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Government shutdown didn’t scar Minnesota budget

Minnesota’s historic state government shutdown had essentially zero impact on the state budget, actually saving the state a tiny sliver of money, according to a report released Tuesday.

The 20-day break in service cost the state nearly $60 million in lost revenue and shutdown-related costs, but taxpayers saved $65 million in salaries from the 19,000 state workers who were laid off.

Further muting the impact were court orders that restored about 80 percent of state funding during the closure, mostly for health and human service needs for Minnesota’s poorest and most vulnerable residents.

"The economic impact, by and large, was blunted by the court-ordered spending," Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Jim Schowalter said.

The 44-page report indicated that the shutdown did not have the dire economic consequences predicted by a chorus of political leaders on both sides. The report offered the most complete snapshot of the workings during the state government shutdown, which began July 1 when DFL Gov. Mark Dayton and Republican legislative leaders were unwilling to strike a deal to resolve the state’s $5 billion deficit.

"The broad economic impact didn’t really occur," Schowalter said.

Schowalter said the shutdown’s major effects were not purely economic. He said the shutdown damaged the state’s reputation with lenders, caused hardship for state workers and created countless hassles for Minnesotans.

The aggravation of the shutdown built slowly for Minnesotans, throwing thousands of professionals into limbo as their state licenses began to expire. As it progressed, the shutdown delayed road construction projects, closed state parks and eventually capped the flow of alcohol to some bars and liquor stores.

Schowalter painted a harrowing picture of state budget leaders plunging into high-risk chaos as they were forced to create an entirely new budgeting infrastructure to handle the state’s day-to-day finances.

As the nation’s eyes turned toward Minnesota’s hobbled government, budget officials secretly lived in fear the state’s computers would become a prime target for hackers looking to create high-profile mischief.

Schowalter’s biggest surprise was that no catastrophes emerged, that "nothing blew up."

"The governor and legislative leaders understood it was dangerous from the very beginning," he added.

Schowalter said the state is bracing for lawsuits from contractors and vendors who lost out during the shutdown, which could cause its costs to rise.

"There are likely to be lingering impacts," Schowalter said.

The report offered a rare glimpse at the inner workings of state government during the closure.

To keep the skeletal state government running, 13,000 employees were deemed critical and continued working, costing $102.9 million. About 125 employees never returned to work, including several scooped up by the private sector.

Of the 19,000 workers who were laid off, all but 2,000 filed for unemployment insurance, costing the state more than $10 million for its share of the benefit.

The state’s failure to collect delinquent taxes cost $33.5 million, its most significant loss of revenue. The state also lost $10 million in lottery revenue and $3.5 million from the lost state campground fees and lost sales of hunting and fishing licenses.

"I am grateful that the report concludes there was no net cost to Minnesota taxpayers," Dayton said in a statement. "Unfortunately, it also shows that the worst financial hardship fell upon state employees."

The end of the shutdown in late July also put a point on one of the stormiest political seasons at the Capitol in state history. For months Republicans had refused to accept Dayton’s proposed tax increases while the governor stood firm against their desire for deeper cuts.

Ultimately, Dayton agreed to accept a Republican budget solution that met his spending requirements but which delayed more payments to K-12 schools and sold high-interest bonds backed by tobacco settlement money to close the gap.

Assistant Senate Majority Leader David Hann held a news conference immediately after the release of the report to put the blame on Dayton.

"It was completely unnecessary," said Hann, R-Eden Prairie. "We didn’t need to do this, and we didn’t need to act this way."

He vowed to support legislation that would prevent or limit future state government shutdowns.

Soon afterward, Dayton’s office issued an amended statement, adding: "Minnesotans know that it was the Republican legislators’ refusal to consider a reasonable and balanced solution, which caused the shutdown."

Baird Helgeson • 651-222-1288

For all the talk of CP3, Rip Hamilton’s move will affect Heat more

Richard Hamilton will be 34 in February.

Yet, there he was last March, looking anything but done, curling around screens, slithering to the rim, and sinking 9-of-16 shots on his way to 27 points.

Detroit lost to the Heat that night, as the Pistons lost to most teams last season.

But Hamilton showed that he can still be a nuisance in the right circumstance.

