The Jazz and Wolves play in the same division, and even though Jefferson had requested a trade, I’m not sure sending him to a division rival was a wise thing to do. There was no way he could coexist in the same as Kevin Love, and  wiping away Jefferson’s $13 million opens the door to substantial cap space.

For the Jazz Jefferson is the younger replacement for the lost of Carlos Boozer to the Bulls. Jefferson averaged 23.1 points and 11 rebounds in the 50 games before he was injured in 2009.

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Zydrunas Ilgauskas is following LeBron James to the Miami Heat. The two-time All-Star, after being with the Cavaliers for 14 seasons, will sign a one-year deal for $2.8 million, second year expected to be a player option

. “I’ve been a loyal soldier for 14 years. I just feel it’s time for me to go and chase my dream of winning a ring.” Ilgauskas said.

I wonder if Z is aware that Cavs owner Dan Gilbert assured Cavs fans that they would have a championship title before LeBron.

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The Charlotte Bobcats send Tyson Chandler and Alexis Ajinca to Dallas for Erick Dampier, Eduardo Najera, Matt Carroll and cash considerations.

The Bobcats were close to a deal getting Jose Calderon from Toronto, but after that deal fell through they made this strange decision.Najera, and Carroll are owed a combined $17.1 million over the next three years. Why MJ, why?

By adding Chandler, the Mavs retain the rights to a top defensive center. Additionally, he has a $12 million expiring contract, which gives the Mavs maximum flexibility to pursue other trades during the course of the season.

The Blazers have signed Jazz shooting guard Wesley Matthews to a five-year, $34 million, according to a league source.

Utah now has seven days to match. Matthews played in all 82 games last season as a rookie, when he made the team as an unrestricted free agent.

He started 48 games and averaged 9.4 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists. The Blazers have been relatively quiet during free-agency but the addition of Matthews gives them more defensive weapons and I’m sure Matthews will fit in nicely under Nate McMillian’s system.

But $34 mill is a bit much!

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After Kyle Korver agreed to a three-year, $15 million deal on Friday the Bulls signed Redick to a $20 million, three-year offer sheet, but the Magic have 7 days to match, and it appears they will.

The additions of twoperimeter players indicates that they will be launching from deep at a rapid rate.

New head coach Tom Thibodeau is defensive minded, but his most recent stint as assistant coach in Boston has made him accustomed to three point shooting as a constant offensive tactic. Hopefully Orlando won’t

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Brendan Haywood resigned with the Mavericks. The deal is for six years and $55 million. Sources said that because the sixth year is not fully guaranteed, the deal averages roughly $7 million to $8 million annually in guaranteed money, depending on incentives. In other words, Haywood got a raise from his $6 million salary last season, but not a huge one.
The Mavs bringing Haywood back will end the battle over who starts between him and Erik Dampier. Haywood has yet to average a double-double in his 9 years in the NBA.

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The Nets have agreed to sign restricted free agent Anthony Morrow to a three-year, $12 million offer sheet. The Warriors probably won’t match due to the signing and paying of David Lee. In New Jersey, Morrow may at last have the chance to showcase his three-point prowess.

With Nowitzki making good on a longstanding offer to Cuban to take less than the maximum $96.2 million he could have received over the next four seasons in exchange for assurances that the Mavericks will use that financial flexibility to ramp up their efforts to acquire a top-tier sidekick.

Dallas re-signing Dirk comes at little surprise, but finding help for him is going to be a lot tougher, but having the All-Star power forward’s verbal commitment should enable Dallas to begin its pursuit of help through sign-and-trade offers in earnest, since Cuban can now assure prospective targets that Nowitzki will be in Dallas through at least 2013-14. The Mavericks lost to the Spurs in the first round of the playoffs primarily due to Dirk getting absolutely no assistance from teammates.

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Twenty-two NBA teams, including 11 that appeared in the 2010 NBA Playoffs, will compete in this year’s NBA Summer League. For the second consecutive year, a team of NBA Development League Select players will also participate in the action taking place at the Thomas & Mack Center and the COX Pavilion on the campus of the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Marketing partners included in the event are adidas, EA SPORTS, Gatorade and T-Mobile.

This year’s event will feature the Washington Wizards, who won the top overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. Other participating teams with top five selections in this year’s draft include the Minnesota Timberwolves(fourth overall pick) and the Sacramento Kings (fifth overall).

Additionally, 10 of the top 14 picks are expected to participate in Las Vegas this summer.

