That gasp you hear is the rest of the NBA. As if Miami wasn’t top-heavy enough, they’re looking to add another Hall of Famer to the cast of LeBronaires for next season, and for once, it doesn’t feel like a pipe dream. The money may not be great, but it doesn’t have to be to attract Jesus. The Ray Allen era in Boston is hanging by a strand of Paul Pierce‘s loose facial hair. He could go back, but the Celtics don’t have a starting spot for him and won’t overpay to bring him back. Does Mr. Shuttlesworth want to go to Miami? Yes, he’s interested. Would he be willing to accept a bench role behind two of the best players in the NBA? That’ll dictate whether we ended up seeing Flo Allen-Hopson in AmericanAirlines Arena next year. ESPN reports the interest in mutual, as the Heat aren’t willing to stand pat. They’ll go after a number of veteran free agents like Steve Nash and Lamar Odom. But Allen makes the most sense; he’s like Mike Miller except he doesn’t move like a robot. Imagine a lineup of LeBron, Wade, Allen, Bosh and whoever else they want to throw out there? Even Riley might crack a smile on that one. The most Miami can offer is a salary starting at $3 million a year, which is $7 million less than Allen made this year. Boston could offer the same. A host of other teams could offer more. Supposedly, the Knicks also want a shot at Allen, but we all know he’s not going there … Speaking of New York, J.R. Smith will decline his option but intends to re-sign in the Big Apple for a longer deal. Mike Woodson has a weird infatuation with Smith, and seems to enjoy watching him take the worst shots in the NBA … With the 2012 NBA Draft just days away, rumors are rampant. We posted our newest mock draft yesterday, and all it did was confuse us further. But one thing that’s official is Jared Sullinger is not going to the draft. Because of the concerns over his back issues, the Ohio State big man is dropping faster than a Homer Simpson cannonball. He’s fallen off so fast that Andy Katz reports the dude didn’t even get invited to the green room. Ouch. Watch the Spurs swing a deal, scoop him up on the down low and then he becomes an All-Star … There’s been a lot of talk that Chicago could use Luol Deng or Joakim Noah to move up into the high lottery, but as of now, Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting the Bulls have privately assured Deng he won’t be traded … And in an interesting story on Perry Jones III, one trainer attempts to break down why the Baylor big man/wing player makes everything look so easy. At times during their training, Dr. Marcus Elliott of the Peak Performance Project found Jones’ explosion could differ by an insane five inches from rep to rep, and thus is working to move the prospect’s power from his knees to his hips. He also says the enigma is easily one of the most athletic people he’s ever tested in his life … If you had a pick in the first round, how high would you be willing to go to draft Jones III? … Keep reading to hear about the nasty stuff that happened to Tony Parker’s eye …
In one of the most un-Spur-like things he could’ve possibly done, Tony Parker got into a club brawl with Chris Brown and Drake, nearly lost his eye, and now looks like he could possibly miss this summer’s Olympics. ESPN reports Parker’s cornea was scratched in the fight, and the guard has revealed he had to have an operation to remove a shard that had “penetrated 99 percent” of his left eye. What? That sounds painful. Currently, he’s seeing a specialist in New York to hopefully be cleared for the games this summer. But right now, he’s having more hallucinations than Bran Stark, and hasn’t been allowed to leave his hotel room for eight days because of the risk of infection. And people originally made fun of this dude for suing. Remember when Yao Ming very nearly sat out the Olympics in China before deciding, “Screw it. I may not ever be able to walk again, but I’m NOT missing this”? Well, we haven’t talked to Tony, but we bet he’s not about to risk his career to play with one eye. Only Allan Ray does stuff like that … As we wrote yesterday, Houston wants to trade in their two first-round picks and starting point guard Kyle Lowry for two lottery picks, before using those new lottery picks, Kevin Martin‘s expiring deal and possibly Chandler Parsons to pick up Dwight Howard. Is it conceivable? Honestly, with the background of new Magic GM Rob Hennigan – he comes from OKC where they know all about acquiring assets – we could see it happening. The problem though, is that it’s just too soon. Meanwhile, Lowry figures prominently into Houston’s offseason plans because any move they make will probably involve shipping out the 6-0 guard. His contract is unreal (he makes less than $12 million combined over the next two seasons), and he basically shot himself in the foot by telling off Kevin McHale … Brandon Roy might really be coming back. It could actually be happening. Minnesota reportedly will offer the retired guard a two-year deal for an unknown amount. Remember, this is the team that originially drafted him before trading him later on in the night for Randy Foye. The team is also interested in going after Jamal Crawford, who is set to become a free agent and has Portland desperately trying to trade him so they can get something for him. With either player, Minnesota instantly upgrades their chances of finishing with more buzzer-beaters next year … And Amar’e Stoudemire apologized yesterday for using a gay slur on Twitter. Some fan criticized STAT’s play this year, and in a moment of weakness, Stoudemire sent back a direct message using a gay slur. The fan took a screenshot and reposted it, thereby basically forcing the Knick to respond and apologize … We’re out like Sullinger.
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