So the Thursday night NBA move that will matter most to the Heat this season wasn’t the trade of Chris Paul to the Clippers for four assets, most notably the rights to Eric Gordon, who just might the next scoring title.

The move that mattered most was Hamilton, as expected, signing with the Bulls.

Chicago desperately needed another creator in the backcourt to complement Derrick Rose. While Hamilton isn’t exactly that, he will do something that the other Bulls guards — from Keith Bogans to Ronnie Brewer to Kyle Korver — couldn’t do last season:

He will make Dwyane Wade work on defense.

Surely, Pat Riley anticipated this, and is another reason why the Shane Battier signing made so much sense.

With potential playoff matchups against savvy, screen-using veterans (from UConn) Hamilton and Ray Allen looming, it will help the Heat to have Battier around to take some of that burden.

If there’s anyone more annoying as a defender than Hamilton and Allen are as scorers, it’s Battier.

Tags: Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat, Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Shane Battier

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 14th, 2011 at 10:57 pm and is filed under 2010-11 season. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Yu Darvish to Texas?

I was cruising the MLB page on ESPN.com today and found an interesting article by senior writer David Schoenfield about the Rangers landing the Yu Darvish – the half Iranian, half Japanese right-hander currently considered the top pitcher in Japan.

The bidding process for Darvish ends tonight at 5:00 ET with teams submitting bids to negotiate with Darvish. The highest bidder then has 30 days to sign him.

According to Schoenfield:

“Those who have seen Darvish say he can be a No. 1 pitcher over here. Mets manager Terry Collins, who managed against Darvish in Japan, raved about him at the winter meetings. Davey Johnson has also managed against him and called him a ‘big, strong hard-thrower. Throws a lot like Americans. … That guy is going to be expensive,’ he said at the winter meetings. “

Schoenfield goes on to write that the signing of Darvish would allow former RoughRider Alexi Ogando to return to the bullpen where could be a dominant setup man for the newly acquired Joe Nathan.

Darvish would no doubt bring even more national media exposure to Arlington and has the potential to be a major asset to the rotation. However, teams need to be ready to pay. Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports estimates it will cost anywhere between $30 million – $70 million to just win the rights to talk with the righty.

Many remember the overall failed experiment that was Daisuke Matsuzaka. Following the 2006 season, the Red Sox donated $51.1 million to win the bid to speak with the Japanese pitcher, then signed him to a six-year, $52 million contract.

No matter what the figure turns out to be, time is almost up in the Yu Darvish sweepstakes.

Chicago Bulls, Richard Hamilton agree to deal

DEERFIELD — As Richard Hamilton and the Chicago Bulls put the finishing touches on a contract, Derrick Rose couldn't stop beaming Wednesday night.

"With him, I'm going to have a lot more assists this year," the star point guard said.

The Bulls made it official Wednesday night and announced they signed Hamilton to boost a backcourt that already included Rose, the league's MVP.

Terms were not released, but a person familiar with the situation said earlier in the day it's a three-year, $15 million deal. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the contract had not been finalized.

The Chicago Tribune, citing sources, reported the team holds an option for the third year. If the Bulls don't exercise it, he receives some partial guarantees.

Either way, Hamilton is officially a member of the Bulls.

"We are excited to welcome a player, and person, with the credentials of Richard Hamilton to our organization," general manager Gar Forman said in a statement. "Rip has been a winner at every level. His resume speaks for itself, and we are confident that he will be an excellent fit with our team, both on and off the floor."

The three-time All-Star cleared waivers as expected after being bought out by Detroit this week, ending a nine-year run in which the Pistons won a championship and regularly made the Eastern Conference finals.

The 6-foot-7 Hamilton gives Chicago another scoring option along with the height it was seeking in the backcourt.

Hamilton was due to make $19 million guaranteed over the final two years of his contract in Detroit but was bought out for $11 million, saving the rebuilding team $4 million in cap space this year and $4 million more next season.

Entering his 13th year in the league, he joins a team that led the NBA with 62 wins last season and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals before losing to Miami.

The Bulls are looking for more.

