kids from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston at the Franklin Park Zoo on Wednesday, spending time feeding giraffes, birds and even riding a camel with some of the kids in attendance.
I asked him to explain why he would be part of an event like this despite his uncertain future with the franchise.
“Boston is like a home away from home for me,” Bass said. “I wanted to continue my efforts in the community. Fans have shown me a lot of love in my four years here. I want to do the same.”
Brandon Bass is a true professional. The type of veteran you want influencing young players. And just an all-around nice guy.
But I’m 95% certain his time here in Boston has come to an end. While a strong mid-range shooter, Bass doesn’t quite stretch the floor enough in this era of the NBA. And he doesn’t offer much rim protection or rebounding on the defensive end.
Unless there’s a blockbuster acquisition (Love, Kevin), the Celtics will ride Kelly Olynyk and Jared Sullinger next season. They’ll need to add a stretch 4 for depth and that could be Jonas Jerebko.
And finally, Dwight Howard is proud to go out a champion. Wait, what?
Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard appeared miserable when he sat down at the podium following their 104-90 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday. That’s understandable, as his team had just been eliminated from the playoffs in five games in the Western Conference finals.
Howard gave one- or two-sentence answers to the first few questions, then gradually started to open up. He talked about how much he and his teammates wanted to win, and how they had to come back stronger next year. Then a reporter asked how tough it was to overcome injuries and then have the season end like this.
“It’s tough, but I won’t stop fighting,” Howard said. “I’m going to continue to push myself to the limit and remember that, no matter how he season ends, I’m still a champion. And I won’t let anyone tell me anything different.”
By champion, you mean clown, right Dwight?
The rest of the links
Globe – Celtics take a look at more prospects | Herald – Celtics Smart not to overvalue workout | CSNNE – Tough Portis shows winning attributes in workout
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