The NBA season is now officially underway, but there is still plenty of off-court buzz going around the league - including a few notable trade rumors floating around and some teams already looking forward to free agency. Here are the latest NBA rumors you need to know:
Jazz want to sign Hill long-term
George Hill has only played five games with the Utah Jazz, the team is already planning to sign him to a long-term contract this summer, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon:
The Jazz see PG George Hill as a long-term fit and could attempt to sign him to an extension this season, preventing him from hitting the free agency market in the summer. "If that's the case, then I would be very interested in that," Hill told ESPN. "But I'm going to let them take care of that and just do what I can control." Hill is making $8 million in the final season of his contract, a bargain considering his sensational start in Utah. Whether or not he gets an extension, Hill said he hopes to remain with the Jazz long term. "I'm not the type of guy that likes to move around and go from team to team," said Hill, who leads the Jazz with 21.4 points and 4.6 assists per game. "I really like it here. My family likes it here. I've got some friends here. The city's been great for me so far, and it's a nice place to raise a family, so hopefully I get an opportunity to re-sign here if they would love me to be here."
Hill is averaging 21.4 points and 4.6 assists per game so far this season.
Blazers looking to make a trade?
The Portland Trail Blazers shocked a lot of people by making the Western Conference semifinals last season despite losing four of their starters from the previous season, and bolstered their roster in the offseason by signing Evan Turner and Festus Ezeli, along with extending C.J. McCollum, Meyers Leonard, Moe Harkless and Allen Crabbe. While that has them projected to be a top four seed in the West this year, ESPN's Marc Stein reports that those signings may be so Portland can make a big trade:
The suspicion among numerous league observers is that the Blazers' non-stop spending this past offseason was asset collection as much as anything. Scan through all those names again and it's clear Portland has no shortage of options to thrust itself into all kinds of trade talks as [Olshey] continues to shape the roster around backcourt bedrocks [Damian] Lillard and [McCollum].
Portland has gotten off to a 2-3 start to the season, including losses in their last two games two the Warriors and Suns.
Crowder out with ankle injury
Boston Celtics forward Jae Crowder suffered a sprained ankle in yesterday's win over the Bulls, and head coach Brad Stevens said he will be out for "at least a week."
“Jae sprained his ankle; that’s all I know,” Stevens said after the game. “I was told that it would be at least a week, and then we’ll see after. But I don’t think we’re into it enough to make an assessment on that timeline. It doesn’t sound like he’ll be back any time soon.”
Crowder is averaging 13.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game this season.
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