With Rose and one of the league's deepest rosters, they believed they were in position to make another big run whether they added a shooting guard or not. Hamilton should help take some of the scoring load off Rose, but he is also coming off a difficult season at age 33. He and some of his teammates clashed with former coach John Kuester, and he averaged just 14.1 points per game, his lowest since his rookie season.

The Pistons had planned to reload with Hamilton when they traded Chauncey Billups to Denver in 2008, but they've been struggling ever since.

During the good times, though, Hamilton was one of the best players on a team that reached at least the conference finals six straight years and captured the championship in 2004. He has averaged 17.7 points in a career that started in 1999 with Washington and flourished in Detroit after being acquired in the Jerry Stackhouse trade.

"It's going to open up everybody's game," Rose said. "With me working on my 3-point shooting, me kicking to him, him kicking it back to me, me making it to the corner, to Lu (Luol Deng), him making shots — I think it's going to open up everyone's game. Everybody's going to have open shots."

Relentlessly running around screens to set up his mid-range jump shots, Hamilton averaged more than 20 points over 120 playoff games with the Pistons and led them in scoring in eight of his nine regular seasons there.

He is one of four active players — Dirk Nowitzki, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan are the others — and 20 in NBA history who have averaged at least 20 points over 120 postseason games, according to STATS LLC.

Bulls players have praised Hamilton in recent days. Joakim Noah also went out of his way to compliment Ronnie Brewer on Wednesday.

"I think (Hamilton) would be a great addition to our team," Noah said. "He's obviously a hell of a player, but Ronnie's been having a great camp right now."

Hamilton will have to be a quick study, as will anyone else the Bulls add.

They open the season against the Lakers in Los Angeles on Dec. 25, and they only have two preseason games — at Indiana on Friday and at home against the Pacers next Tuesday.

If Hamilton practices Thursday, would the Bulls use him right away?

"If we sign a player and he's ready to go, yeah," coach Tom Thibodeau said, before the announcement was made. "Just like everyone else, we'll evaluate him once he's here. We'll see what he can do, and then we'll move forward."

Could a newcomer play Friday?

"You can't answer that until you see him," Thibodeau said. "It's similar, if you sign somebody now, to making a trade. The thing that's different is you're coming out of the offseason, and you don't know where guys are, conditioning-wise. But we'll see."

Thibodeau did concede that veterans "pick up things a lot quicker," and Deng thinks he'll have no trouble getting acclimated quickly. He said the Bulls' sets are similar to Detroit's, and Rose's ability to set up teammates should make things easier for Hamilton.

Deng said "you can sense everyone is excited for him to be here."

But he also cautioned: "You name any big-name player and you fit him to any team, it always sounds great. It's up to us to spend a lot of time together and make it work. Having a lot of guys coming back from last year, I think it's going to help out a lot."

Browns QB Colt McCoy not at practice after suffering concussion « The Chronicle-Telegram – Lorain County’s leading news source

BEREA – Browns quarterback Colt McCoy wasn’t on the field for practice this morning in the 10 minutes open to the media.

He suffered a concussion Thursday night in the 14-3 loss to Pittsburgh but finished the game. He took a helmet-to-helmet shot from Steelers linebacker James Harrison.

Coach Pat Shurmur said Friday that McCoy didn’t exhibit any symptoms until after the game. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported Sunday the league’s initial review determined the Browns’ medical staff didn’t administer the standard concussion test on the sideline before McCoy returned after missing only two plays.

Shurmur will meet with reporters after practice.

Tight end Benjamin Watson and fullback Owen Marecic, who were knocked out of Thursday’s game with concussions, also weren’t at practice.

Watson has suffered three concussions this season but hasn’t missed a game. This is Marecic’s second concussion in the last four games. He sustained one Nov. 20, then missed the Bengals game Nov. 27.

The media were only allowed to watch stretching, so it was impossible to determine which players in attendance were able to do what. But safety T.J. Ward (foot), receiver Joshua Cribbs (groin), right guard Shawn Lauvao (ankle), right tackle Tony Pashos (ankle), running back Peyton Hillis (hip) and running back Montario Hardesty (calf) were on the field.

Ward has missed the last five games.

Linebacker Scott Fujita, who’s on injured reserve with a broken right hand, watched from the sideline. It was the first time he’s been seen by reporters since having surgery Dec. 6.

