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NBA Rumors for Thursday, Sept. 2

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Sorry to disappoint again: Carmelo Anthony isn’t even on the market. Not yet, anyway. That status could certainly change before NBA teams open training camps later this month, should Ujiri prove unsuccessful in his forthcoming attempt(s) to convince Anthony to sign the three-year, $65 million contract extension that the Nuggets, right around the June draft, believed Melo was on the verge of accepting. ESPN.com

The current reality, however, is that Melo is not in play for trade pitches. The Nuggets can do nothing to prevent the future of Anthony – along with Chris Paul and Deron Williams (“I have a feeling he’s next for all these trade stories,” one Western Conference team official said of D-Will) – from becoming the new season’s sidebar obsession to the actual basketball. But they can tell teams that call about Anthony that they’re not ready to discuss potential Melo trade scenarios. ESPN.com

Yet sources tied to five potential Anthony suitors, reached in recent days by ESPN.com, all relayed the same story about the Nuggets’ response: They’re pretty much ending these conversations before they even start by saying that they don't want to engage in Melo talks. Ujiri's Denver superiors instead want him to lead the club's mountain climb of a bid to try to reconnect with the 26-year-old scoring machine before they even consider trading him, hoping that some sort of positive karma exists in the reunion of Ujiri, a former Nuggets scout, and Anthony, who both arrived in Denver in 2003 and spent several formative seasons together in the organization. ESPN.com

The Kings are about $14.6 million under the salary cap and looking ahead to next summer will have more room than any other team with the contracts of Samuel Dalembert, among others, coming off the books. Sacramento Bee Blog

But after being saddled with big contracts, the Kings are now an attractive trade partner. Teams looking to move high-priced veterans will make calls to Sacramento. Teams will also look to deal for expiring contracts the Kings will have. Sacramento Bee Blog

The Bulls are getting closer to hiring an assistant coach. It looks like the candidates are former Bucks and Suns head coach Terry Porter, along with former Bulls forward Adrian Griffin. Griffin retired as a player a couple years ago and joined Scott Skiles’ coaching staff in Milwaukee. One issue the Bulls may be dealing with is whether or not the Bucks are willing to let Griffin leave. Porter has been out of the league since being fired by Phoenix during the 2008-09 season and appears ready to get back into coaching. Arlington Heights Daily Herald Blog

Another rumored Bulls’ target, former Kings and Warriors head coach Eric Musselman, has ties with Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau. Musselman’s father, Bill, first brought Thibodeau to the NBA with the expansion Minnesota Timberwolves. Arlington Heights Daily Herald Blog

All Taj Gibson can do is shake his head and smile. The Bulls forward has heard the rumors all summer that he may be involved in some kind of deal but he understands that's just part of the business side of the NBA. "It's crazy," he told ESPNChicago.com on Wednesday night after a Nike House of Hoops event. "Every time I turn around [I hear something], but it's a part of the game. My coach in high school and even my dad told me when your name doesn't pop up then you have to be worried. But that's what happens when you have a good season and people seem to see that you have a lot more potential -- it's great. I'm just looking forward to getting to the season and hopefully getting even better." ESPN.com

The USC alum had a solid rookie season for the Bulls becoming a key contributor while averaging nine points and eight rebounds a game. Those are the biggest reasons why Gibson's name continues to swirl in the rumor mill. Unless the team can land a superstar, it's hard to imagine Bulls' brass would flip Gibson in any kind of deal. They view him as a building block for the future and it's the message they relayed to the 25 year-old. ESPN.com

USA vs Iran: The United States won it easily, earning a top seed in the knockout round of the world championship with an 88-51 victory Wednesday in the first meeting between the countries with a history of contentious relations. The U.S. team, which downplayed the political aspect of the game, methodically pulled away in the first half, wearing down the Asian champions with its depth and athleticism. "We just respected their basketball team and we just played a basketball game," U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "There's no political aspect in my mind in the ballgame." AP

Kevin Love scored 13 points and Kevin Durant 12 for the Americans (4-0), who will meet the fourth-place team from Group A in the round of 16. AP

Hamed Haddadi scored 19 points for Iran (1-3) and Arsalan Kazemi had 14. "I'm very happy, I played against the best team in the world," Kamrany said. AP

