The Houston Rockets have reached a multiyear deal with free agent Trevor Ariza, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Thursday night.
The person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because NBA rules prohibit announcing free-agent deals until next week, said the Rockets offered Ariza the full mid-level exception for the first year, about $5.6 million.
Ariza is coming to Houston just as Ron Artest decided to leave and play for the Los Angeles Lakers. Ariza is likely to take Artest's spot in the Rockets' starting lineup.
The 6-foot-8 Ariza averaged 8.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists for the Lakers last season, which ended with the NBA championship.
The 24-year-old Ariza earned $3.1 million last season and he boosted his value during the playoffs, when he averaged 11.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
Ariza was acquired by the Lakers in a trade from Orlando in November 2007. He just completed his fifth NBA season after being drafted by the New York Knicks with the 43rd overall pick in 2004.
Ariza said after the Lakers' championship run that he was hoping to stay there. But his agent, David Lee, told KRIV-TV in Houston that Ariza got the impression that the Lakers didn't want him anymore.
"It was never about the money," Lee said. "It was about being at a place where he felt wanted and appreciated."
Rockets general manager Daryl Morey did not immediately return a phone message on Thursday night.
He flew to Las Vegas on Thursday to meet with Ariza, a sign that he was already expecting Artest to leave.
The Rockets will need Ariza's versatility and perimeter shooting early next season, because they know they'll be missing Tracy McGrady for the bulk of next season. The seven-time All-Star is recovering from microfracture surgery on his left knee and could be out until February.
The Rockets are also awaiting a definitive prognosis on Yao, who sustained a hairline fracture in his left foot in the playoffs. Morey made an aggressive pitch to free agent center Marcin Gortat shortly after the free agency period began on Wednesday.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Lakers reach agreement to add Ron Artest to squad
The Los Angeles Lakers are not content to stand pat in defense of their latest championship.
They reached an agreement Thursday with Houston Rockets free agent forward Ron Artest on a five-year deal using the team's mid-level exception that would pay Artest a little more $32 million based on last season's mid-level amount of $5.585 million. Artest will have an out in the contract after the fourth season, according to a source, and will be allowed to make the contract into a three-year deal if he changes his mind between now and next Wednesday, the first official day that players can sign contracts for the 2009-10 season.
The 29-year-old Artest might be inclined to go for a shorter deal to give him the chance at another contract after this one expires. By signing for three years, Artest would regain his "Larry Bird" rights, which allow a team to go over the salary cap in order to re-sign its own players and pay those players an additional year's salary. That would also apply if Artest wanted to leave the Lakers after three years; he'd get an additional year if the Lakers agreed to a sign-and-trade deal for him.
If he took fewer years, Artest would also be gambling that the economy will improve by the time his Lakers contract expires, allowing him to make up some of the money he'd be sacrificing at the front end of the deal.
But the big news is that Artest is bringing his unique skill sets--and his unique, quirky, occasionally dangerous life--to a Lakers team that was mostly free of drama this past season en route to the franchise's 15th NBA championship.
"Ron's really excited," said his agent, David Bauman, "really jazzed. He's looking forward to playing with a winner."
Assuming Phil Jackson comes back for the final year of his contract, dealing with Artest will be a challenge for Jackson much like Dennis Rodman, who joined the Bulls for the second half of that team's six titles in eight seasons in the 1990s.
Other contending teams like the Cavaliers tried hard to woo Artest, but the opportunity to play in Los Angeles, with its potential ancillary opportunities for income, was a large factor in his decision to go with the Lakers.
On the court, the Lakers are adding one of the league's top on-ball defenders to their team, teaming Artest and Kobe Bryant, who've had their own individual battles over the years. The two have the potential to be a top perimeter defensive duo, much as Artest and Houston's Shane Battier had great success in tandem this past season.
Artest was actually close to reaching an agreement on a contract extension last week with the Rockets, but those plans were thrown into uncertainty when Houston learned that center Yao Ming's injured foot wasn't healing at all, and might keep him out for part or all of next season. Not knowing Yao's short-term or long-term future with the Rockets made them less enticing to Artest, even though Houston could, and did, offer him more money to stay.
Agreeing to terms with Artest effectively ends the Lakers' pursuit of their own free agent small forward, Trevor Ariza, who was not interested in re-signing for the mid-level amount. Ironically, Ariza was meeting with the Rockets in Las Vegas on Thursday while Artest was agreeing to take his old job with Los Angeles.
The Lakers bombarded Artest with all manner of communication.
Bryant, who'd gotten into numerous trash-talking on-court spats with Artest over the last couple of seasons, sent Artest numerous texts since the start of the negotiating period Wednesday morning. Hall of Fame great Magic Johnson called Artest on Wednesday as well. And Artest had lunch this afternoon with Lakers majority owner Jerry Buss.
