CELTICS GREEN BLOG by and for boston celtics fans: Rumors and Free Agent Updates

James Posey and Eddie House were both signing autographs at Borders in downtown Boston and promoting the Championship DVD. According to the AP, fans made their way through the line and told the players they hoped to have them back for a repeat, with Posey telling one fan: "Me, too. Me, too." You know, I am getting rather tired of Mark Bartelstein. He represents both James Posey and Eddie House along with several other key free agents. Bartelstein reports no decisive movement in negotiations for his free agent client as of early tonight. But the Celtics could be in danger in losing another player represented by Bartelstein — Eddie House. The Celts would love to get House back on a one-year deal for the veteran minimum, but he’s looking for more money and more years. According to Bartelstein, 2 or 3 other clubs have made offers better than the one the Celtics are making. Even though he would prefer to stay with the Celtics, if the offers are there, he will probably walk.

The Globe reports that Posey is looking for a 4 year contract and so far no one is offering to go 4 years. They also say that Cleveland is Posey's best bet for a move. He has received a lot of fan support as he was out and about promoting the Celtics' DVD and the interaction with fans has reinforced Posey's intention to stay in Boston, but he said it will not influence his decision as it will be a business decision, not a personal one. While Pierce, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett have all said that they have reached out to Posey encouraging him to stay, Leon Powe said he is staying out of the Posey recruiting process. "I stay out of grown folks' business," said Powe. I love Leon!!!!

ESPN is reporting that the Clippers made a big move on Tuesday when they agreed with the Nuggets on a deal that will send defensive stalwart Marcus Camby to LA for a future second round draft pick. Not a bad trade. Since the Clippers are under the cap, they don't need to give equal salary in return for Camby. Dumping the remaining two years of Camby's contract (worth nearly $15 million) will allow the Nuggets more flexibility to fill other needs on the team. Talk about a deal! The Clippers were close to making an offer for Josh Smith, but when this opportunity came up, they jumped at it, not wanting to take a chance on waiting to see if the Hawks matched their offer for Smith. Josh Smith seems to be the big loser in all this. He missed out on a big contract offer with the Sixers when they signed Brand and now he has missed out on a big contract offer from the Clippers. The competition for his services seems to be drying up and he will be left with whatever the Hawks want to give him.
The Warriors signed their first round pick, Anthony Randolph on his 19th birthday. The contract is for two years with team options for the third and fourth seasons. Randolph, the 14th overall pick, will make about $3.5 million in his first two seasons. The Warriors are still looking for point guard help. According to SFGate, Delonte West was high on the Warriors' list, but is believed to be signing a nice deal elsewhere. Golden State might end up going the trade route. Memphis has three point guards, O.J. Mayo, Mike Conley, and Javaris Crittendon, and Crittendon would fit well on the Warriors. It doesn't appear that the Warriors would be interested in Stephon Marbury if he's bought out by the Knicks.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that the Magic have found their back up point guard, signing Anthony Johnson to a 2 year contract. This is the second time around for Johnson in Orlando as he was traded to the team from Atlanta in 2000, but they renounced his rights 6 months later to make room to sign Tracy McGrady. The Magic are still in the market for a third point guard and have been in talks with the Grizzlies concerning one of their young point guards. particularly Javaris Crittenton.

The MetroWest Daily reports that Perk estimated he was at between 60 and 80 percent health during the five games of the NBA Finals in which he played. They are reporting that he experienced nagging pain throughout the second half of this season before the injury in the Finals kept him out of game 5. Though he reluctantly sat out Game 5 in Los Angeles, he forced his way back into the starting lineup for the clinching Game 6 in Boston two days later. Perkins said he intends to resume some basketball-related activities by the end of the month and will be ready to go at full speed well before training camp begins on Sept. 30.

The Indy Star is reporting that the Pacers are looking to trade point guard Jamaal Tinsley and also to sign a power forward. The Pacers have 16 players under contract with several of those expiring contracts that would be attractive to teams trying to clear space for the 2010 free agent rush. They also have a 2.7 million dollar trade exception so they are in good shape going into a trade market. The Pacers tried to solve both issues in one deal by offering Tinsley to Miami for power forward Udonis Haslem, but the Heat are reluctant to give up Haslem. With quite a few teams looking for a point guard, they shouldn't have a problem finding a taker for Tinsley.

The NY Post is reporting that the Knicks have agreed to sign free-agent guard Anthony Roberson to a two year deal. This deal is likely to quicken the departure of Stephon Marbury from the team. The Knicks appeared to be waiting to add another backcourt player before making a move with Marbury and with the signing of Roberson, who is playing well for their Summer League team, Marbury appears to be on the outs. The Knicks have 16 players under contract now and along with Marbury, Jerome James is on the bubble to be cut from the team.

The Suns are still hoping that Tyronn Lue will sign with the club. They are offering only the veteran's minimum to back up Steve Nash. The Celtics are also still in the running for Lue's services, also offering the vet's minimum to back up Rajon Rondo. The East Vally Tribune reports that at least one other unnamed team is talking to him as well. Lue also took a look at Miami, which has its biennial exception to offer, but he didn't show up for a scheduled physical on Monday. Unlike Boston and Phoenix, the Heat were offering a starting spot. The Suns are also interested in Shaun Livingston. Livingston remains one of the more intriguing prospects out there. He hasn't played since seriously injuring his knee 17 months ago. Still only 22, he was cleared to resume basketball activities just last month. But he wasn't able to show his progress in the Vegas Summer League and hasn't worked out for teams.

After denying the rumors for weeks, the Detroit Free Press is reporting that Tracy McGrady has stated that he wouldn't mind a trade to Detroit. The Pistons are saying that there isn't anything close, but there certainly seems to be a lot of smoke surrounding this rumor and where there is this much smoke, there may soon be some fire.

The Pacers signed their two draft picks, Brandon Rush and Roy Hibbert. Hibbert, a center from Georgetown, came in the trade that sent Jermaine O'Neal to the Toronto Raptors. Rush, a guard from Kansas, came to Indiana in a trade with with the Portland Trail Blazers. The Clippers officially signed second-round draft picks DeAndre Jordan and Mike Taylor. "I'm excited," said Jordan, who had been projected as lottery pick out of high school, but slipped to the second round of the draft after a tepid freshman season at Texas A&M. "I'm going to take this (slight) and use it as motivation to prove people wrong."

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