There are just two days left till the Halloween deadline to sign fourth-year players to extensions — or risk the contracts they could receive in restricted free agency — and only two eligible players have deals. Blake Griffin and Serge Ibaka were locked up this summer (because Ibaka didn’t have a contract until 2009 despite being drafted in 2008, he is eligible now), and James Harden has been reported as likely to sign a long-term contract with Houston within 72 hours of landing in southern Texas. Read More »

With sports, we’re all clock watchers. Its lure doesn’t go away once the season is over — it might even make it worse. The day after Miami won the NBA championship in June, power rankings were already being discussed for the 2012-13 season, much the same how a 2013 top-10 was already being mulled while Kentucky danced under confetti in April. Well, we’re looking ahead again. The free agency class of 2013 has been discussed since 2010′s sweepstakes finished, a discussion that has crept up again in light of Serge Ibaka‘s four-year contract with Oklahoma City over the weekend. Read More »

The Oklahoma City Thunder have until Oct. 31 to exclusively negotiate and extension with swingman and Sixth Man James Harden. After that, they’ll have to either make the decision to trade him or match a max deal offer as a restricted free agent. Yesterday I wrote about Phoenix’s possible courtship of Harden — and his motivations for staying with or leaving Oklahoma City — whose playing days at Arizona State and some family in the area make him not just the team’s keystone, but somewhat of a sentimental pick, too. Read More »