He was already inclined toward Los Angeles. He'd expressed great interest in going to the Lakers near the end of his stay with the Kings, and was courtside during last year's Finals between Los Angeles and Boston.
The Lakers are the latest among the NBA's elite class to make a major talent acquisition since the end of The Finals. The Cavaliers, who lost in the Eastern Conference finals to Orlando, formally introduced center Shaquille O'Neal, picked up from Phoenix a week ago, to their fans in Cleveland yesterday. The Magic, which lost to the Lakers in the Finals, traded for eight-time All-Star guard Vince Carter on draft night. The Spurs picked up forward Richard Jefferson from the Bucks; the Celtics, Spurs and Magic all are in hot pursuit of Pistons free agent big man Rasheed Wallace.
Boston lead owner Wyc Grousbeck, general manager Danny Ainge, head coach Doc Rivers, Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce all went to Detroit on Thursday to formally present Wallace with an offer for the full mid-level exception. But they left town without Wallace agreeing to a deal. Wallace will visit San Antonio and Orlando next week, according to a source, before making up his mind. Wallace is not likely to visit Cleveland.
They reached an agreement Thursday with Houston Rockets free agent forward Ron Artest on a five-year deal using the team's mid-level exception that would pay Artest a little more $32 million based on last season's mid-level amount of $5.585 million. Artest will have an out in the contract after the fourth season, according to a source, and will be allowed to make the contract into a three-year deal if he changes his mind between now and next Wednesday, the first official day that players can sign contracts for the 2009-10 season.
The 29-year-old Artest might be inclined to go for a shorter deal to give him the chance at another contract after this one expires. By signing for three years, Artest would regain his "Larry Bird" rights, which allow a team to go over the salary cap in order to re-sign its own players and pay those players an additional year's salary. That would also apply if Artest wanted to leave the Lakers after three years; he'd get an additional year if the Lakers agreed to a sign-and-trade deal for him.
If he took fewer years, Artest would also be gambling that the economy will improve by the time his Lakers contract expires, allowing him to make up some of the money he'd be sacrificing at the front end of the deal.
But the big news is that Artest is bringing his unique skill sets--and his unique, quirky, occasionally dangerous life--to a Lakers team that was mostly free of drama this past season en route to the franchise's 15th NBA championship.
"Ron's really excited," said his agent, David Bauman, "really jazzed. He's looking forward to playing with a winner."
Assuming Phil Jackson comes back for the final year of his contract, dealing with Artest will be a challenge for Jackson much like Dennis Rodman, who joined the Bulls for the second half of that team's six titles in eight seasons in the 1990s.
Other contending teams like the Cavaliers tried hard to woo Artest, but the opportunity to play in Los Angeles, with its potential ancillary opportunities for income, was a large factor in his decision to go with the Lakers.
On the court, the Lakers are adding one of the league's top on-ball defenders to their team, teaming Artest and Kobe Bryant, who've had their own individual battles over the years. The two have the potential to be a top perimeter defensive duo, much as Artest and Houston's Shane Battier had great success in tandem this past season.
Artest was actually close to reaching an agreement on a contract extension last week with the Rockets, but those plans were thrown into uncertainty when Houston learned that center Yao Ming's injured foot wasn't healing at all, and might keep him out for part or all of next season. Not knowing Yao's short-term or long-term future with the Rockets made them less enticing to Artest, even though Houston could, and did, offer him more money to stay.
Agreeing to terms with Artest effectively ends the Lakers' pursuit of their own free agent small forward, Trevor Ariza, who was not interested in re-signing for the mid-level amount. Ironically, Ariza was meeting with the Rockets in Las Vegas on Thursday while Artest was agreeing to take his old job with Los Angeles.
The Lakers bombarded Artest with all manner of communication.
Bryant, who'd gotten into numerous trash-talking on-court spats with Artest over the last couple of seasons, sent Artest numerous texts since the start of the negotiating period Wednesday morning. Hall of Fame great Magic Johnson called Artest on Wednesday as well. And Artest had lunch this afternoon with Lakers majority owner Jerry Buss.
He was already inclined toward Los Angeles. He'd expressed great interest in going to the Lakers near the end of his stay with the Kings, and was courtside during last year's Finals between Los Angeles and Boston.
The Lakers are the latest among the NBA's elite class to make a major talent acquisition since the end of The Finals. The Cavaliers, who lost in the Eastern Conference finals to Orlando, formally introduced center Shaquille O'Neal, picked up from Phoenix a week ago, to their fans in Cleveland yesterday. The Magic, which lost to the Lakers in the Finals, traded for eight-time All-Star guard Vince Carter on draft night. The Spurs picked up forward Richard Jefferson from the Bucks; the Celtics, Spurs and Magic all are in hot pursuit of Pistons free agent big man Rasheed Wallace.