CHECK BACK FOR FURTHER UPDATES.

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Rams flop again on Monday Night Football

SEATTLE — The Not-Ready-For-Prime-Time Rams bombed again on thebig stage Monday night, losing to the Seattle Seahawks 30-13 anddropping to 2-11 for the season.

The Rams also lost their second game of the season on an ESPNMonday Night Football telecast, falling to the New York Giants28-16.

Seattle (6-7) remains mathematically alive for a wild-cardplayoff berth after beating St. Louis for the 13th time in the last14 matchups.

Playing on a bad ankle, Sam Bradford started at quarterback forthe Rams but completed only 12 of 28 passes for 193 yards — 50 ofthem on a screen pass to Steven Jackson.

The Rams have scored an NFL-low 153 points for the season. Eventhe 0-13 Indianapolis Colts have scored 184.

Second-half update:

Sam Bradford’s first pass of the second half was a wretched one— he badly underthrew Brandon Lloyd and was intercepted bySeattle’s Brandon Browner at the St. Louis 34. The Seahawks droveto the 5-yard line but the Rams held, and Stephen Hauschka kicked a23-yard field to boost Seattle’s lead to 13-3.

Will the Rams score another touchdown this season? AfterHauschka missed a 38-yard FG try late in the third quarter, theRams quickly moved into scoring position when Stephen Jackson tooka screen pass from Bradford and raced 50 yards to the Seattle20.

A pass interference penalty in the end zone gave the Rams afirst-and-goal at the 1. Here are the four plays that followed:

1st down: Jackson loses a yard by running into his own lineman,Adam Goldberg.

2nd down: Bradford is flagged for intentional grounding.

3rd down: Bradford throws out of bounds on a fade route byBrandon Lloyd.

4th down: Josh Brown kicks a 29-yard field goal with 1:49 leftin the third quarter.

Seattle’s Leon Washington returned the ensuing kickoff to the50-yard line, and with six seconds left in the third quarter, QBTarvaris Jackson connected on a 29-yard touchdown pass to DougBaldwin for a 20-6 lead.

Hauschka added a 48-yard field goal at 8:27 of the fourthquarter to make it 23-6.

Finally, the Rams made it into the end zone with 4:39 remainingin the game, but only after a maddening series of plays. A passinterference penalty game them a first-and-goal again at the 1.Three plays later, they still had not scored, but got another firstdown at the 1 after a taunting penalty against the Seahawks.

After two more incompletions, the Rams finally gave the ball toSteven Jackson, who bulled in from the 1 and cut the deficit to23-13.

Seattle gained possession after the Rams’ onside kick attemptfailed to travel 10 yards, and the Seahawks tacked on a 16-yard TDrun by Marshawn Lynch with 2:57 remaining in the game.

Halftime update:

The Rams drove to the Seattle 25 early in the second quarter butslipped into reverse after QB Sam Bradford was sacked by A.J.Wright, who blew past Rams tight end Billy Bajema. Josh Brown’s46-yard field goal cut Seattle’s lead to 10-3 with 11:04 remainingin the half.

With 6:42 left, the Rams went for the first down on 4th-and-1 atthe Seattle 36. Bradford rolled out for a play-action pass butunderthrew Danario Alexander, who had been held late on the play bySeattle’s Richard Sherman. No flag was thrown.

The Rams were handed one more opportunity with 1:58 left in thehalf when linebacker Brady Poppinga recovered Marshawn Lynch’sfumble at the St. Louis 29.

But the Rams used only 47 seconds in going three-and-out; two ofthe three St. Louis plays were poorly thrown passes by Bradford,who completed only five of 13 attempts for 59 yards in the firsthalf.

First quarter-update:

Only five minutes into the game, the Seattle Seahawks took a 7-0lead over the sad-sack Rams by returning a blocked punt for atouchdown. Doug Baldwin broke through to smother Donnie Jones’kick, and Michael Robinson scooped it up at the Rams’ 17 and ran itin for the TD. It’s the first time in four seasons with the Ramsthat Jones has had a punt blocked.

Stephen Hauschka’s 42-yard field goal with 1:40 left in thequarter boosted Seattle’s lead to 10-0.