Joining the above-mentioned teams scheduled to appear in Vegas this summer are the Dallas Mavericks,Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Hornets, Phoenix Suns, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers,Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, San Antonio Spurs, Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards.

Tickets for the 2010 NBA Summer League are on sale and can be purchased by calling 702-739-FANS, through UNLVtickets.com or by visiting the Thomas & Mack Center Box Office and UNLV Ticket Outlets. All general admission tickets are $25 for the day; seniors and children (3-12) are $15 for the day; and children two years and under are admitted free of charge.

A complete broadcast schedule will be released at a later date.

Schedule after the jump.

2010 NBA Summer League Game Schedule:

Friday July 9

COX Pavilion

1 PM – Denver vs. Dallas

3 PM – Houston vs. Phoenix

5 PM – Detroit vs. LA Lakers

7 PM – Golden State vs. New Orleans

Saturday July 10

COX Pavilion

1 PM – Toronto vs. Phoenix

3 PM – LA Lakers vs. Denver

5 PM – Detroit vs. Golden State

7 PM – Dallas vs. Houston

Sunday July 11

COX Pavilion

1 PM – New York vs. Denver

3 PM – Portland vs. Houston

5 PM – Washington vs. Golden State

7 PM – Miami vs. New Orleans

Monday July 12

COX Pavilion

1 PM – LA Lakers vs. New York

3 PM – Sacramento vs. Detroit

5 PM – Dallas vs. Milwaukee

7 PM – Washington vs. LA Clippers

Thomas & Mack

3:30 PM – San Antonio vs. Minnesota

5:30 PM – Phoenix vs. NBA D-League

7:30 PM – Memphis vs. Atlanta

Tuesday July 13

COX Pavilion

1 PM – Denver vs. Chicago

3 PM – Cleveland vs. NBA D-League

5 PM – Milwaukee vs. Memphis

7 PM – Portland vs. New Orleans

Thomas & Mack

3:30 PM – Houston vs. Toronto

5:30 PM – Sacramento vs. LA Lakers

7:30 PM – Golden State vs. Miami

Wednesday July 14

COX Pavilion

1 PM – Denver vs. Houston

3 PM – New York vs. Toronto

5 PM – LA Clippers vs. Chicago

7 PM – Sacramento vs. Minnesota

Thomas & Mack

3:30 PM – Atlanta vs. San Antonio

5:30 PM – Cleveland vs. Phoenix

7:30 PM – Detroit vs. Miami

Thursday July 15

COX Pavilion

1 PM – LA Lakers vs. San Antonio

3 PM – Golden State vs. Phoenix

5 PM – Washington vs. Dallas

7 PM – LA Clippers vs. Portland

Thomas & Mack

5:30 PM – Atlanta vs. Milwaukee

7:30 PM – NBA D-League vs. Memphis

Friday July 16

COX Pavilion

1 PM – Detroit vs. New York

3 PM – Toronto vs. Sacramento

5 PM – Washington vs. New Orleans

7 PM – Memphis vs. Minnesota

Thomas & Mack

5:30 PM – Cleveland vs. Chicago

7:30 PM – Milwaukee vs. Miami

Saturday July 17

COX Pavilion

1 PM – New York vs. Washington

3 PM – Miami vs. Cleveland

5 PM – LA Clippers vs. San Antonio

7 PM – Minnesota vs. Portland

Thomas & Mack

3:30 PM – Toronto vs. New Orleans

5:30 PM – Sacramento vs. Chicago

7:30 PM – NBA D-League vs. Atlanta

Sunday July 18

COX Pavilion

1 PM – Cleveland vs. Milwaukee

3 PM – Chicago vs. Portland

5 PM – Dallas vs. Sacramento

Thomas & Mack

1:30 PM – San Antonio vs. Memphis

3:30 PM – Atlanta vs. Minnesota

5:30 PM – LA Clippers vs. NBA D-League

SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

All Times listed are local Las Vegas time.

Down and Out..Again! (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Before the trade-deadline the Mavericks made a big trade getting Brendan Haywood, and Caron Butler costing owner Mark Cuban an extra $30 million. Two players that were brought in to add toughness, and the pieces they needed to defeat the Lakers. Unfortunately the Mavs might have been looking to far in the future and not concentrating on the team in front of them. Dirk was Dirk, 13 of 21 for 33 points. Butler had 25 points and rookie Rodrigue Beaubois was the only other player in double figures with 16 points. Mark Cuban once again has a long summer ahead of him. Mavs have had 10 seasons of at least 50 wins and only one trip to the Finals to show for it. In many ways the Mavs havent been the same since the Heat came back to beat them in the Finals 4 years ago.