Boston lead owner Wyc Grousbeck, general manager Danny Ainge, head coach Doc Rivers, Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce all went to Detroit on Thursday to formally present Wallace with an offer for the full mid-level exception. But they left town without Wallace agreeing to a deal. Wallace will visit San Antonio and Orlando next week, according to a source, before making up his mind. Wallace is not likely to visit Cleveland.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Freezes Transformers
The "dawn" of the extended holiday weekend box office commenced with Twentieth Century Fox's animated feature Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs freezing out the mega-grossing sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, grossing an estimated $13.8 million on Wednesday, in 3993 theaters.
Fox domestic distribution president, Bruce Snyder said: "What a great start for the holiday. 'Ice Age' continues to be a comedy for all audiences."
"Revenge of the Fallen" added $10.9 million for a domestic total of $240.9 million. It was followed on Wednesday by newcomer Public Enemies, which earned $8.2 million in 3,391 theaters.
The Transformers sequel could still beat "Dawn of the Dinosaurs" over the weekend.
Fox domestic distribution president, Bruce Snyder said: "What a great start for the holiday. 'Ice Age' continues to be a comedy for all audiences."
"Revenge of the Fallen" added $10.9 million for a domestic total of $240.9 million. It was followed on Wednesday by newcomer Public Enemies, which earned $8.2 million in 3,391 theaters.
The Transformers sequel could still beat "Dawn of the Dinosaurs" over the weekend.
Michael Jackson Left 'Endless' Supply Of Unreleased Music
Michael Jackson had a mountain of unreleased recordings in the vault when he died — music that is almost certain to be packaged and repackaged for his fans in the years to come.
The material includes unused tracks from studio sessions of some of Jackson's best albums, as well as more recently recorded songs made with Senegalese R&B singer and producer Akon and Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am.
"There are dozens and dozens of songs that did not end up on his albums," said Tommy Mottola, who from 1998 to 2003 was chairman and CEO of Sony Music, which owns the distribution rights to Jackson's music. "People will be hearing a lot of that unreleased material for the first time ever. There's just some genius and brilliance in there."
The releases, Mottola said, "could go on for years and years — even more than Elvis."
Since Jackson's death Thursday, there has been an enormous, almost unprecedented demand for the King of Pop's music. Nielsen SoundScan said Wednesday that three of his records — "Number Ones," "Essential Michael Jackson" and "Thriller — were the best-selling albums of the week, and 2.3 million tracks of his have been downloaded in the U.S. alone.
When a music star of Jackson's stature dies, labels typically comb through their archives to pull out anything they can release. New compilations of recordings by performers such as Elvis, Tupac and Jeff Buckley are still released nearly every year.
Mottola, who has described himself as the "shepherd and gatekeeper" of Jackson's catalog and is familiar with it better than anyone, said that for every album Jackson made — including classics like 1979's "Off the Wall" and 1982's "Thriller" — he recorded several tracks that didn't make it onto the records.
(Mottola had only laudatory things to say about Jackson, who criticized Mottola in 2002 as a racist. Among those who defended Mottola at the time was the Rev. Al Sharpton.)
The details of who owns Jackson's unreleased music and concert footage are not entirely clear. Sony Music declined to comment. A person involved with the label who requested anonymity said no new projects or compilations are being planned yet.
The Jackson family has not publicly discussed plans for Jackson's catalog. In a 2002 will filed in court Wednesday, the pop star left his entire estate to a family trust, with his mother and his children named as beneficiaries.
Steve Gordon, an entertainment lawyer and author of "The Future of the Music Business," worked at Sony Music during the 1990s. He said he was at Sony when Jackson's last contract was negotiated, though he acknowledged it could have recently been updated.
Gordon said Jackson owns some of his master recordings, while others are owned in partnership with Sony. Regardless, he said, Sony retains exclusive distribution rights for anything Jackson produced during the term of their contract.
Gordon said he expects Sony's Legacy Recordings division to do something similar to what it did with Elvis and create a division purely for Jackson's catalog.
"They've done every kind of configuration to try to squeeze more money out of the catalog with Elvis and they'll do it with Michael Jackson — be sure of it," Gordon said. "I imagine that there's a ... load of concert recordings that may or may not have been released."
Jackson's last original album was 2001's "Invincible." His 2005 child molestation trial and other controversies distracted him from recording, but he was active in recent years.
He died just weeks before he was to perform 50 concerts at London's O2 arena in what was supposed to be his comeback. He had also begun working on new material.
Two weeks before he died, he wrapped up work on an elaborate production dubbed the "Dome Project," which could be the final finished video piece overseen by Jackson. Two people with knowledge of the project confirmed its existence Monday to The Associated Press on condition they not be identified because they signed confidentiality agreements.
