8 I Tuesday, July 27,2010
Hornets GM confident Paul will stay
By the Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS - Hornets star
guard Chris Paul did not request a
trade Monday in his meeting with
new coach Monty
Williams and top , JR ,
team officials,
general manager
Dell Demps said.
Demps, essentially in his first
day on the job since his hiring last
week, added that he was confident
Paul would still be with New
Orleans when the coming season
opens.
The meeting was held at an
undisclosed downtown location
before Demps made his way back
to the Hornets' corporate offices
to meet with reporters.
Although Paul did not speak
with the media, the team released
statement from him that indicated
the three-time All-Star was
encouraged by the Hornets’
recent coaching and front-office
overhaul.
"The meeting went well. It was
great to get an opportunity to sit
down with coach Williams, presi
dent Weber and our new general
manager, Dell Demps,” Paul’s
statement said.
"I expressed my desire to win
and I like what they said about the
direction that they want to take
the team. I have been a Hornet my
Hinrich adjusting to rebuilding Wizards, Wall
By The Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Kirk Hinrich
still remembers his surprise and
dismay being traded to the
Washington Wizards.
That was more than a month
ago. Now he gets to help John
Wall adjust to the NBA.
"Whenever you get the No. 1
pick and a guy has talented as
John, you have the young cast
around him, it’s a sense of
rebuilding,” Hinrich said
Monday. "But I feel like we have
the talent and if we play the right
way and consistently play hard
every night, I feel like we can sur
prise a lot of people.”
Hinrich originally said he was
a bit surprised when the Chicago
Bulls dealt him in June to free up
cap space for a free-agent class
that included Leßron James.
While admitting that he has
"maybe a little bit” of a chip on
his shoulder following the deal,
Hinrich emphasized his enthusi
asm over the new start.
“I’m very appreciative of my
time in Chicago, they gave me an
opportunity to first of all become
a pro player and then grow as
one.” Hinrich said. "I was in
Chicago for so long and I appreci
ate my opportunity, but I’m excit
ed to go to a new organization.
It’s like almost coming into the
league again. I’m very motivated
and excited to play great basket
ball.”
Hinrich, who averaged 13.4
points and 5.8 assists for the
Bulls since being drafted seventh
overall in 2003, from a playoff
Bengals owner would sign Owens
By Joe Kay
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
CINCINNATI - Bengals owner
Mike Brown is trying to produce
his own reality show.
Terrell Owens.
Chad Ochocinco.
Together in
'mcinnal
Brown said on Monday that the
team has discussed a contract
with Owens and his agent, Drew
Rosenhaus. The Bengals passed
on the chance to sign the 36-year
old receiver after a tryout in
March, but have given it more
thought now that he remains a
free agent.
If Owens accepts the offer; the
Bengals would lead the league in
reality show stars. Receiver Chad
Ochocinco appeared on “Dancing
With the Stare” in the offseason,
and has a dating show called
“Ochocinco: The Ultimate Catch”
currently playing on VHI. Right
after Ochocinco’s show comes
“The T.O. Show.”
While Ochocinco eliminated two
contestants in his recent show,
Owens donned a metrosexual look
for a fashion show bare chest
under an open jacket and a wig.
What they’d do together in a
locker room would get some atten
tion, too.
Brown noted that Owens caught
the winning 57-yard touchdown
pass in Dallas’ 31-22 victory over
the Bengals in 2008.
“I think that I would rather have
him line up on our side of the ball
than the other side of the ball,”
Brown said, at the team’s annual
preseason luncheon. “I can
remember playing Dallas a few
years ago when he caught a pass
across the middle that won the
game for them.
entire career and I hope to repre
sent the city of New Orleans and
state of Louisiana for many years
to come.”
Paul has two years remaining
before he can opt out of his cur
rent contract with the Hornets.
However, he said at his charity golf
outing earlier this month that he
would welcome a trade if the
Hornets did not demonstrate a
willingness to give him a support
ing cast that would make the club
good enough to compete with any
team in the NBA.
Only days after making that
statement, Paul fired his agent
and hired Leon Rose, who also
represents Leßron James. Paul
also agreed to work with James’
LRMR marketing agency.
Soon after, Paul’s representa
tives told the Hornets that Paul
was interested in being traded,
but the Hornets countered by
scheduling a meeting in New
Orleans that included Demps,
Williams and team president
Hugh Weber, Paul’s brother, C.J.
Paul, and Rose.
“It was a very productive meet
ing. I was encouraged,” Demps
said.
“It was the first time I met
Chris. It was a good opportunity
for us to open the lines of commu
nication. Chris had some very
good points. ... He was energetic,
Kirk Hinrich (middle) talks to reporters after joining the Wizards,
team to one that won 26 games.
“The direction we are trying to
go obviously we are building
but when you build you also
need some veterans, some lead
ers, players that have been
through the wars before,”
Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld said,
“ifirk is definitely one of those
players. He’s been a winner his
whole career in college and in the
pros.... We expect him to provide
a lot of leadership on our team.”
In Chicago, Hinrich played
alongside and mentored Bulls
point guard Derrick Rose, who,
like Wall, was the first player
selected when he entered the
league in 2008.
“I really feel like I got too much
credit. He was very good.”
Hinrich said. “I think most of it
was by example. That’s the way I
lead. I became more vocal as I
get to know my teammates bet
ter and I’ve gotten older. I’m just
“So I've seen him do it. I’ve seen
him do it against us. I’d like him to
be here and do that against some
body else.”
So would Ochocinco, who is a
close friend and lobbied unsuc
cessfully for the Bengals to sign
Owens in March.
Instead, they chose receiver
Antonio Bryant and gave him a
four-year deal.
