NBA News

"We all knew the 76ers were negotiating to sign a couple of guards. But we didn't know about this one. Not Andre Iguodala or Lou Williams, their restricted free agents. Royal Ivey. The Sixers have reached an agreement with the 6-4 backcourt player, who spent last season with the Milwaukee Bucks and the first three seasons of his career with the Atlanta Hawks. Ivey, 26, will not officially sign a minimum-salary contract until Monday, which is believed to be for 2 years and include a significant guarantee. The league minimum for a player with four seasons of service is $854,957. The Sixers see Ivey as an off-the-bench complement to Williams because of his size and defensive ability. He ..."

"Who knew the NBA's path to true globalization would one day travel through Atlanta? Former Hawks swingman Josh Childress had no idea he'd be the pioneer he appears to be today, the morning after signing a three-year, $32.5 million contract with Greek powerhouse Olympiakos, rather than accepting a deal from the Hawks. Childress, 25, is the first player at this stage of his NBA career to spurn the world's most high profile basketball stage for one of its international alternatives. Atlanta had offered him a five-year, $33 million contract."

"A New York judge yesterday ruled that the NBA is entitled to a total of $217,267 in restitution from Tim Donaghy and two suburban Philadelphia co-conspirators, while rejecting the league's argument that the ex-referee alone owed them more than six times that amount. U.S. District Judge Carol Amon will set a payment schedule today for James "Baba'' Battista and Thomas Martino at their sentencing in Brooklyn, N.Y., federal court on interstate gambling and wire-fraud charges, respectively. Battista, 43, a professional gambler from Phoenixville, and Martino, 42, of Boothwyn, have admitted to paying Donaghy, then an NBA referee, for correct basketball "picks'' he made by phone between December ..."

"Chris "The Birdman" Andersen will return to the Denver Nuggets next season. He agreed to sign a one-year contract with the team, multiple sources said Wednesday. Andersen, who resides in Denver, will make a league minimum $998,000 next season. Andersen, a forward-center, played sparingly last season for New Orleans after returning from a two-year league suspension for substance abuse. He was reinstated in March."

"The Utah Jazz on Wednesday traded reserve point guard Jason Hart back to the Los Angeles Clippers for veteran guard Brevin Knight. It was a straight up, one-for-one deal. Knight played 64 games for the Clippers last season, averaging 4.4 points and 4.6 assists. The Stanford University product has played 11 years in the NBA with stops with Cleveland, Atlanta, Memphis, Phoenix, Washington, Milwaukee, Charlotte and the Clippers."

"If Darius Miles plays 10 games with another NBA club next season, and it says here that he will, it will be a blow to the Trail Blazers' salary-cap picture for the future. But not a crippling one. Released by Portland in April after an independent medical examiner ruled his microfracture-repaired knee was "career-ending," the small forward has had a tryout tour in recent weeks with several NBA clubs. Indications are he'll get an opportunity. "Darius' talent is there, and his health is better than we were led to believe," Boston General Manager Danny Ainge said after Miles auditioned for him a couple of weeks ago. A Dallas Mavericks representative told Sports Illustrated's Ian Thomsen, "He ..."

"It's going to take a little longer for Hornets reserve guard Rasual Butler to resolve his case stemming from an arrest on gun charges last month in Miami Beach, Fla. Butler, 29, was scheduled to enter a plea Wednesday morning in Miami-Dade County Criminal Court during his arraignment on a felony charge of carrying a concealed weapon without a permit and a misdemeanor charge for improper exhibition of a firearm, but the hearing was reset for Aug. 4. Neither Butler nor a lawyer representing him was present in the courtroom. The state prosecutor in attendance proposed the new date for the hearing to Judge Rosa Rodriguez. Butler, a former Miami Heat guard who was traded to New Orleans in ..."

"Free-agent forward Matt Barnes has signed a one-year deal with the Phoenix Suns. "We're excited to add a player of Matt's caliber to our roster," said Suns President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Steve Kerr said in a release. "He has a chance to have a big impact on our team. His athleticism and versatility at both ends of the court will be important for us along with his playoff experience." In his seventh NBA season, Barnes is expected to make $1.2 million, but the Suns will pay only $797,000. The rest will come from a league fund."

"Marcus Williams (r.) is the lastest Net to have to clean out his locker. The Nets aren't scheduled to move to Brooklyn for at least two more years, but their identity continues to change dramatically. The team continued its extreme makeover Tuesday, trading backup point guard Marcus Williams to Golden State for a possible future first-round draft pick"

"During a visit to Saloon last summer, Charles Barkley asked Abate how he was enjoying teaching, and was disappointed to learn that Abate had still not returned to Temple because of problems securing financial aid. Abate, 28, of South Philly, started at Temple in 1997, months after graduating from St. John Neumann High. Sir Charles told Abate he would like to help him with his tuition, and Abate wasn't sure how to respond. Barkley didn't give him much time, telling Abate that he had the length of Barkley's meal to decide. Abate wisely accepted."

"The Timberwolves added some much-needed depth at an important position when unrestricted free agent Sebastian Telfair agreed to a multi-year contract. Telfair, 23, gives the Wolves a second point guard behind Randy Foye, who missed the first three months of last season because of a knee injury. Acquired from Boston in the Kevin Garnett trade, Telfair started 51 games for the Wolves, averaging 9.3 points and 5.9 assists."

