The Confidential

Knicks eyeing Kent Bazemore, but price tag may be holdup:

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Bazemore AP_Michael Dwyer
Kent Bazemore (AP Photo – Michael Dwyer)

The Knicks have heavy interest in Hawks 6-foot-5 shooting guard Kent Bazemore, but they may be priced out or simply shut out, according to NBA sources.

Between a starting center and shooting guard, Knicks president Phil Jackson has to craftily split his $29 million-plus of cap space. .

Bazemore is high on the Knicks’ list for a shooting guard, but they know resources aren’t unlimited if they want to sign their own free agents to pacts that will allow them to go over the salary cap.

Bazemore is not setting up any meetings with teams until the Hawks make their intentions clear whether they will go for his large asking price. Meanwhile, a report Tuesday night stated Miami shooting guard — and friend of Carmelo Anthony — Dwyane Wade, 34, who had been considered a shoo-in to re-sign with the Heat, is supposedly open to offers after early talks didn’t go well.

According to an NBA source, Bazemore is “not ruling the Knicks out because he fills a need for them at the wing.” But the source isn’t sure if the Knicks will come into play. Bazemore’s intention is to stay in Atlanta. But if it doesn’t work out, Bazemore will have a bevy of suitors, including New Orleans and the Knicks.

Bazemore is expected to seek a deal starting at at least $16 million. That’s more than the player he replaced in the starting lineup, DeMarre Carroll (four years, $60 million last summer). The Hawks could afford it with their cap space, but reportedly are now trying to get in on Kevin Durant.

The Knicks view him as a badly needed defensive stopper in the backcourt to team with point guard Derrick Rose, whose defense is suspect.

Bazemore will likely become the poster child for the obscene rise in salaries pushed by the unprecedented increase in the cap ($70 million to $92 million).


Report: Dwyane Wade ready to field offers from other teams:
Dwyane Wade (AP Photo - FRANK FRANKLIN II)
Dwyane Wade (AP Photo – FRANK FRANKLIN II)

Despite no previous indications that’s he’s prepared to move on from Miami, it is being reported by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst that Wade will now entertain offers from other teams when free agency begins.

“Dwyane Wade’s initial contract discussions with the Miami Heat have not produced a common ground between the parties, which has the All-Star guard preparing to field outside offers when free agency opens on Friday, according to league sources,” the report read.

This is interesting for a number of reasons.

It’s possible that other NBA teams value Wade at a higher clip than the Heat. The 34-year-old is coming off an impressive 2015-16 campaign that saw him average 19.0 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists while shooting 46 percent from the field.

With Hassan Whiteside acting as Miami’s top priority this summer, Wade could potentially find himself placed on the team’s back burner, at which point other offers might become more attractive.

In fact, the ESPN report does suggest that Wade’s camp has put this line of thinking out there.

“Sources told ESPN.com that Wade’s representatives have made it known to multiple teams over the last several days that he will be on the market, sources said.”

If this is the case, one has to expect the Cleveland Cavaliers and old buddy LeBron James to put a call into Wade. One would also suspect that the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets out west might be interested.


Moses Malone Jr. robbed at gunpoint, claims James Harden ordered it:

Moses Malone, Jr., son of NBA great Moses Malone, claims he was attacked by James Harden’s entourage outside V Live Houston early Saturday morning.

Malone Jr. posted on Facebook about how Harden’s basketball camp was unaffordable for inner-city kids, and believes Harden sent his entourage to assault him and steal his jewelry, which was valued at approximately $15,000, in response. A Houston Police Department spokeswoman told KTVR-TV (an ABC affiliate) that at least four of the men had guns.

Houston Police Department’s robbery division is currently looking into the crime, and there have been no arrests made at this time. Both the Rockets and Harden’s camp have yet to give a statement about it.


Miko Grimes say Brent wanted out of Miami:
brent-grimes (AP Photo - Al Messerschmidt)
Brent Grimes (AP Photo – Al Messerschmidt)

Many have blamed Miko Grimes for getting her husband, Brent, cut by the Dolphins. Miko Grimes recently suggested in an interview with Sarah Spain, Jane McManus, and Kate Fagan of ESPN Radio’s The Trifecta that perhaps Brent wanted out. She nevertheless contends it happened regardless of anything she said or did.

Brent-Grimes-wife-Miko-Grimes-mugshot
Miko Grimes

It had nothing to do with me,” Miko Grimes said, via JoeBucsFan.com. “It had everything to do with my husband wanting to leave the Miami Dolphins and them not wanting him to leave. You guys don’t know that, though. You’re listening to what [Dolphins owner Stephen Ross] is saying. That’s why I was able to say whatever I wanted to say because my husband wanted to leave.”

But even after the Dolphins cut Brent Grimes, they still wanted to bring him back at a reduced rate — which undercuts the idea that they no longer wanted him because of the things his wife was saying (attacking Ryan Tannehill, e.g.) and doing (getting arrested before a game, e.g.).