(AP Photo/Don Ryan)

If I told you that the Phoenix Suns got 10 points, 6 assists and 7 turnovers from Steve Nash, and won the game you wouldn’t believe me. Well in Game 6 on Thursday night thats just what happened. The Suns got 28 points from jason Richardson and 22 from Amare Stoudemire in a series clinching win 99-90. Phoenix is 32-4 this season when Richardson scores at least 20 points. Both Phoenix and Portland attempted 23 threes, while the Suns(12) made just one more then the Blazers(11). Now two old playoff rivals face each other once against the Spurs and Suns face off in the Western Conference Semi-Finals.

Portland has never won a series that they have trailed 3-2. Portland scared the Sns in Game 1, but was unable to recapture the magic that help them win that game. Brandon Roy had 14 points for the Blazers in his first start of the series. Martell Webster had 19 points for Portland, which failed to advance out of the first round for the second straight year. C Greg Oden was at Portland’s shootaround earlier Thursday. The 7-foot former No. 1 draft pick broke his left kneecap and required season-ending surgery early in December. Oden addressed reporters during Thursday’s shootaround, saying he was not yet doing any court-related workouts

Bye Wade! (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

The Boston Celtics advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals thanks to 16 points, 12 rebounds and eight dimes from Rajon Rondo. The Celtics will play Cleveland who bested the Chicago Bulls in their first round matchup. Celtics played their best all around game shooting 49% from the field, 58% from deep and 19-22 from the free throw line. As difficult as it was for the Heat to “contain” Dwayne Wade, the inevitable back-to-back MVP LeBron James awaits. Celtics and Cavaliers split the season series.

The second team to make summer plans is the Miami Heat, and by “summer plans” I mean resigning Dwayne Wade, and getting him some help. Wade needs help, he had 31 points 10 dimes and 8 rebounds. Mario Chalmers had 20, and that was it. If the Heat were to get rid of the entire team aside from Chalmers and Wade that would be understandable. With the summer starting for Wade I look for him to add to his wardrobe, cameo on Inside the NBA, and make some new T-Mobile commercials while contemplating playing for the Bulls.

See Ya Next Year! (Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images)

Rose had 31 points, 3 boards, 6 dimes, but was unable to score down the stretch. Chicago has an interesting summer ahead of them, finding Rose help, and getting a new coach. “We both(Del Negro) came in as rookies. It would be devastating,” Rose said. “But it’s not up to me, it’s up to the front office. They’re the ones that drafted me, so I guess I’m behind them.” Rose said it would be hard to imagine the Bulls firing their coach after making the playoffs. “It would be unusual, especially since it’s our second time (in the playoffs),” Rose said. “But the league changes constantly. I guess that’s how it is in the NBA. It’s tough to coach up here.”

LeBron James scored 19 points — 16 in the second half — and added 10 rebounds and nine dimes. He unfortunately was unable to disguise the pain in his right elbow. James, who wore a sleeve on his right arm for the second straight game, refused to address his injury before the game. “I don’t know what is up with it, but I’m ready to play,” he said.

Mo Williams shot 2-13 from the field, the Celtics are going to love not having to play defense on him.

BOTH OF THESE GAMES WERE BLOWOUTS!

DALLAS! (AP Photo/Tim Sharp)

Dallas was playing a must win game at home, a situation they are used too. Caron Butler scored a career playoff-best 35 points and had 11 rebounds, and Haywood provided a strong inside presence at both ends in his first start of this postseason, keeping the Mavericks alive by leading them to a 103-81. How many times does an opening statement about a Dallas blowout win not have the names Nowitzki, or Terry in it.  The Spurs played with the intensity that got them called “Dogs” in the first game by their own coach. Richard Jefferson had 4 points, and Big 3 combined for 36 points. Lucky for both teams its only a 30 minute flight between cities, and a two day rest. Spurs 3-2

(Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

There was a sense of nervousness in the air in Los Angeles Tuesday night. The Lakers had not been themselves in the last three games, at least not the team that was picked to make it to the Finals. But in Game 5 the Lakers played like the team that strikes fear in the West, Big, Kobe, and more Big. Pau Gasol had 25 points, and 11 rebounds in 30 minutes, and Andrew Bynum had a playoff career-high with 21 points and 11 boards. Lakers had 58 points in the paint, the Thunder had 26. Oklahoma City returns home where they will once again feed off the energy of the crowd, but will have to win in LA to advance. Lakers 3-2

(Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Heat needed a win to continue the series and to continue watching Dwayne Wade in a Heat uniform. In the previous three games Wades 2nd and 4th quarter production was down. In Game 4 Wade put the Heat on his back and single-handedly(he yelled at his right hand) and outscored the Celtics 19 to 15 in the 4th. Wade scored 46 points, 30 in the second half — both franchise records — and the Heat beat the Boston Celtics 101-92. Quentin Richardson’s 20 points were the most by a Heat not named Wade this whole series. Dwyane Wade’s 46 points Sunday are the most scored against Boston in a playoff game dating back to 1991. Wade is only the fourth player since 1991 to score at least 40 in a playoff game against Boston, and the first since LeBron James scored 45 on May 18, 2008.

Rajon Rondo led the Celtics with 23 points. Garnett had 18 points and 12 rebounds,Paul Pierce scored 16 and Ray Allen added 15 for Boston, which was bidding for its first 4-0 sweep of a series since 1986. “It’s not a big deal,” Rondo said. “We just have to close it out now in five. We’re confident.” Celtics 3-1

49FT.! (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)

LeBron James nailed a 22-foot fadeaway from up top just before the halftime buzzer, then he hit a pull-up 49 foot jumper to end the 3rd quarter. That about sums up this game! James finished with 37 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. The Cavs shot 12-25 from deep, and got 12 points from Jamison, and 19 from Mo Williams.

After an impressing win in Game 3, the Bulls returned to their Game 1, and 2 form shooting 37% from the field. Bulls were 4 of 12 on 3-pointers, Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah both scored 21 apiece, and Noah had 20 boards. Noah had the first 20/20 game in franchise playoff history. Noah told reporters after Game 3 that “Cleveland Sucks”.and  he will be the focus of fans in the Quicken Loans Arena in Game 5! Vinny Del Negro seem to be LeBron-struck saying after the game “It came down to LeBron.” “We could not control LeBron.” Cavs 3-1

(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Manu Ginobili refused to wear a mask for Game 4 and instead wore a HUGE bandage across his face. A liitle more fabric and he could have been an Argentinean Darkman. The Spurs Big Three(Duncan, Ginobili, Parker) combined 9-34 shooting. Tim Duncan on his 34th birthday had 4 points on 1-9 shooting. George Hill gave Duncan a great birthday gift with 29 points, on 11-16 shooting. Richard Jefferson scored 15 points and Antonio McDyess had 10.

Caron Butler got to play in the second half in this one scoring 17. The Mavs lead by  as much as 14, but the Spurs defense forced them into tough shots and then the flagrant fouls began. Eduardo Najera was ejected after hooking a hand around Ginobili’s head and sending him belly flopping to the floor. Then DeJuan Blair fouled Jason Kidd hard as he took the ball to the basket, drawing a Flagrant 1. Officials rang up three flagrant fouls. Just more fuel on an already intense Texas rivalry. Only eight teams have come back from being down 3-1 in a best-of-seven series. Uh-Oh Mark Cuban! Spurs 3-1

(Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Utah Jazz are the team without key players. Andrei Kirilenko and Mehmet Okur are both injured, but in Game 4 you wouldn’t have noticed they were missing anything. Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer combined for 55 points,  18 assists, and 17 rebounds. Cj Miles had 21, Wesley Matthews had 18 points, and Paul Milsap had 12. If these three combine for 51 points, the other team is going to lose!

The Nuggets head back to Denver for Game 5, facing elimanation. The abscence of George Karl has to be the reason for many of their struggles, but the Nuggets poor defense is truly to blame. They only had 13 assists, but 18 turnovers. Carmelo Anthony had 39 points and 11 boards, and 9 turnovers. Chauncey Billups fouled out with 3:46 left in the 4th and seems flustered having to guard Deron Williams and lead the team. Has anyone seen Chris Anderson?(2pts, 0 boards,0 blocks)If Nuggets can’t get three great games from JR Smith, Chauncey Billups, and Kenyon Martin, this series is over. That last sentence looks unbelievable.  The referees ruined this game with call after cal,l leading to 77 combined free throws. Jazz 3-1

(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)

I can’t help but feel bad for Dwayne Wade. If you didn’t know, Dwayne Wade likes to look cool. So far this playoffs he and the Heat are just that, only in a bad way.

