HoopsHype.com Rumors

Al Horford: What's good! Check out @etanthomas36 his book on Fatherhood is available. Its great to be a part of it! Twitter

Atlanta Hawks, Al Horford, Etan Thomas 

When Etan Thomas asks, “Who’s your daddy?” it is not a rhetorical question. The 11-year-NBA veteran and former Syracuse standout center explores all angles of male parentage in his latest book, “Fatherhood: Rising to the Ultimate Challenge,” out Tuesday. A father of three, the 33-year-old Harlem-born Thomas understands daddy issues intimately. The Obama administration even chose him to participate in the President’s town hall meetings on fatherhood. New York Daily News

Etan Thomas 

What motivated you to write this book? Etan Thomas: I just wanted to go through each topic and aspect of fatherhood. Some parts focus on young men getting over the anger of not having a father with them. In another chapter, I deal with the fact that when kids are younger and come from a single-parent home, all these statistics tell them that they are not going to be successful. They are going to end up in prison. I want to tell young people they can create their own path and here are some people who have done just that. These are people who have been through situations way worse than yours. Just look at Baron Davis and Kevin Durant, both of whom were able to rise above their upbringings. New York Daily News

Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: How could we justify hiring an outside firm to perform an audit when we have annual audits performed every year? The results of those audits are shared with the executive committee and player representatives at its annual meetings, and at that time any player may request an independent review of the union's business practices and finances. Derek, you know this. If any questions arise and we need any further investigation we deal with it at that time. We have thoroughly reviewed the most recent audit and are satisfied with its findings. There have been no red flags raised by anyone. Huffington Post

Derek Fisher, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: There is a system in place, and again, how can we justify disrupting this system without and specific accusations, any proof, or reason for suspicion of any wrongdoing? That would be irresponsible of us. The board asked you to explain yourself. Tell us if you suspected that Mr. Hunter had utilized player union funds without executive committee approval, and you offered no such evidence or reason for suspicion. You know you cannot side step the entire board and start a private investigation with an outside firm without the approval of even one person on the board. We move as a unit, not as individuals. That system is put in place so that no one person can carry out a private agenda. Huffington Post

Derek Fisher, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: It looks like it was just a power play which has backfired and now the situation between the two of you appears to be beyond fixable. If you would've presented a reason for suspicion, maybe you could have convinced the majority of the executive committee to support you, but without proof, you had nothing. So, when it came to vote, which is the way we make decisions, you lost 0-8. I wish you two could have gone into a room, aired out whatever it is that you two needed to air out and moved on. But that didn't happen, and honestly in that, I think both of you are at fault. I don't know all of the details of your issues with each other, and really, I don't want to know. It's not my business. But as you know Derek, there are rules to every game, in every organization, and when you break those rules, there are consequences. And as a result of your actions the board has voted unanimously and I would implore you to simply bow out gracefully. Huffington Post

Derek Fisher, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Not every story has such a happy ending: Traylor, who went on to play overseas after heart surgery in 2005, died last spring of a heart attack. Though the specifics of his death remain unclear, it's a reminder of the seriousness of Green's condition and a testament to the importance of doctors finding it when they did. Green is aware of each man's story and has reached out to those who have survived. "I've talked to Etan," Green said. "I haven't had a chance to reach out to Ronny yet -- I've talked to Ronny through text, and Fred Hoiberg, he texted me, so they reached out. But I'll probably give them a call within the next day or two, just get their thoughts on the whole procedure and see what might be ahead of me in the next couple weeks." ESPN.com

Boston Celtics, Injuries, Jeff Green, Etan Thomas 

To his credit, David Stern can spin information with the best of them. That being said, I have not met one player who, after fully understanding the particulars of the NBA's proposal, concluded that this is an acceptable deal. So my question is, what will it take for the NBA CEOs to understand that they are not going to be able to manipulate the players through the media? ESPN.com

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

During recent negotiations, reporters continuously tweeted and wrote articles citing "anonymous sources" saying that we were closer to a deal then we actually were, or that progress was being made. Why do reporters keep giving false hope to fans? ESPN.com

