Wednesday Bolts – 7.8.15

Tom Haberstroh of ESPN on contracts: “I asked around the league for some explanations for all the long-term deals and the responses were mixed. At least two executives I spoke with thought the widespread injuries had indeed motivated the players to go for the guaranteed cash long-term. Players became more risk-averse than usual. Hard to blame them. Beyond the anecdotal evidence of George, Irving and Durant, a study by ESPN Insider’s Kevin Pelton does show that stars were hurt more last season than any season in recent history. In addition, data from injury expert Jeff Stotts indicates that 4,665 man games were lost to injury or illness in 2014-15, which is the second-highest total in the last eight seasons (2013-14 was higher as it turns out).”

Darnell Mayberry: “Donovan acknowledged that there will be an adjustment period for the entire team, not just Westbrook and Durant. But after spending significant time in his first two months on the job meeting and talking with the majority of the players on the roster — including a recent lunch meeting in Los Angeles with Westbrook — Donovan thinks players are ready for a change, particularly Westbrook and Durant.”

A big long Q&A with Billy Donovan.

The thirsty D.C. media is translating KD’s quote about LaMarcus Aldridge: “I said this last year when Mr. James made his decision, it was pretty cool to see a guy do what he wants to do and not worry about what everybody thinks. I’m repeating it now because I want to make it clear that leaving to join your hometown team is a perfectly normal and justifiable thing to do and that I’m not going to lose an ounce of sleep in my luxurious bed in D.C. because some haters in Oklahoma City are mad I left.”

Ben Watanabe of NESN.com: “At the moment, the Celtics only have two players — Avery Bradley and Isaiah Thomas — with guaranteed contracts beyond next season, but the recently agreed upon deal with Jae Crowder and team options for Marcus Smart, Kelly Olynyk and James Young, as well as dedicated money for draft picks, would add to the amount on the books. Still, there could be plenty of space to sign Durant, Eric Gordon or any of a number of stars who could find themselves on the market.”

Jon Hamm for NewsOK: “However, such a scenario isn’t ideal for either Kanter or the Thunder. If Kanter gets injured or has a down season, it could negatively impact his plans to cash in next summer. As for the Thunder, they would be unable to trade him during that year without his consent. If Kanter agreed to any hypothetical trade, he would lose his valuable “Bird Rights,” the tool that would allow his team to exceed the salary cap in order to re-sign him. However, that might not be a huge drawback because the rising salary cap should leave the majority of the league with ample amounts of room under the salary cap.”