One change since then:
Cincinnati’s quarterback has
joined the lobbying effort. Carson
Palmer has been working out with
Owens in California, and excitedly
called coach Marvin Lewis about
making a run to sign the receiver.
“Carson was really impressed
with a lot of the things that Terrell
was doing,” Lewis said. “Carson’s
comments to me I guess the
Terrell Owens could be heading to
the Bengals this season.
SPORTS
he was open, he was honest. He
showed that he wants to win, and
that’s what we want to do, as well.”
Williams and Weber stood near
by but did not comment as Demps
discussed the meeting with Paul,
which Demps said lasted about an
90 minutes.
While Paul cannot force a trade,
the Hornets opted to trade Baron
Davis during the 2004-05 season
when he had a falling out with the
club. New Orleans then began a
rebuilding process that essentially
began with the drafting of Paul in
the summer of 2005. Paul went on
to become rookie of the year and
quickly became the face of the
franchise.
Demps said he hoped Paul
would not become disruptive as
long as he remains in New
Orleans.
Demps did not go into detail
about the Hornets’ presentation to
Paul. He said for competitive rea
sons he needed to keep much of
what they discussed private.
The Hornets’ payroll is close to
the NBA’s luxury tax threshold,
and team officials have said they
do not want to pay the tax or take
on new debt while a planned sale
of the club from majority owner
George Shinn to his partner, Gary
Chouest, is pending.
Still, Demps asserted, “There’s
always ways to be creative.”
excited to have a chance to play
with John. He’s a very athletic
and talented young kid and I’m
just excited to play with him.”
The Wizards currently have
eight players on the roster 25
years old or younger, including
four rookies.
Gilbert Arenas, who was sus
pended for 50 games last season
for bringing guns to the locker
room, will also return.
That leaves the Wizards with
three players who are primarily
point guards.
Though Grunfeld emphasized
that Hinrich is a “very, very ver
satile player.”
“I probably feel more comfort
able playing the one, its a little
easier,” Hinrich said. “But I feel I
am very capable of playing both
positions and starting in training
camp, that’s going to be a chal
lenge, trying to figure exactly
where I fit in.”
word is they resonate well.”
The final say rests with Brown,
who has a history of giving
chances to players with trouble in
their past. He repeatedly brought
back receiver Chris Henry, who
was arrested five times and died
last year in a fall off his fiancee’s
truck.
In an interview with The
Associated Press earlier this
month, Owens pointed out that he
was on good behavior last season
in Buffalo, where he caught 55
passes for 829 yards and five
touchdowns Ids least-produc
tive full season since early in his
career with San Francisco.
“Yes, people can make mis
takes,” Brown said. “It doesn’t
mean that they go on the rest of
their lives making mistakes. They
can get their ship pointed in the
right direction. This is a 36-year
old man. He’s been through a lot.”
Brown formed his opinion about
Owens during a one-on-one meet
ing last March in conjunction with
his tryout.
“When he was here, I was sur
prised,” Brown said. “I met with
him personally and privately. He is
not at all the way his public image
is depicted. He’s a pleasant per
son, a quiet person. I found him
engaging. And I do trust my own
eyes on this sort of thing. I think
that if he chose to come here, that
he could help our team, and we’ll
see how that plays out. It’s going
to be his decision.”
Lewis had to defend against
Owens throughout his career.
The St. Louis Rams reportedly
are also interested in Owens.
If he chooses Cincinnati, he
could be paired on the outside
with Ochocinco. Lewis said
Bryant could move into an inside
slot position.
Bitl Kostroun/AP
Chris Paul takes a break during a game last season. Paul met with team
officials on Monday to discuss the state of the Hornets and his future.
McGrady works out
with Bulls, wants deal
By Andrew Seligman
AP SPORTS WRITER
CHICAGO - Seven-time All-
Star Tracy McGrady worked out
for the Chicago Bulls on Monday
with hopes of landing with the
team he turned down a decade
earlier.
McGrady could be a low-risk
addition for a reconfigured team
coming off back-to-back first
round playoff exits. The Bulls
wouldn’t have to pay him much
and could refuse to fully guaran
tee the deal if they make an offer,
but there are big questions sur
rounding his health.
The two-time scoring champion
had microfracture surgery on his
left knee in February 2009 and
appeared in just 30 games last
season with New York and
Houston, averaging 8.2 points.
Besides concerns about his condi
tion, another issue is whether he'll
accept a more limited role.
On his Twitter account in the
past week, McGrady praised the
Bulls and referenced the
courtship 10 years ago when he
was one of the top prizes in a free
agent class that included Grant
Hill and Tim Duncan.
A three-piece band, cheerlead
ers, team mascot Benny the Bull
and then-general manager Jerry
Krause greeted him at O’Hare,
The Daily Collegian
but with little talent in place, the
Bulls struck out. McGrady wound
up leaving Toronto for Orlando,
instead.
Chicago went after top prizes
Leßron James, Dwyane Wade
and Chris Bosh.
They decided to former a
superstar trio in Miami, and the
Bulls landed two-time All-Star for
ward Carlos Boozer, sharpshooter
Kyle Korver and guard Ronnie
Brewer, who all played together in
Utah.
They also added backup guard
C.J. Watson and signed veteran
forward Kurt Thomas to a one
year deal in a move that was
announced on Monday, giving
them a strong defender and
rebounder to go with Boozer and
Noah. And they have a new coach
in Tom Thibodeau.
“I’ve been looking forward to
seeing Thibodeau get a head
coaching job for a number of
years,” said Thomas, who played
for New York when Thibodeau
was a Knicks assistant.
“He definitely put in his time.
He’s a hard worker. He’s very pas
sionate about the game. And to
finally see him get this opportuni
ty and be a part of it is definitely a
blessing.”
The new coach, new additions
and core that was in place were
big draws for Thomas.