Heat fans slowly made there way into American Airlines Arena, donning black t-shirts for the Heats “BlackisBack” campaign. The crowd draped in all-black looked as though they were attending a funeral, and in many ways they were. Just like in the first two games Wade was dominant, but Dwyane Wade’s numbers have fluctuated heavily in each of the Heat’s three playoff games. Wade averages 23.3 ppg, 70% fg, and 50% 3-point shooting in the first and third quarters. His numbers in the second, and fourth quarter arent very Wade-like 6.3 ppg, 36.4% fg and 11.1% 3-point shooting…ouch! This is largely due to the immense amount of work Wade has to do on the offensive end of the court. Dwayne Wade has been the only Heat to score more then 16 points in any of the three games. Jermaine O’Neal is 5-31 shooting.

Not sure many people expected the Celtics to sweep the Heat, but that has become a strong posibility. Paul Pierce went all 2008 playoffs in Game 3, scoring 32 points and hitting the game-winner from the spot he hit against the Bulls in the first round last year. Celtics 100, Heat 98.

The Heat are down 3-0 to the Boston Celtics and without an immense miracle their playoffs are over. “It hasn’t really set in yet,” Wade said. “Down 3-0 hurts. This team’s good. They’ve got a lot of veteran guys who step up to the billing.” On the bright side at least more then three Heat scored in double figures. Celtics 3-0

Dirk Nowitzki made good on his vow after the Game 2 loss to hit the looks he got last time, scoring 35 points, but the Dallas Mavericks are dealing with some sort of internal beef. Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle benched Caron Butler, and Shawn Marion for the entire second-half, choosing to keep Jason Terry and J.J. Barea in the game.

Manu Ginobili got elbowed in the nose by Dirk, brekaing it early in the third quarter. Five minutes later bandaged up Manu returned, he  then scored 11 of his 15 points in the fourth to lead the Spurs to a 94-90 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night. Spurs 2-1

(Photo by Garrett W. Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Jazz have every reason to be down in this playoffs, but the play of Deron Williams has out weighed any disadvantage. Deron Williams had 24 points and 10 assists as the Jazz took the series lead over the Nuggets. Williams fell one point shy of joining Michael Jordan (first round, 1989 playoffs) as the only players in NBA history to have 25 points and 10 assists in each of the first three games of a playoff series. Utah’s Paul Millsap had 22 points and 19 rebounds, both playoff career-highs. He was 9-for-9 in the first half. Milsap had never shot more then seven shots in a playoff game.

Denver relied on Chauncey Billups and Carmelo Anthony offensively throughout Game 3, but Melo’s foul trouble canceled their chances. “What I’m most disappointed at is that we failed to compete tonight as a team,” Anthony said. “I think the Utah Jazz have done a good job making some adjustments defending me. When I get the ball I see two guys, three triple-teaming me. It’s not just one guy on me.” Utah 2-1

• Phoenix and Portland came down to the last seconds in a game the Suns should have won, but played like it wasn’t the Playoffs. Andre Miller was too much for Steve Nash and the Portland defense was mightier then the 11 threes Phoenix made. Portland leads 1-0
• Phoenix needs Robin Lopez in a major way

My Main Man!! (Photo by Doug Benc/Getty Images)

• The Bobcats are a fun team to watch, mainly due to the personalities mixed together to make this team. Gerald Wallace had 10 more rebounds then Dwight Howard.
• Speaking of Dwight Howard, 5 points is UNACCEPTABLE! Howard did have 9 blocks, and Jameer Nelson’s 32 points was enough to get the Magic the win. Orlando leads 1-0

37! (Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images)

• The Mavs’ Dirk Nowitzki went 12-14 from the field and 12-12 FT  for 36 points.  Thats ridiculous, and sure Coach PoP wont let that happen again. Spurs are old, but are going to be the toughest out of any team in this years playoffs.
• For some reason George Hill started and finished with a big “0″. Tony Parker came off the bench with 18. Mavs lead 1-0

• Lakers too tall, and too veteran for Thunder. Artest did what he was brought to LA to do, and thats stop the best player on the opposing team. The question is can he continue to do that against Carmelo, then Dirk, then LeBron.
• Russell Westbrook purchased the casket for Derek Fishers career. Lakers lead 1-0

2010 NBA Playoffs Bracket