"As expected, the Trail Blazers on Tuesday signed first-round draft pick Nicolas Batum, which brings the team's roster to 14 players, one below the NBA maximum. Batum, 19, was drafted by Houston with the 25th overall selection, then traded to the Blazers for two draft choices. His signing was delayed until he completed the proper paperwork in his native France to work in the United States. Batum, a 6-foot-9 small forward, averaged 6.8 points and 4.6 rebounds in 27 minutes at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas."

"The Pistons have agreed to two-year contracts with free agent Will Bynum and second-round draft pick Walter Sharpe, representatives for the players said Tuesday. Mark Bartelstein, Bynum's agent, said he expects the point guard to sign today. Bartelstein added that the deal gives Bynum about $700,000 guaranteed the first year, before a second-year team option. "He has great quickness, can really put the ball on the floor and is a big-time athlete," Bartelstein said."

"The Orlando Magic officially have shipped shooting guard Keyon Dooling to the New Jersey Nets in a sign-and-trade deal that earned the Magic a trade exception and cash considerations, General Manager Otis Smith confirmed Monday. The move ends Dooling's three-season relationship with the Magic that had intensified over the last month when the team offered the free agent an extension that was less than he was seeking on the open market. Smith said the move will give the team some flexibility to make roster moves in the future."

"Bostjan Nachbar will jump across the ocean to play in Russia next season. At least one of the Nets' revolving doors leads to Russia. Free agent forward Bostjan Nachbar decided Monday to sign with Russia's Dynamo Moscow team for a reported $14.3 million over three years - far more than he would have gotten from the Nets or any other NBA team. Nachbar made $2.5 million with the Nets last season, when he averaged 9.8 points off the bench."

"Hawks restricted free agent swingman Josh Childress spent Monday in Athens, Greece, not Georgia, exploring his options beyond the NBA. Childress and at least one of his agents, Jim Tanner, were in Greece to visit officials from European power Olympiakos and discuss the possibility of Childress playing the upcoming season there rather than with the Hawks or any other NBA team."

"In another attempt to promote credibility in its officiating in the wake of the Tim Donaghy betting scandal, the NBA announced the elevation of two officials Monday to supervise referee operations. Bernie Fryer, the longtime referee and, of late, assistant director of officials and crew chief coordinator, will become the vice president and director of officials. Former referee Joe Borgia, recently manager in the league's officiating program, will become vice president of referee operations. Fryer will be responsible for the officials' on-court actions. Borgia will run all other aspects."

"He'd been angry and hurt. He felt disrespected. He still does..."I've always said that I wanted to play for people that wanted me, and Denver let it be known that they didn't want me. And obviously, the Clippers did. So I'm definitely feeling the love here today," Camby said. "It's a new beginning for me. I'm real eager to embark on this new challenge. I'm definitely going to make the best of the situation.""

"When James Posey signed with the New Orleans Hornets last week, it looked bleak for the Big Three’s supporting cast. Posey jumped ship; talks with Eddie House didn’t appear to be going well; Tony Allen was an unrestricted free agent and P.J. Brown likely was retiring. All four had played an integral part in helping Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to their first NBA title. Yesterday, however, the Celtics rebounded from the Posey signing by agreeing on two-year deals with guards House and Tony Allen, according to director of basketball operations Danny Ainge."

"As expected with Monday’s acquisition of Kevin Dooling to back up Devon Harris at the point, the Nets quickly shipped out Marcus Williams today. New Jersey agreed to deal him to Golden State for a future first-round pick, according to league sources. The former UConn standout, who averaged 5.9 points and 2.6 assists in 53 games for the Nets last season, joins a team that lost free-agent point guard Baron Davis to the Clippers earlier this month and is still attempting to keep likely replacement Monta Ellis from also departing."

"The Timberwolves reached agreement Monday on a multi-year contract with unrestricted free agent Sebastian Telfair, his agent said. Telfair, one of five players obtained from Boston last summer in the Kevin Garnett trade, gives the Wolves a second point guard on their roster. Until Monday, Randy Foye was the team's only point guard under contract. "We're very excited for the opportunity to finish what we started," agent Andy Miller said. "Sebastian wants to help get this team back to the playoffs.""

"The Spurs announced Tuesday that they have re-signed Kurt Thomas, the veteran center who provided solid rebounding and interior defense during the playoffs. Terms of the deal weren't announced. Thomas, acquired last season in late February from Seattle, averaged 4.5 points and 4.9 rebounds during the regular season with the Spurs. He averaged 4.1 points and 4.9 rebounds during the playoffs."

"Miami Heat player Dwyane Wade is feeling the heat from business partners after a failed restaurant venture. On Friday, the company D Wade's Place filed suit in Miami-Dade Circuit Court against Wade, accusing him of breach of contract. The Palm Beach Gardens company partnered with Wade in August 2007 to open D. Wade's Sports Grill. The co-owners of D Wade's Place, Richard von Houtman and Mark Rodberg, would not comment Monday on the lawsuit. The suit comes after the closing of the sports grill's Fort Lauderdale location on July 12."