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: To his credit, David Stern can spin information with the best of them. That being said, I have not met one player who, after fully understanding the particulars of the NBA's proposal, concluded that this is an acceptable deal. So my question is, what will it take for the NBA CEOs to understand that they are not going to be able to manipulate the players through the media? ESPN.com

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, David Stern, Lockout, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

UCAM Murcia has ruled out signing Etan Thomas. TuBasket.com

Atlanta Hawks, Free Agency, Spain, Etan Thomas 

Jorge Sierra: Free agent center Etan Thomas is indeed negotiating with UCAM Murcia of Spain, Thomas' manager Carlisle Sealy told HoopsHype. It's the only team in Spain he's talking with at this point. @tubasket was first to report last week about the potential deal with Murcia. Twitter

Atlanta Hawks, Free Agency, Spain, Etan Thomas 

(Spanish club) UCAM Murcia is close to signing power forward Etan Thomas, a nine-year NBA veteran, for the 2011-2012 season. TuBasket.com

Lockout, Spain, Etan Thomas, UCAM Murcia 

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: This growth in popularity has made for a huge financial pie that must be divided among the owners and the players. A knowledgeable league source tells me the NBA's league-wide revenues came in at an all-time high of $4.3 billion this season. The players, like any group of well-paid employees, want to keep their slice of the pie as large as possible, but the owners need to rein in their costs. How can they lower their expenses? The Atlanta Hawks' Etan Thomas, in a HoopsHype.com NBA blog, says the league's opening position in the bargaining was more like "a Christmas list to Santa Claus than an actual negotiation. The NBA expressed desires of a new imposed hard cap, removal of all guaranteed contracts, drastic economic concessions, and a guaranteed profit for each team. They wanted to ensure that no matter what poor business decisions teams make (economic, personal, et cetera) they can expect guaranteed profits." ESPN.com

CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 

Free agent center Etan Thomas is seriously considering an offer to play in Spain, Thomas’ manager Carlisle Sealy told HoopsHype. “He doesn’t see the lockout ending this season,” Sealy said. HoopsHype

Free Agency, Lockout, Spain, Etan Thomas 

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Atlanta Hawks player Etan Thomas wrote a very interesting article about the players viewpoint on the lockout. http://tinyurl.com/5vkwf5t Twitter

Etan Thomas, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 

Al Horford: Check out Etan Thomas article on hoopshype.com "United we Stand" Twitter

Atlanta Hawks, CBA, Al Horford, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Etan Thomas: In a similar manner, the NBA presented the Players Association with a proposal that appeared to be more like a Christmas List to Santa Claus than the start of an actual negotiation. The NBA expressed desires of a new imposed hard cap, removal of all guaranteed contracts, drastic economic concessions and a guaranteed profit for each team. They wanted to ensure that no matter what poor business decisions individual teams make (economic, personnel, etcetera) they all can expect guaranteed profits. HoopsHype

CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

The Players Association and the NBA have continued to talk in an attempt to reach some common ground, but our efforts have been thus far unsuccessful. While I appreciate the NBA taking the time to meet with the Players Association repeatedly and give, as David Stern called it, “virtually the best shot we think we have to avoid a work stoppage,” I have to respectfully take issue with the their approach. Last Tuesday, David Stern felt it appropriate to reveal detailed information about the league’s salary cap proposal and as a result I feel the need to put it all in perspective just so everyone has a clear understanding of what is going on without the Fox News-type spin. HoopsHype

CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas 

Changing the language in how a hard cap is defined does not change it from in fact being a hard cap. The term “flex cap” may sound nice, but at the end of the day it’s still a hard cap. The NBA’s “concession” of backing off their desire for non-guaranteed contracts, but implementing a hard cap system is fool’s gold. It absolutely does us no good. There would still be roll backs. Each contract would have to conform to a hard cap system, meaning they could be reduced by as much as a third depending on the actual hard number agreed upon. It would cut out the middle class completely. Two guys may be able to obtain an actual contract while it will be difficult for the rest of the team to get guaranteed deals, etcetera, etcetera. HoopsHype

CBA, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, NBPA, Etan Thomas