NBA Free Agency Update: Monta Ellis Sweepstakes is Heating up

The Heat and Cavs are interested in Monta Ellis while he claims to have an interest in playing for the Knicks. Unfortunately for those teams Ellis wants $10 million per year and none of those teams have any cap space to be able to sign him outright.  They would have to do some kind of a sign-and-trade deal and it is debatable whether any of those teams have anything Don Nelson would be interested in that would be available.  The Knicks have some tradeable assets though I don’t know the Warriors have any interest in them.  Stephon Marbury and Malik Rose’s expiring contracts are available and David Lee is available for the right deal.  The thing of it is is you do not trade a young up-and-coming talent like Ellis away for expiring contracts and David Lee does not really fit into Nelson’s style of play.  Cleveland really has nothing of interest to offer either other than expiring contracts of mediocre players.  With Baron Davis having jumped ship to Los Angeles Golden State ultimately cannot deal Ellis without getting a starting point guard in return.

Switching gears to Corey Maggette.  He is rumored to be considering the Celtics after a conversation with Doc Rivers.  I still don’t see how Maggette fits into the equation in Boston with Pierce and Allen still in the mix.  Meanwhile Maggette talks as though he is done with the Clippers and with some extra cash to spend now that Baron has jumped ship the Warriors are expected to show interest in Maggette’s services along with the Sixers who are likely hedging their bets in the event they cannot come to terms with Andre Iguodala.  The Warriors interest is probably stronger than the Sixers at this point.  If they retain Ellis and move him over to the point as is expected to happen they will then have an opening at shooting guard and Maggette could fit right in there.  The Sixers are likely using Maggette as a bargaining chip with Iguodala.  Otherwise if they re-sign Igoudala then they have no real use for a guy like Maggette with Thaddeus Young already in place as the small forward of the future.

Chris Duhon has come to terms on a two year deal with the Knicks. I am not entirely sure why Duhon wants to play with the Knicks as he is going to another team with a gaggle of guards.  He is going to have to compete with Nate Robinson, who I see as a Leandro Barbosa type of player for D’Antoni in New York, and Stephon Marbury for minutes at the point.  It just seems to me that Duhon would have done better for himself trying to get on a team with a chance to win where he would be a backup.  I like Duhon as a player, I just don’t see him being a starting point guard in the NBA.  He simply is not a good enough scorer.  He is a good defender and distributor and a solid 3-point shooter but he just is not good enough at creating his own shot to be a starter.

The Celtics have been actively seeking players to fill out their bench and some of the names are quite interesting.  Aside from contacting the Maggette the Celtics brough Darius Miles in for a workout and liked what they saw.  However, Miles is reportedly facing a 10 game suspension from the league for violation of its substance abuse policy so it remains to be seen where he lands if anywhere at all.  If Miles is healthy he would be an intriguing addition to the Celtics.  Another intriguing name was that of Patrick O’Bryant who until now has been a colossal flop in the NBA.  O’Bryant showed some flashes in the Developmental League so it remains to be seen if maybe a change of scenery is what is needed for O’Bryant who was never able to garner more than a handful of minutes from Don Nelson during his stay in Golden State.  Fortunately for O’Bryant he is a legit 7-footer which means he is always going to have an opportunity to make a NBA roster as long as he is healthy enough to do so.