Four sets were constructed for Jackson's production, including a cemetery recalling his famous "Thriller" video. Shooting for the project lasted from June 1 to June 9. Now in post-production, the project is expected to be completed next month.
Last year, Jackson released "Thriller 25," an album marking the 25th anniversary of the album. It included the new song "For All Time," as well as five remixes that involved will.i.am, Kanye West, Akon and Fergie.
The Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am has said he and Jackson recorded several songs together. He told the BBC on Monday that Jackson had possession of their demos, and that the songs "demanded all the people to the dance floor."
Akon had hoped to complete an album with Jackson once he finished his London concerts. The singer said they used to meet in Las Vegas whenever they had the time, and would talk on the phone constantly about ideas for the album.
Akon said they never actually completed a song except for "Hold My Hand," which leaked last year. "All the other songs were just ideas," Akon said.
He said he will keep the song fragments — a chorus here, a verse there — "locked up in the vault" until the Jackson family decides how to proceed. He said it could be worked into a tribute album.
"It was all positive records — songs to uplift people, songs to make people think about the problems in life," Akon said. "It was all about bringing people together."
The material includes unused tracks from studio sessions of some of Jackson's best albums, as well as more recently recorded songs made with Senegalese R&B singer and producer Akon and Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am.
"There are dozens and dozens of songs that did not end up on his albums," said Tommy Mottola, who from 1998 to 2003 was chairman and CEO of Sony Music, which owns the distribution rights to Jackson's music. "People will be hearing a lot of that unreleased material for the first time ever. There's just some genius and brilliance in there."
The releases, Mottola said, "could go on for years and years — even more than Elvis."
Since Jackson's death Thursday, there has been an enormous, almost unprecedented demand for the King of Pop's music. Nielsen SoundScan said Wednesday that three of his records — "Number Ones," "Essential Michael Jackson" and "Thriller — were the best-selling albums of the week, and 2.3 million tracks of his have been downloaded in the U.S. alone.
When a music star of Jackson's stature dies, labels typically comb through their archives to pull out anything they can release. New compilations of recordings by performers such as Elvis, Tupac and Jeff Buckley are still released nearly every year.
Mottola, who has described himself as the "shepherd and gatekeeper" of Jackson's catalog and is familiar with it better than anyone, said that for every album Jackson made — including classics like 1979's "Off the Wall" and 1982's "Thriller" — he recorded several tracks that didn't make it onto the records.
(Mottola had only laudatory things to say about Jackson, who criticized Mottola in 2002 as a racist. Among those who defended Mottola at the time was the Rev. Al Sharpton.)
The details of who owns Jackson's unreleased music and concert footage are not entirely clear. Sony Music declined to comment. A person involved with the label who requested anonymity said no new projects or compilations are being planned yet.
The Jackson family has not publicly discussed plans for Jackson's catalog. In a 2002 will filed in court Wednesday, the pop star left his entire estate to a family trust, with his mother and his children named as beneficiaries.
Steve Gordon, an entertainment lawyer and author of "The Future of the Music Business," worked at Sony Music during the 1990s. He said he was at Sony when Jackson's last contract was negotiated, though he acknowledged it could have recently been updated.
Gordon said Jackson owns some of his master recordings, while others are owned in partnership with Sony. Regardless, he said, Sony retains exclusive distribution rights for anything Jackson produced during the term of their contract.
Gordon said he expects Sony's Legacy Recordings division to do something similar to what it did with Elvis and create a division purely for Jackson's catalog.
"They've done every kind of configuration to try to squeeze more money out of the catalog with Elvis and they'll do it with Michael Jackson — be sure of it," Gordon said. "I imagine that there's a ... load of concert recordings that may or may not have been released."
Jackson's last original album was 2001's "Invincible." His 2005 child molestation trial and other controversies distracted him from recording, but he was active in recent years.
He died just weeks before he was to perform 50 concerts at London's O2 arena in what was supposed to be his comeback. He had also begun working on new material.
Two weeks before he died, he wrapped up work on an elaborate production dubbed the "Dome Project," which could be the final finished video piece overseen by Jackson. Two people with knowledge of the project confirmed its existence Monday to The Associated Press on condition they not be identified because they signed confidentiality agreements.
Four sets were constructed for Jackson's production, including a cemetery recalling his famous "Thriller" video. Shooting for the project lasted from June 1 to June 9. Now in post-production, the project is expected to be completed next month.
Last year, Jackson released "Thriller 25," an album marking the 25th anniversary of the album. It included the new song "For All Time," as well as five remixes that involved will.i.am, Kanye West, Akon and Fergie.
The Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am has said he and Jackson recorded several songs together. He told the BBC on Monday that Jackson had possession of their demos, and that the songs "demanded all the people to the dance floor."