“When we signed with the Bucs, the Dolphins asked to match the offer,” Miko Grimes said. “So was Miko really the problem? Why would you want to match it?
See what I mean. You guys don’t know what’s really happening.”

She added that 17 total teams called about Brent Grimes once he became available. Ultimately, Miko had significant say in the final outcome.

“My husband does not negotiate his contract. I do,” Miko Grimes said.


Johnny Manziel turns up in Mexico, taunts his dad:
FILE - In this Dec. 20, 2015, file photo, Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel speaks with media members following the team's 30-13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in an NFL football game in Seattle. Former Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel was indicted by a grand jury on Tuesday, April 26, 2016, on misdemeanor charges stemming from a domestic violence complaint by his ex-girlfriend. (AP Photo/Scott Eklund, File)
Johnny Manziel (AP Photo/Scott Eklund, File)

In case Johnny Manziel’s father is wondering if his tough love message last week got through, the answer seems to be a resounding “No.”

The former Browns quarterback just posted a photo on Instagram of himself at a resort in Mexico, wearing a Josh Gordon jersey and celebrating how good he thinks he has it.

The message includes the oh-so-rebellious hashtag #hiDad, which doesn’t suggest that the son was very receptive to his father calling him a “druggie” and saying he hoped he went to jail.

Of course, Manziel also made it clear Gordon wasn’t with him. Though the two are friends, Gordon’s probably relieved he pointed that out.

After all, Gordon’s trying to get reinstated, and apparently taking the steps needed to achieve that goal.


Caitlyn Jenner appears with her Olympic gold medal on the cover of Sports Illustrated:
Jenner-(Rich Fury - AP)
Catlyn Jenner (AP Photo – Rich Fury)

Caitlyn Jenner, 66, appears on the cover of Sports Illustrated for the first time since winning the Olympic gold medal in decathlon.

Caitlyn Jenner makes her Sports Illustrated cover debut wearing the 1976 gold medal she won for the decathlon during the Montreal Olympic Games.

“Sports. It’s not real life,” Jenner told SI. “You go out there, you work hard, you train your ass off, win the Games. I’m very proud of that part of my life. And it’s not like I just want to throw it out. It’s part of who I am. What I’m dealing with now, this is about who you are as a human being. What did I do for the world in 1976, besides maybe getting a few people to exercise a little bit? I didn’t make a difference in the world.”

Jenner first appeared on the cover of SI as Bruce after the Olympic win nearly 40 years ago. The 66-year-old reality TV star announced her transition in April 2015 during a televised interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer. She later appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair introducing herself as Caitlyn.

Initial reports about her SI cover suggested she would appear nude, wearing only her gold medal. Instead she appears wearing a fashionable sparkly gold jumpsuit.

“I still love him today. I like what he did and the way he set an example for hard work and dedication,” Jenner says of Bruce. “I’m proud of that part of my life. But this woman was living inside me, all my life, and it reached the point where I had to let her live and put Bruce inside. And I am happier, these last 12 months, than I’ve ever been in my life.”


Ludacris to play Guantánamo Bay (base, not prison) on the 4th of July:
Rapper Ludacris (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Rapper Ludacris (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Rapper Ludacris is putting on a show for the folks at U.S. Navy base Guantánamo on the Fourth of July.

But don’t think about trying to jump on a boat or plane to see it. The base in Cuba best known for the detention center that President Barack Obama wants closed is inside a restricted military zone. Fewer than 6,000 people live there, including troops, Department of Defense contractors, Navy families and the last 79 war-on-terror detainees.

The base notified residents this weekend of the main event of the no-charge “Freedom Festival” at Guantánamo’s Windward Ferry Landing. It starts with activities for families at 6 p.m., the traditional fireworks show at 9 p.m. and the three-time Grammy winner for 90 minutes starting at 10 o’clock.

The venue is essentially a parking lot along the bay, which a base spokesman estimated can hold about 2,500 concertgoers. It’s miles from the closed Detention Center Zone, far enough away so the music won’t reach the seafront prison camps.

Base residents couldn’t recall a show of this magnitude since Jimmy Buffett played the open-air Lyceum movie theater in December 2002. Magic! played the 2015 Fourth of July and Jimmy Eat World the year before. The Plain White Ts pop punk band played in October.

“Every year we get a special guest around the Fourth of July, but Gitmo hasn’t seen a star with as big a name as Ludacris in several years,” said Navy Chief Petty Officer Monique Hilley at the base radio station, Radio Gitmo. “The base is really looking forward to it.”

Efforts to reach the artist through his publicist and the movie studio failed.

He posted an Instagram video Monday showing a blue wall set for the coming Fast and Furious 8 film. The latest installment of the popular action movie franchise has filmed in locations from Atlanta to Iceland to Havana, although not Guantánamo, the 45-square-mile base that’s separated from the rest of the island by a Cuban minefield.

Read more here: MIAMI HERALD

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