And then there was Wednesday, when Heat rookie forward Da’Sean Butler tweeted a children’s short story. Yes, tweeted. In 28 tweets of 140 or fewer characters, he put together his compilation. Because this is not a literary review, I will leave such judgments to others. But at least now I know that I hadn’t see it all. South Florida Sun-Sentinel Blog

According to Douglas, newcomer Kelanna Azubuike is not yet working at Westchester and still is doing offcourt rehab after missing most of last season with a torn tendon in his left knee. It's looking more doubtful the shooting guard will be 100 percent when training camp opens on Sept. 25. After Labor Day, Douglas said he expects to be joined by more teammates so they can begin scrimmaging. NY Post

The free-agent signing of Roger Mason did not upset Douglas, though Mason is very similar as a combo guard and could steal minutes. If anything, Mason's addition gives the Knicks more depth if they have to put Douglas in a package for Carmelo Anthony, Tony Parker or Chris Paul. "I wasn't surprised," Douglas said. "I'm just getting ready get this whole summer with two a days, so I'm going to be ready." NY Post

New Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau says he is not concerned that his All-Star guard, Derrick Rose, might be burned out for the start of the NBA season after playing for Team USA this summer. "He has been terrific," Thibodeau said. "And the way he practices ... I'm real excited. I thought he showed great leadership out there, and their team is playing extremely well right now. … I think being around those types of players and being around that type of competition is great. I think he will take a lot from it." Chicago Tribune

Amar'e Stoudemire: Managing Partner Robert Sarver offered him a five-year, $96.6 million contract with $56 million guaranteed and the rest kicking in if Stoudemire logged significant minutes in the third and fourth years. "It was fair from Robert's standpoint," Stoudemire said. "I understand his concerns, which were injuries and health. There are no hard feelings at all. From a security standpoint for myself and with as much work as I put in on the court, I was after a greater goal. It was a fair offer from his standpoint. We still talk and have a good friendship. "The greater goal was to have a sense of security. I didn't want a football deal (with some or all of the money non-guaranteed). I want a NBA deal. That's what I ended up getting." Arizona Republic

Stoudemire said he had not heard of such a contract structure, which Sarver said required Stoudemire to play 2,200 minutes (26.8 minutes per game for 82 appearances) in each of the third and fourth years. Stoudemire entered his first free agency with two priorities: staying in Phoenix and pursuing a championship. Picking New York was a step away from both. Arizona Republic

"The question ownership asked to me was, 'Who do I want - Jason Kidd, Steve Nash or Kobe Bryant?' I said Steve. Over Kobe. At the time, Kobe had a reputation for being selfish and Steve was the ultimate point guard. I felt like that's what we needed. We had Joe Johnson and Shawn Marion. We just didn't have a PG to control tempo. Kidd was banged up after microfracture (knee surgery)." Arizona Republic

Derek Fisher was sharp with some follow-up questions and got Kobe Bryant to talk about how he, personally, would not have done what LeBron James did in leaving Cleveland. Some have observed that Bryant was revising his history, which includes him being perfectly willing to leave the Lakers to win. What Bryant meant in his answer that he wouldn’t have done it is that he wouldn’t have left to work with another superstar the way James did with Dwyane Wade. In fact, Bryant was tempted to leave the Lakers in 2004 to get away from Shaquille O’Neal’s shadow. Bryant would only leave to build around himself, telling Fisher: “I’m as stubborn as a mule.” Orange County Register

Bryant tried to clarify that it wasn’t “a knock” on James, saying: “We’re different. He’s a different person than I am. You can take that as a positive or a negative.” Orange County Register

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Finally, Union Olimpija has officially announced the signing of Damir Markota to a one-year contract. The 24-year-old Croatian forward lands in the Slovenian team after playing during the last two seasons in Spain. TheHoopsMarket

FIBA's dance team has been benched during Turkey's games. The Red Foxes have been told to stop performing in games involving the host country because their risque costumes and routines are offensive to the nation that is nearly entirely Muslim. Islam prohibits women from exposing their skin in public. Basketball's governing body said Wednesday the ban was not its decision. Secretary general Patrick Baumann said he wants entertainment to be part of the games, but "if it needs a little bit of adjustment that is fine with us." AP

