NBA Free Agents 2013 - News Update: Nate Robinson Drawing Interest From Six Teams; DeJuan Blair Being Pursued by Wizards
Nate Robinson, one of the last remaining solid free agents available on the market, is reportedly drawing interest from at least six teams, a source close to situation reported on Saturday.
USA Today Sports NBA insider Alex Kennedy said the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Washington Wizards and the Denver Nuggets are trying to sign Robinson, who played incredibly well for the Chicago Bulls this postseason.
Robinson averaged 13.1 points and 4.4 assists as a backup point guard for Kirk Hinrich, who assumed the starting point guard role while Derrick Rose was recovering from an ACL injury.
But Robinson's value was really recognized when he led the injury-marred Bulls to the second round of the playoffs. The 5-foot-9 guard averaged career-high 16.3 points and 4.4 assists in 12 postseason games for the Bulls. Chicago succumbed to the Miami Heat in five games, but the Robinson-led Bulls gave the champs a worthy fight to the very end.
Meanwhile, the Washington Wizards finally made their presence felt this summer following reports that they are interested to sign former San Antonio Spurs power forward DeJuan Blair.
The Wizards have been too passive in pursuing big names and or even pulling off trades to upgrade their lineup since the start of the free agency period due to salary cap constraints. In this situation, the Wizards can only offer a veteran minimum contract worth $1.4 million per year.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, the Wizard showed desires to bring in Blair, but only if the Spurs agreed to a sign-and-trade deal.
Drafted 37th overall in 2009, the 6-foot-7, 270 pound Blair blossomed into a solid young big man in his first season in the league as he averaged 7.8 points and 6.4 rebounds to earn an All-Rookie Second Team selection.
However, Blair's playing time slowly declined following the Spurs acquisition of Tiago Splitter and then Boris Diaw. The burly forward vented off his frustration for lack of minutes on the floor but he eventually decided to finish the final year of his deal with the Spurs.
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