Akon had hoped to complete an album with Jackson once he finished his London concerts. The singer said they used to meet in Las Vegas whenever they had the time, and would talk on the phone constantly about ideas for the album.
Akon said they never actually completed a song except for "Hold My Hand," which leaked last year. "All the other songs were just ideas," Akon said.
He said he will keep the song fragments — a chorus here, a verse there — "locked up in the vault" until the Jackson family decides how to proceed. He said it could be worked into a tribute album.
"It was all positive records — songs to uplift people, songs to make people think about the problems in life," Akon said. "It was all about bringing people together."
Universal Pictures to Fight Asteroids
Universal has won a four-studio bidding war to pick up the film rights to the classic Atari video game "Asteroids," says The Hollywood Reporter. Matthew Lopez will write the script for the feature adaptation, which will be produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura.
In "Asteroids," initially released as an arcade game in 1979, a player controlled a triangular space ship in an asteroid field. You can play an unofficial version of the game below!
Universal is also developing movies based on Hasbro board game properties such as "Battleship," "Candyland," "Ouija," "Monopoly" and "Clue."
In "Asteroids," initially released as an arcade game in 1979, a player controlled a triangular space ship in an asteroid field. You can play an unofficial version of the game below!
Universal is also developing movies based on Hasbro board game properties such as "Battleship," "Candyland," "Ouija," "Monopoly" and "Clue."
Ratings: Talent Is Tops, But Philanthropist May Need Help
Wednesday's ratings recap:
8 pm/ET
ABC's Wipeout topped the hour with 7.8 million total viewers, up 100K week-to-week. So You Think You Can Dance's Top 14 performance show, however, led the demos, and averaged 7.65 mil over its two-hour run.
9 pm
America's Got Talent was the night's most-watched program, delivering 11.3 million viewers (up 9 percent week-to-week). Me, I'd prefer to see the Hoff drink, like, six fewer Red Bulls before each show. ABC's I Survived a Japanese Game Show (3.83 mil) dropped 350K.
10 pm
Despite having an even stronger lead-in this week, NBC's The Philanthropist (5.7 mil) plunged 23 percent from its premiere, placing a distant second behind a CSI: NY repeat (8.1 mil).
8 pm/ET
ABC's Wipeout topped the hour with 7.8 million total viewers, up 100K week-to-week. So You Think You Can Dance's Top 14 performance show, however, led the demos, and averaged 7.65 mil over its two-hour run.
9 pm
America's Got Talent was the night's most-watched program, delivering 11.3 million viewers (up 9 percent week-to-week). Me, I'd prefer to see the Hoff drink, like, six fewer Red Bulls before each show. ABC's I Survived a Japanese Game Show (3.83 mil) dropped 350K.
10 pm
Despite having an even stronger lead-in this week, NBC's The Philanthropist (5.7 mil) plunged 23 percent from its premiere, placing a distant second behind a CSI: NY repeat (8.1 mil).
Aldridge: Pistons agree to terms with Gordon, Villanueva
The Detroit Pistons agreed to terms with two of the NBA's top free agents on the first day of free agency Wednesday, getting commitments from Chicago Bulls guard Ben Gordon and Milwaukee Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva on multi-year deals. Gordon agreed to terms on a five-year deal worth $58 million, according to sources, and Villanueva agreed a five-year deal worth $40 million. The deals used up all of the $19 million the Pistons had under next year's likely salary cap, but makes Detroit a deep, versatile team after the Pistons were spanked in the first round of the playoffs.
Gordon had been on the Pistons' radar for some time, and had been linked to them soon after Chicago's first-round playoff loss to Boston, and Villanueva became free after Milwaukee declined to make him a qualifying offer on Monday, which would have made Villanueva a restricted free agent, allowing the Bucks to match any offer he received. Failing to make the offer made Villanueva an unrestricted free agent, allowing him to sign with any team.
Several contending teams, including Cleveland and San Antonio, had hoped to sign the 24-year-old Villanueva, who had career highs in points (16.2) and rebounds (6.7) for Milwaukee last season.
The Pistons brought in Gordon, 26, and Villanueva together, figuring the two former University of Connecticut teammates -- they won the national championship together in 2004 -- would feel more comfortable seeing one another. It worked.
Last season, the Pistons fell apart internally, with players openly sniping against former coach Michael Curry, who was fired Tuesday. At issue was Curry's decision to bench veteran guard Rip Hamilton in favor of newcomer Allen Iverson, who'd been acquired from Denver for guard Chauncey Billups. Iverson quickly wore out his welcome in Detroit, missing the final few weeks of the season with a back injury, and the Pistons had no interest in re-signing him.
Gordon's arrival is different, a team source said.
"Ben agreed to come here knowing he would come off the bench," the source said. "That makes it completely different than Iverson coming here ... Gordon is choosing to come here and play the super sub role."
