It's tough to imagine the past few years going any worse for Greg Oden, who has played all of 82 games since going No. 1 overall in the 2007 Draft. After countless injuries and surgeries, the 7-footer is trying to resurrect his career one final time.
As expected, Oden worked out for a handful of teams in Indianapolis Tuesday and looked great, according to one report. It's unclear just how hard he was pushing it during the workout and what kind of basketball drills he was able to successfully do. Marc Spears of Yahoo! reports that Oden will make his decision next week and that he is considering Sacramento, Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans, San Antonio and Dallas. All of these six teams could benefit from adding to their bench, and if Oden proves to finally be healthy, he could be quite the late-July addition.
SB Nation blog Sactown Royalty don't seem too enthused about the idea of Oden in purple and white.
Should the Kings sign Oden, they will add to an already pretty crowded frontcourt, but Oden would be the only 7 footer among the bunch. Whether or not he could play or meaningfully contribute is another question. I personally have my doubts, but I wish Oden the best as he tries to revive his career.
The Heat and Spurs are regarded by most as the two favorites to sign Oden.
Spurs rescind qualifying offer to Gary Neal
Reports earlier in the offseason stated that the Spurs were likely moving on from Neal, and that they expected him to sign elsewhere as a restricted free agent. On Tuesday, San Antonio took the next step, rescinding their $1.1 million qualifying offer, thus making him an unrestricted free agent.
Neal, 28, just wasn't going to see minutes in San Antonio next season. Spurs blog Pounding the Rock took a deeper look at the team's backcourt situation:
After signing Marco Belinelli, the Spurs backcourt is suddenly overcrowded, and Neal looks to be the odd man out. Neal has been a solid contributor for San Antonio since joining the team three years ago, averaging between 9.5 and 9.9 PPG each year. But his 3-point shooting, and his FG% in general, took a big dip in 2012-2013. Even during the playoffs, which included a Game 3 where Neal made six triples, his percentages left something to be desired (39% FG, 35% 3PT).
The Milwaukee Bucks are believed to be one of the frontrunners to sign Neal.
Brandan Wright agrees to two-year deal with Mavericks
Wright, who has bounced around the league since being selected with the eighth overall pick in 2007, became a reliable bench player for the Dallas Mavericks the past two years. On Tuesday, he signed a two-year deal worth $10 million that includes $1.1 million in incentives.
Wright, 25, played well in Dallas last season, setting new career-highs in points (8.1) and rebounds (4.1) while averaging 18 minutes a game. He appeared in 64 games, starting 16 of them. Wright should see an increased role the next two seasons after the team lost Chris Kaman and Elton Brand in free agency. Plus, as Mavs Moneyball detailed, he has shown a lot of promise alongside Dirk Nowitzki.
He's a monster finisher in the paint, he extended his range to 15-19 feet, he's staggeringly efficient from the NBA "dead zone," he finishes in the restricted area as good as LeBron James, Tyson Chandler or Dwight Howard and he's a beast in pick and rolls, freeing up Dirk for spot up looks. He's getting better on the boards, following up teammates misses if he doesn't get the ball in a pick and roll, he's always been a good shot blocker and he's starting to become a good team defender.
Larry Sanders injures ankle during Team USA camp
While participating in a scrimmage with his Team USA teammates, Bucks center Larry Sanders injured his left ankle and was forced to the trainer's table, according to a tweet by C.F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He later had his ankle wrapped and returned with ice wrapped around his leg.
Sanders broke out with Milwaukee last season, averaging 9.8 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game in his third year as a pro. He will be examined further by team doctors to determine if any structural damage has been done.
Flopping rule could be decided by arbitration
Things between the NBA and NBA Players Association are getting sticky. Here is the latest on the flopping rule and the fines that were set in place by the league last fall.
The National Basketball Player's Association filed an unfair labor practices charge against the league to combat the new anti-flopping fines, but the National Labor Relations Board refused to rule on the complaint. Now, the NBPA is seeking an arbitrator to work between itself and the NBA, according to CBS Sports' Ken Berger.
Billy Hunter, the former director of the NBAPA, is the one leading the charge. He claims it was not fair that the league determined they would fine players after not meeting with them prior to making their decision.
With fines of just $5,000 for first time offenders and $10,000 and $15,000 for repeat offenders, most feel a change needs to be made. David Stern admitted that the current anti-flopping program was not successful in its debut year, and that changes could be coming.
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