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2
Feb
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Dallas owner Mark Cuban, who has paid more than $1 million in NBA fines in large part due to criticizing officiating, could not keep biting his tongue.
The Mavericks' 95-86 home loss to the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder caused Cuban to complain about what he considers an epidemic of poor officiating in this lockout-condensed season.
"Look, I haven't said a whole lot about the officiating in a long, long time, but I haven't seen it this bad in a long, long time," Cuban told ESPNDallas.com in the Mavericks' weight room after the loss. "Guys miss calls; that's part of the game. You're not always going to have a great crew. Officials have got to learn that's part of the game.
ESPN.com none
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Dallas owner Mark Cuban, who has paid more than $1 million in NBA fines in large part due to criticizing officiating, could not keep biting his tongue.
The Mavericks' 95-86 home loss to the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder caused Cuban to complain about what he considers an epidemic of poor officiating in this lockout-condensed season.
"Look, I haven't said a whole lot about the officiating in a long, long time, but I haven't seen it this bad in a long, long time," Cuban told ESPNDallas.com in the Mavericks' weight room after the loss. "Guys miss calls; that's part of the game. You're not always going to have a great crew. Officials have got to learn that's part of the game.
ESPN.com none
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While the league's post-lockout trade buzz has been centered on Chris Paul and Dwight Howard, little attention has been paid to Williams, who like Howard can opt out of his contract and become a free agent after this season.
Williams has publicly stated his desire to re-sign with the Nets, and New Jersey, which views him as a building block for next season's move to Brooklyn, has refused to entertain potential trades involving Williams. Yet both sides know their future together is tied to Howard.
If the Nets are able to obtain Howard, either through a trade before the March 15 deadline or in free agency this summer, Williams will re-sign. If Howard goes elsewhere, Williams is likely to leave New Jersey, according to the sources.
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Free-agent guard J.J. Barea has reached an agreement in principle with the Minnesota Timberwolves on a four-year contract worth an estimated $19 million, according to sources.
NBA.com reported that the Wolves and Barea were finalizing the deal Monday. Barea also expressed disappointment last week over the dimming prospect of returning to the Dallas Mavericks.
"I wasn't expecting it to be like this after everything we did, after my five years here, after what we did last year," Barea said on ESPN 103.3's Ben and Skin Show. "Now you've just got to go with it and things happen."
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The Lakers will trade Lamar Odom to the Mavericks for a traded player exception worth approximately $8.9 million.
The move is not necessarily to pursue Dwight Howard, as sources say it is a "straight salary dump". But it is difficult to imagine the Lakers trading Odom to a Western Conference rival to merely save money.
Dallas will send their own first round pick in 2012 and possibly a second rounder as well. The Lakers shopped Odom around the league to teams with cap space.
"He wanted out and they really wanted to reduce the tax bill," said one general manager.
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With serious interest registered from the Nets, Golden State, Houston and Sacramento, four teams with cap space and flexibility, the man who served as the glue for the Mavericks' 2011 NBA title could be slipping away -- but for reasons that go well beyond the uncertain free-agent market for Chandler himself.
The Mavs are in no rush to retain Chandler on a max offer, largely because they want to maintain flexibility for next summer's free-agent class -- which just happens to include Dallas' own Williams.
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Free agent small forward Caron Butler's meeting with the the Los Angeles Clippers went so well Monday night, the two sides decided to talk again on Tuesday morning, according to Butler's agent.
"Caron was really happy with the meeting," Butler's agent Raymond Brothers said.
"We were really impressed by (general manager) Neil Olshey and (coach) Vinny Del Negro. I think they've got a good young team that can win. Caron had a really good feeling about it."
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"I really think I'm going to be on a new team come training camp," Chandler told ESPN.com in a telephone interview Wednesday night. "I'm really taking a hard look at all of my options, trying to see what best suits me."
Chandler's doubts about the Mavericks' willingness to re-sign him to a lucrative long-term deal are bound to be welcome news for the teams already courting him in these early stages of free agency.
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