Gordon and Villanueva's arrivals continue the makeover of the team that reached six straight Eastern Conference finals between 2002 and 2008. President of basketball operations Joe Dumars had said after the 2008 conference finals loss to Boston that he thought his team had grown stale and needed to be broken up. He's been as good as his word, with Billups already gone and free agents Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess less likely to return.
Now, Detroit sports a three-guard rotation of Rodney Stuckey, Hamilton and Gordon, with Tayshaun Prince and first-round pick Austin Daye at small forward, with Villanueva starting at power forward. If Wallace and McDyess both leave, Detroit would have a hole to fill at center, with veteran Kwame Brown the most likely candidate at the moment.
Gordon's deal ended two offseasons of sometimes contentious negotiations with his former team over a contract. He started his career in Chicago as a sixth man, but soon became a starter, and led the team in scoring this season, including a 24.3 point average in the Boston series. But the Bulls claimed he turned down several offers for a new contract in each of the last two summers. Gordon's camp denied that he had gotten significant offers from Chicago. At any rate, he signed a one-year deal worth $6.4 million last year.
Gordon's agent, Ray Brothers, said that 17 teams contacted him Wednesday about Gordon, but most were looking to sign Gordon to the mid-level exception or looking to do a sign-and-trade with Chicago. And after the last two summers of trying to negotiate deals with Chicago, Gordon was leery of yet more delay in trying to work something out down the road when Detroit came through so quickly with a tangible offer.
Gordon had been on the Pistons' radar for some time, and had been linked to them soon after Chicago's first-round playoff loss to Boston, and Villanueva became free after Milwaukee declined to make him a qualifying offer on Monday, which would have made Villanueva a restricted free agent, allowing the Bucks to match any offer he received. Failing to make the offer made Villanueva an unrestricted free agent, allowing him to sign with any team.
Several contending teams, including Cleveland and San Antonio, had hoped to sign the 24-year-old Villanueva, who had career highs in points (16.2) and rebounds (6.7) for Milwaukee last season.
The Pistons brought in Gordon, 26, and Villanueva together, figuring the two former University of Connecticut teammates -- they won the national championship together in 2004 -- would feel more comfortable seeing one another. It worked.
Last season, the Pistons fell apart internally, with players openly sniping against former coach Michael Curry, who was fired Tuesday. At issue was Curry's decision to bench veteran guard Rip Hamilton in favor of newcomer Allen Iverson, who'd been acquired from Denver for guard Chauncey Billups. Iverson quickly wore out his welcome in Detroit, missing the final few weeks of the season with a back injury, and the Pistons had no interest in re-signing him.
Gordon's arrival is different, a team source said.
"Ben agreed to come here knowing he would come off the bench," the source said. "That makes it completely different than Iverson coming here ... Gordon is choosing to come here and play the super sub role."
Gordon and Villanueva's arrivals continue the makeover of the team that reached six straight Eastern Conference finals between 2002 and 2008. President of basketball operations Joe Dumars had said after the 2008 conference finals loss to Boston that he thought his team had grown stale and needed to be broken up. He's been as good as his word, with Billups already gone and free agents Rasheed Wallace and Antonio McDyess less likely to return.
Now, Detroit sports a three-guard rotation of Rodney Stuckey, Hamilton and Gordon, with Tayshaun Prince and first-round pick Austin Daye at small forward, with Villanueva starting at power forward. If Wallace and McDyess both leave, Detroit would have a hole to fill at center, with veteran Kwame Brown the most likely candidate at the moment.
Gordon's deal ended two offseasons of sometimes contentious negotiations with his former team over a contract. He started his career in Chicago as a sixth man, but soon became a starter, and led the team in scoring this season, including a 24.3 point average in the Boston series. But the Bulls claimed he turned down several offers for a new contract in each of the last two summers. Gordon's camp denied that he had gotten significant offers from Chicago. At any rate, he signed a one-year deal worth $6.4 million last year.
Gordon's agent, Ray Brothers, said that 17 teams contacted him Wednesday about Gordon, but most were looking to sign Gordon to the mid-level exception or looking to do a sign-and-trade with Chicago. And after the last two summers of trying to negotiate deals with Chicago, Gordon was leery of yet more delay in trying to work something out down the road when Detroit came through so quickly with a tangible offer.
Clippers agree to deal Randolph to Grizzlies for Richardson
A week after the Los Angeles Clippers backed out of a proposed trade that would have sent forward Zach Randolph to the Memphis Grizzlies, the Clippers have changed their minds and will now agree to the deal, with newly acquired Memphis swingman Quentin Richardson going to the Clippers, TNT's David Aldridge reports. The deal can't officially be announced until next week.
