NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

Jackson says he’ll return to coach Lakers
Phil Jackson is returning to coach the Los Angeles Lakers next season. Jackson announced his decision Friday on the team’s Web site. He said he consulted the team doctor about his health before deciding. The Hall of Fame coach turns 64 in September. Jackson led the Lakers to their 15th NBA championship and his record 10th title in June. He says he’s confident he can handle another long season. “All things point to go!” he says.

Lakers hero Ariza had meteoric rise
Trevor Ariza is a Laker playoff hero, which, paradoxically, is why he’s apparently about to become an ex-Laker, Kevin Hench says.

Pistons GM not committed to making quick hire
Pistons president Joe Dumars has Avery Johnson on his radar, but a published report indicates it’s no sure bet the former Mavericks coach will end up in Detroit.

Hold Up on the Minnesota Timberwolves Draft

NBA Draft one of the most scrutinized events in the sport. One of the story lines that came from the draft was from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

Jackson says he’ll return to coach Lakers
Phil Jackson is returning to coach the Los Angeles Lakers next season. Jackson announced his decision Friday on the team’s Web site. He said he consulted the team doctor about his health before deciding. The Hall of Fame coach turns 64 in September. Jackson led the Lakers to their 15th NBA championship and his record 10th title in June. He says he’s confident he can handle another long season. “All things point to go!” he says.

Siler will get shot at pro career

Garret Siler never gave up hope after failing to get selected in last week’s NBA Draft.

Lakers’ Gasol to play for Spain at Euro Championship
Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol will play for Spain in September in the European Basketball Championship. Gasol said Friday that it was an easy decision after winning the NBA finals. “The season went really well for me and now I want to defend our country,” Gasol said. “We’re really hopeful about the team we have, but we can’t go there with a mentality that we’ll be playing the final just because we’re really good.

Lakers hero Ariza had meteoric rise
Trevor Ariza is a Laker playoff hero, which, paradoxically, is why he’s apparently about to become an ex-Laker, Kevin Hench says.

VIDEO: Hill on Artest reportedly joining Lakers
Lakers fans, don’t worry. Even though the unpredictable Ron Artest is set to join L.A., Kobe & Co. will keep him in line, Randy Hill says.

Lakers hero Ariza had meteoric rise
Trevor Ariza is a Laker playoff hero, which, paradoxically, is why he’s apparently about to become an ex-Laker, Kevin Hench says.

Lakers’ Gasol to play for Spain at Euro Championship
Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol will play for Spain in September in the European Basketball Championship. Gasol said Friday that it was an easy decision after winning the NBA finals. “The season went really well for me and now I want to defend our country,” Gasol said. “We’re really hopeful about the team we have, but we can’t go there with a mentality that we’ll be playing the final just because we’re really good.

Jackson says he’ll return to coach Lakers
Phil Jackson is returning to coach the Los Angeles Lakers next season. Jackson announced his decision Friday on the team’s Web site. He said he consulted the team doctor about his health before deciding. The Hall of Fame coach turns 64 in September. Jackson led the Lakers to their 15th NBA championship and his record 10th title in June. He says he’s confident he can handle another long season. “All things point to go!” he says.

Report: Turkoglu cuts off talks with Blazers
Free-agent forward Hedo Turkoglu and the Portland Trail Blazers have ended contract talks, a person close to the team confirmed Friday. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations. Turkoglu’s agent, Lon Babby, didn’t immediately return calls or e-mails. The 6-foot-10 forward who helped the Orlando Magic to the NBA finals arrived in Portland on Thursday to meet Blazers executives and tour the city.

NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

Siler will get shot at pro career

Garret Siler never gave up hope after failing to get selected in last week’s NBA Draft.

Hold Up on the Minnesota Timberwolves Draft

NBA Draft one of the most scrutinized events in the sport. One of the story lines that came from the draft was from the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Artest, Lakers reach verbal agreement
Ron Artest is joining Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Report: Turkoglu cuts off talks with Blazers
Free-agent forward Hedo Turkoglu and the Portland Trail Blazers have ended contract talks, a person close to the team confirmed Friday. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations. Turkoglu’s agent, Lon Babby, didn’t immediately return calls or e-mails. The 6-foot-10 forward who helped the Orlando Magic to the NBA finals arrived in Portland on Thursday to meet Blazers executives and tour the city.

Artest, Lakers reach verbal agreement
Ron Artest is joining Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.

NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

Lakers’ Gasol to play for Spain at Euro Championship
Los Angeles Lakers center Pau Gasol will play for Spain in September in the European Basketball Championship. Gasol said Friday that it was an easy decision after winning the NBA finals. “The season went really well for me and now I want to defend our country,” Gasol said. “We’re really hopeful about the team we have, but we can’t go there with a mentality that we’ll be playing the final just because we’re really good.

Answering your NBA questions: Greatest ever?
Kobe’s 4th title gets him closer to Jordan’s 6, but where does he stand in the best-ever discussion? Charley Rosen has an answer.

Free-agent buzz: Ariza to Rockets, Cavs eye Parker (Yahoo! Sports)
Trevor Ariza committed to sign with the Rockets after Ron Artest left for the Lakers.

Siler will get shot at pro career

Garret Siler never gave up hope after failing to get selected in last week’s NBA Draft.

VIDEO: Hill on Artest reportedly joining Lakers
Lakers fans, don’t worry. Even though the unpredictable Ron Artest is set to join L.A., Kobe & Co. will keep him in line, Randy Hill says.

Will T-Wolves rue Rubio pick? Stay tuned

The most important thing that happened at the NBA Draft on Thursday night had nothing to do with Blake Griffin , Hasheem Thabeet or even Ricky Rubio .

Updated odds to win 2010 championship following Draft, trades (Yahoo! Sports)
Bodog's odds to win the 2009-10 NBA Championship have been reassessed and posted following last week's…

Lakers hero Ariza had meteoric rise
Trevor Ariza is a Laker playoff hero, which, paradoxically, is why he’s apparently about to become an ex-Laker, Kevin Hench says.

Jackson says he’ll return to coach Lakers
Phil Jackson is returning to coach the Los Angeles Lakers next season. Jackson announced his decision Friday on the team’s Web site. He said he consulted the team doctor about his health before deciding. The Hall of Fame coach turns 64 in September. Jackson led the Lakers to their 15th NBA championship and his record 10th title in June. He says he’s confident he can handle another long season. “All things point to go!” he says.

Siler to play for Minnesota in NBA Summer League

Thursday, July 2, 2009 12:12 p.m. Former Augusta State All-American center Garret Siler is getting his chance to play with an NBA team.

NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

Report: Rockets, Ariza agree to deal
A person close to the situation tells The Associated Press that the Houston Rockets are meeting with Los Angeles Lakers forward Trevor Ariza. The person, who did not want to be identified because the negotiations were ongoing, said Rockets general manager Daryl Morey was meeting with the free agent in Las Vegas. The meeting was first reported by KRIV-TV in Houston, which also said Coach Rick Adelman was meeting with Ariza. The AP source could not confirm that.

Free-agent buzz: Ariza to Rockets, Cavs eye Parker (Yahoo! Sports)
Trevor Ariza committed to sign with the Rockets after Ron Artest left for the Lakers.

Timberwolves Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

On draft day, Timberwolves fans ready to embrace change wondered what the new president of basketball operations would do with four first-round picks that night.

On the day after, they still wondered: Just what he had done?

A young, losing team built around two promising power forwards mystifyingly selected two point guards with the fifth and sixth picks in David Kahn’s first draft on the job.

In drafting first Spanish guard Ricky Rubio and Syracuse’s Jonny Flynn in a matter of moments, Kahn theoretically rebuilt a backcourt essentially cleared two days earlier by trading Randy Foye and Mike Miller and their expiring contracts to Washington for three players and the fifth pick he used to pick Rubio, who fell after Memphis took Hasheem Thabeet second, Oklahoma…

Report: Ricky Rubio will stay in Spain for two more years (Yahoo! Sports)
Get ready for two more years of grainy Getty Images and YouTube clips, people. According to Charley Walters of…

Blazers assistant Monty Williams to interview for Timberwolves head coaching position

Trail Blazers assistant coach Monty Williams will interview for the Minnesota Timberwolves head coaching position, perhaps as early as this weekend, Williams said Wednesday.

Report: Ricky Rubio will stay in Spain for two more years (Yahoo! Sports)
Get ready for two more years of grainy Getty Images and YouTube clips, people. According to Charley Walters of…

Lakers hero Ariza had meteoric rise
Trevor Ariza is a Laker playoff hero, which, paradoxically, is why he’s apparently about to become an ex-Laker, Kevin Hench says.