FIBA's statement did not include who imposed the ban or the reason for it, though said there was speculation that the dance routines were "too risque." It added that Turkish prime minister Tayyip Erdogan, his wife and the country's minister for foreign affairs attended Turkey's victories over Russia on Sunday and Greece on Tuesday. AP

The dance team’s coach, Elena Rozhkova, said her team was pulled from the past three Turkey games for a “political” reason. And FIBA, basketball’s international governing body, admits to making cultural adjustments. But the Turkish Basketball Federation said the dancers were not scheduled to perform. “I would like to assure you that the decision had no influence from either the government or the federation itself,” Sancar Sonmez, the Turkish federation spokesman, said. NY Times

FIBA was adamant that the decision for the dancers not to appear did not come from it. “This is not FIBA’s decision, and the dancers will continue to perform at other games in Ankara involving other countries,” FIBA said in a statement. “The dancers bring much fun and joy to fans watching games and help to create a vibrant, happy atmosphere in the arenas.” NY Times

In Turkey, the decision has been hotly debated. “It’s crazy,” said a former Turkish national team member, who did not want to be named for fear of retribution by the government. “In a secular country like Turkey, they shouldn’t have to do that.” NY Times

On Thursday, Lauren Jackson will be named the most valuable player, joining Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes as the only players to win the award three times. Jackson also won in 2003 and 2007. Jackson, 29, edged forward Tamika Catchings of the Indiana Fever and guard Cappie Pondexter of the Liberty. Jackson received 323 points from a national panel of 39 news media members, Catchings received 262 and Pondexter 207. NY Times

Leslie and Jackson have a complicated history. In 2000, Jackson once pulled out Leslie’s hair extension in the Olympic gold medal game. (Leslie and the United States team defeated Jackson’s Australian team.) Jackson led the Storm to the league’s best record (28-6). Seattle’s win total equaled the most in league history, joining the Los Angeles Sparks of 2000 and 2001, both of which were led by Leslie. NY Times

More than 80 billboards featuring Griz players were unveiled Wednesday in the Mid-South as the team attempts to generate more enthusiasm for the upcoming season. "We started out with an aggressive television campaign that is fun. We've really gotten a positive response from that, and it set the tone for introducing our 10th year in Memphis," said John Pugliese, senior director of marketing communications. "But we know it's about our basketball team and what coach (Lionel) Hollins is putting on the court. Our ad campaign will start to shift to a focus on our players and coaches. We know we'll have something special on the court this season." Memphis Commercial Appeal

Training camp for players doesn't start until Sept. 28, but the Grizzlies' behind-the-scenes staff is in midseason form. They've redesigned the Grizzlies' website. Also, more than 140 team employees spent Wednesday morning covering the city with Grizzlies 10th anniversary posters. Team officials reported that season ticket renewals and new sales are on pace for a 20-25 percent increase from last year's totals. Group sales are exceeding last year's numbers as well, according to Pugliese, who declined to discuss specific numbers. Memphis Commercial Appeal

At 6-foot-8 and 270 pounds, former Long Beach State player Kevin Cutler (1989-91) became the tallest and heaviest referee ever to work an NBA game last season. He was called up during the middle of it from the NBA Developmental League and wound up appearing in seven games. He was one of seven officials from the D-League who was given such an opportunity as part of a new NBA program, with the most promising ones moving to the head of the list for any openings on the league's 60-person staff. Press Telegram/August 31

Well, Cutler must have made an admirable impression, since he recently was hired full-time by the NBA. Cutler, a 1986 graduate of Ganesha High in Pomona, isn't allowed to comment on his promotion until he receives approval from the NBA office, but one of the league's communications managers, Peter Lagiovane, confirmed it. Press Telegram/August 31

Penguin Group slapped best-selling author Adrian Wojnarowski with a suit seeking the return of a $140,000 advance for "Jimmy V: The Life and Death of Jim Valvano." The Manhattan federal court filing says Wojnarowski -- the NBA columnist for Yahoo! Sports -- initially promised to produce a 130,000-word manuscript about the controversial coach by August 1, 2007. NY Post

Wojnarowski blamed the suit on "a miscommunication between my agent and me," saying: "if they had given him a warning, he had not passed it on to me." "I had no idea it had gotten to that point," he said. "I'm literally sending them the money today." NY Post

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