The deal would clear a logjam for the Clippers' frontcourt. The team was determined to make room for its first-round pick, overall number one selection Blake Griffin, but playing time was split up between Randolph, center Chris Kaman and forward/center Marcus Camby. It was believed that Randolph, with his low-post skills, was the safest of the three, because halfcourt basketball is the preference of Coach Mike Dunleavy. But Kaman's contract, with an expensive trade kicker, may have made him more difficult to deal.
The trade probably wouldn't have been made if the Clippers hadn't won the Lottery, but they did, and Griffin's presence signals a likely change to a more up-tempo attack in Los Angeles next season.
The 27-year-old Randolph averaged 20.8 points and 10.8 rebounds last season, playing the first 11 games in New York and 39 in Los Angeles after being dealt by the Knicks in a package for Cuttino Mobley and forward Tim Thomas. It was the second straight season Randolph averaged more than 20 points and 10 rebounds.
It's a low-risk deal for Memphis, which hasn't had a legitimate low-post option since dealing Pau Gasol to the Lakers in that often-vilified deal in early 2008. But that deal brought forward Marc Gasol, Pau's brother and the team's starting center last season, and the other pieces in the deal ultimately led to the Grizzlies getting a draft pick in last week's draft that turned into Pittsburgh forward Sam Young. Young was one of three solid picks in last week's draft, along with center Hasheem Thabeet and forward DeMarre Carroll.
The deal also makes the Clippers yet another team that could be a player in the summer of 2010. With the final two years and $33.3 million of Randolph's deal off their books (Richardson has one year at $8.7 million left on his contract), Los Angeles will only have a little more than $36 million committed in team salaries, including Griffin's second-year salary of $4.4 million, for 2010.
The Grizzlies changed potential players in the deal to make it work. Last week, they had offered forward Marco Jaric for Randolph, but with two years and $14.7 million left on his deal, he wouldn't have given the Clippers with the potential to get involved in 2010 that Richardson's contract provides, and owner Donald Sterling nixed the deal.
Richardson, 29, has seen his production fall off in recent seasons. He averaged just 10.2 points in 72 games for New York last season. The Grizzlies traded center Darko Milicic to the Knicks last week for Richardson, but there was no place for him in Memphis with O.J. Mayo well set at the shooting guard spot and Rudy Gay the incumbent at small forward. So in essence, the Grizzlies were able to turn Milicic into Randolph.
Richardson spent his first four seasons with the Clippers after being drafted by them in 2000.
Hoopsworld and the Los Angeles Times first reported the potential trade.
The deal would clear a logjam for the Clippers' frontcourt. The team was determined to make room for its first-round pick, overall number one selection Blake Griffin, but playing time was split up between Randolph, center Chris Kaman and forward/center Marcus Camby. It was believed that Randolph, with his low-post skills, was the safest of the three, because halfcourt basketball is the preference of Coach Mike Dunleavy. But Kaman's contract, with an expensive trade kicker, may have made him more difficult to deal.
The trade probably wouldn't have been made if the Clippers hadn't won the Lottery, but they did, and Griffin's presence signals a likely change to a more up-tempo attack in Los Angeles next season.
The 27-year-old Randolph averaged 20.8 points and 10.8 rebounds last season, playing the first 11 games in New York and 39 in Los Angeles after being dealt by the Knicks in a package for Cuttino Mobley and forward Tim Thomas. It was the second straight season Randolph averaged more than 20 points and 10 rebounds.
It's a low-risk deal for Memphis, which hasn't had a legitimate low-post option since dealing Pau Gasol to the Lakers in that often-vilified deal in early 2008. But that deal brought forward Marc Gasol, Pau's brother and the team's starting center last season, and the other pieces in the deal ultimately led to the Grizzlies getting a draft pick in last week's draft that turned into Pittsburgh forward Sam Young. Young was one of three solid picks in last week's draft, along with center Hasheem Thabeet and forward DeMarre Carroll.
The deal also makes the Clippers yet another team that could be a player in the summer of 2010. With the final two years and $33.3 million of Randolph's deal off their books (Richardson has one year at $8.7 million left on his contract), Los Angeles will only have a little more than $36 million committed in team salaries, including Griffin's second-year salary of $4.4 million, for 2010.
The Grizzlies changed potential players in the deal to make it work. Last week, they had offered forward Marco Jaric for Randolph, but with two years and $14.7 million left on his deal, he wouldn't have given the Clippers with the potential to get involved in 2010 that Richardson's contract provides, and owner Donald Sterling nixed the deal.
Richardson, 29, has seen his production fall off in recent seasons. He averaged just 10.2 points in 72 games for New York last season. The Grizzlies traded center Darko Milicic to the Knicks last week for Richardson, but there was no place for him in Memphis with O.J. Mayo well set at the shooting guard spot and Rudy Gay the incumbent at small forward. So in essence, the Grizzlies were able to turn Milicic into Randolph.