Yao will wait week before surgery decision
Houston Rockets All-Star center Yao Ming will have to wait up to a week before he knows whether he will need surgery on his broken left foot. The future of 7-foot-6 (226-centimeter) Yao are in question amid reports from the team doctor that the hairline fracture in his foot could keep him out of all of next season, and potentially end his career. “It hasn’t been decided yet,” Yao’s agent, Eric Zhang, told The Associated Press on Friday.

Free-agent buzz: Ariza to Rockets, Cavs eye Parker (Yahoo! Sports)
Trevor Ariza committed to sign with the Rockets after Ron Artest left for the Lakers.

Siler to play for Minnesota in NBA Summer League

Thursday, July 2, 2009 12:12 p.m. Former Augusta State All-American center Garret Siler is getting his chance to play with an NBA team.

VIDEO: Hill on Artest reportedly joining Lakers
Lakers fans, don’t worry. Even though the unpredictable Ron Artest is set to join L.A., Kobe & Co. will keep him in line, Randy Hill says.

Siler will get shot at pro career

Garret Siler never gave up hope after failing to get selected in last week’s NBA Draft.

Report: Rockets, Ariza agree to deal
A person close to the situation tells The Associated Press that the Houston Rockets are meeting with Los Angeles Lakers forward Trevor Ariza. The person, who did not want to be identified because the negotiations were ongoing, said Rockets general manager Daryl Morey was meeting with the free agent in Las Vegas. The meeting was first reported by KRIV-TV in Houston, which also said Coach Rick Adelman was meeting with Ariza. The AP source could not confirm that.

Blazers assistant Monty Williams to interview for Timberwolves head coaching position

Trail Blazers assistant coach Monty Williams will interview for the Minnesota Timberwolves head coaching position, perhaps as early as this weekend, Williams said Wednesday.

Report: Ricky Rubio will stay in Spain for two more years (Yahoo! Sports)
Get ready for two more years of grainy Getty Images and YouTube clips, people. According to Charley Walters of…

Answering your NBA questions: Greatest ever?
Kobe’s 4th title gets him closer to Jordan’s 6, but where does he stand in the best-ever discussion? Charley Rosen has an answer.

Shaq reveals new motto: ‘Win a ring for the King’
Shaquille O’Neal has joined his Cleveland teammates - and says he can help them win a title. Acquired in a trade last week with the Phoenix Suns, O’Neal was introduced Thursday as a Cavalier before cheering young fans at the team’s suburban practice facility. The Cavaliers are hoping that the 15-time All-Star can help league MVP LeBron James and Cleveland win its first NBA championship. How long will O’Neal will stay with the Cavaliers is still a question.

VIDEO: Hill on Artest reportedly joining Lakers
Lakers fans, don’t worry. Even though the unpredictable Ron Artest is set to join L.A., Kobe & Co. will keep him in line, Randy Hill says.

Report: Celtics meet with Wallace, offer deal
Rasheed Wallace may be joining Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen in Boston.

Siler to play for Minnesota in NBA Summer League

Thursday, July 2, 2009 12:12 p.m. Former Augusta State All-American center Garret Siler is getting his chance to play with an NBA team.

Yao will wait week before surgery decision
Houston Rockets All-Star center Yao Ming will have to wait up to a week before he knows whether he will need surgery on his broken left foot. The future of 7-foot-6 (226-centimeter) Yao are in question amid reports from the team doctor that the hairline fracture in his foot could keep him out of all of next season, and potentially end his career. “It hasn’t been decided yet,” Yao’s agent, Eric Zhang, told The Associated Press on Friday.

Free-agent buzz: Ariza to Rockets, Cavs eye Parker (Yahoo! Sports)
Trevor Ariza committed to sign with the Rockets after Ron Artest left for the Lakers.

NBA free agents: 2009 class (Yahoo! Sports)
Team-by-team list of NBA free agents.

Timberwolves Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

On draft day, Timberwolves fans ready to embrace change wondered what the new president of basketball operations would do with four first-round picks that night.

On the day after, they still wondered: Just what he had done?

A young, losing team built around two promising power forwards mystifyingly selected two point guards with the fifth and sixth picks in David Kahn’s first draft on the job.

In drafting first Spanish guard Ricky Rubio and Syracuse’s Jonny Flynn in a matter of moments, Kahn theoretically rebuilt a backcourt essentially cleared two days earlier by trading Randy Foye and Mike Miller and their expiring contracts to Washington for three players and the fifth pick he used to pick Rubio, who fell after Memphis took Hasheem Thabeet second, Oklahoma…