Richardson spent his first four seasons with the Clippers after being drafted by them in 2000.
Hoopsworld and the Los Angeles Times first reported the potential trade.
Ratings: True Blood Stakes New High, Hung Bows Big, More
Some recent ratings highlights:
• HBO's True Blood on Sunday hit a new all-time high, drawing 3.7 million total viewers. Lead-out Hung, in turn, enjoyed a premiere audience of 2.8 mil, making it the pay channel's most-watched series debut in two years (since John from Cincinnati).
• America's Got Talent was Tuesday's most-watched program with 12.9 million viewers, a 14 percent increase from its season opener.
• ABC's The Superstars scored 4 mil in its second week, dipping 340K. Lead-out Better Off Ted slipped to 1.78 mil.
• During Tuesday's 10 o'clock hour, CBS' 48 Hours Mystery special about the death of Michael Jackson was No. 1 with 8.15 mil.
• HBO's True Blood on Sunday hit a new all-time high, drawing 3.7 million total viewers. Lead-out Hung, in turn, enjoyed a premiere audience of 2.8 mil, making it the pay channel's most-watched series debut in two years (since John from Cincinnati).
• America's Got Talent was Tuesday's most-watched program with 12.9 million viewers, a 14 percent increase from its season opener.
• ABC's The Superstars scored 4 mil in its second week, dipping 340K. Lead-out Better Off Ted slipped to 1.78 mil.
• During Tuesday's 10 o'clock hour, CBS' 48 Hours Mystery special about the death of Michael Jackson was No. 1 with 8.15 mil.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Boys Like Girls Is 'Love Drunk' On Sophomore Album
Boys Like Girls mined a universe of nearly 80s songs for its sophomore album, "Love Drunk," which drops Sept. 8 with the first single -- the title track -- already out on MySpace Music and headed to Top 40 radio outlets on July 7.
"I had three records written and I wrote a whole new one and wasn't satisfied yet," Martin Johnson, the Boston pop quartet's prolific frontman, tells Billboard.com. "I wanted to really step up the bar and keep our current fans but at the same time expand it so that we're happy and we could maybe get some other age ranges happy, too."
Johnson said "Love Drunk" -- the follow-up to BLG's gold-certified self-titled 2007 debut -- is "still definitely BLG. It doesn't stray off the path too much, but, it doesn't sound as youthy, angsty, whiny. It's more grown-up lyrically and musically and taking influences from all across the board, from every type of music and putting it into one and having a lot of fun. I think a lot more people will be able to relate to it."
BLG worked on the album with producers Brian Howes (Puddle of Mudd, Hinder, Chris Cornell) in Vancouver and S*A*M & Sluggo (Cobra Starship, Gym Class Heroes, Metro Station) in New York. The group has been playing some of its new songs during its current tour of clubs and Six Flags amusement parks and getting a "really good reaction," according to Johnson. "We toured for pretty much three straight years on ('Boys Like Girls'), so it's been really amazing to whip out some new tracks and see the crowd's response," he says.
BLG is booked through Aug. 7, including a slot on the mtvU Sunblock Music Festival, some opening dates for "The Academy Is..." and a pair of Summer Sonic shows in Japan. The group plans to shoot a video for "Love Drunk" and plans to tour well into 2010 to support the album.
"I had three records written and I wrote a whole new one and wasn't satisfied yet," Martin Johnson, the Boston pop quartet's prolific frontman, tells Billboard.com. "I wanted to really step up the bar and keep our current fans but at the same time expand it so that we're happy and we could maybe get some other age ranges happy, too."
Johnson said "Love Drunk" -- the follow-up to BLG's gold-certified self-titled 2007 debut -- is "still definitely BLG. It doesn't stray off the path too much, but, it doesn't sound as youthy, angsty, whiny. It's more grown-up lyrically and musically and taking influences from all across the board, from every type of music and putting it into one and having a lot of fun. I think a lot more people will be able to relate to it."
BLG worked on the album with producers Brian Howes (Puddle of Mudd, Hinder, Chris Cornell) in Vancouver and S*A*M & Sluggo (Cobra Starship, Gym Class Heroes, Metro Station) in New York. The group has been playing some of its new songs during its current tour of clubs and Six Flags amusement parks and getting a "really good reaction," according to Johnson. "We toured for pretty much three straight years on ('Boys Like Girls'), so it's been really amazing to whip out some new tracks and see the crowd's response," he says.
BLG is booked through Aug. 7, including a slot on the mtvU Sunblock Music Festival, some opening dates for "The Academy Is..." and a pair of Summer Sonic shows in Japan. The group plans to shoot a video for "Love Drunk" and plans to tour well into 2010 to support the album.
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