PREGAME UPDATE

It’s back in the saddle tonight for St. Louis Rams quarterbackSam Bradford.

After missing last week’s game in San Francisco, Bradford willstart against the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football,according to team sources.

Bradford aggravated a left high ankle sprain Nov. 27 againstArizona which forced him to miss the 49ers game.

After resting and rehabbing the ankle throughout the practiceweek, Bradford got limited work in Saturday’s practice at Rams Parkand came through fine.

ROBBINS, BRANDSTATER INACTIVE

Back problems will sideline veteran defensive tackle FredRobbins for the first time in his two seasons with the Rams.Robbins, who didn’t practice all week, was among the pre-gameinactives for St. Louis prior to tonight’s contest with the SeattleSeahawks.

Signed as a free agent from the New York Giants prior to the2010 season, Robbins was very effective last season, with stout rundefense and a career-high six sacks. But he hasn’t been much of afactor this season, with a modest 25 tackles and one sack in theRams’ first 12 games.

Robbins came out of training camp with back problems, so itmight be something that has affected him much of the year. GaryGibson is expected to start in his place, leaving Darell Scott asthe only backup defensive tackle tonight.

Other Rams inactives tonight: QB A.J. Feeley (thumb), QB TomBrandstater, RB Quinn Porter (abdomen), FB Brit Miller (knee), LBJustin Cole, and G/T Kevin Hughes.

With Feeley and Brandstater down, Kellen Clemens will back upSam Bradford. With Porter down, Nick Miller is the most likelycandidate to return kickoffs.

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SLAM ONLINE

While pro hoopers tend to reach the peak of their abilities in the NBA, we take pride in the fact that we begin covering the world’s best players before they’re the world’s best players: when they’re in high school, still unknown to the majority of the basketball world. This week and next we’ll be looking back at the PUNKS features that introduced a variety of current NBAers to our faithful readers. Up first: the Vince Carter piece below, originally printed in SLAM 7 (September ’95).—Ed.

Forty-Five minutes west of Disney World and Shaq-Diesel is in Daytona Beach, Florida, a city that previously conjured up visions of Richard Petty’s 185 mph around the 500 speedway. That was then…this is now, and now the entire region has been mesmerized by a b-ball player dubbed “the smoothest swingman since Benny Goodman.” The future of basketball has arrived, folks. His name is Vincent Lamar Carter.

A 197 lb., silk-smooth off-guard, Carter, whose nickname is VI, is called upon to patrol both the perimeter and the post, which he does with Pippen-like efficiency and ferocity.

“It’s going to help me,” Carter says, concerning his time spent in the paint. “I now have post moves that will give me an advantage over most shooting guards.”

Carter, who wears No. 15, spent the 1994-95 season emerging as the 13th annual Mr. Basketball in Florida, as well as locking up honors in USA Today, Parade Magazine and McDonald’s first team All-American. VI also led the Mainland High Bucs’ to a No. 16 national ranking and the 6A state championship, scoring a triple-double—22 points, 16 rebounds and 10 blocks—in the title game.

One key to the Bucs’ title run, however, was a mid-season talk Mainland High’s Coach Charles Brinkerhoff had with a few of Carter’s teammates about not getting the pill in its star’s hands enough.

Coach Brinkerhoff simply gathered the individuals together and said, as quoted in the March 26, 1995 issue of the Daytona Beach News-Journal, “Let me introduce you to Vince Carter, he’s an All-American. All of you are good basketball players, but Vince Carter is a great player. If you think you are better than he is, you can go to another school and we’ll do an isolation against you, and after you get the Nike print off your forehead, then we’ll see how you rate.”

The Bucs’ got the hint, but instead of seeing an increase in Carter’s ppg, VI’s teammates found themselves on the receiving end of some wicked dishes.

“Vince is the best guard in his class,” says Bob Gibbons, a talent scout who rates Carter, Kevin Garnett, Ron Mercer and Robert Traylor as the top four seniors in the country. “He has the heart of a champion and he’s one of the most athletically gifted young men I’ve seen in the twenty years I’ve been covering high-school basketball. He’s a Jordanesque player with incredible leaping ability and hangtime.”

But hangtime isn’t the only similarity VI shares with MJ. Come this fall, Vince is taking his 19.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 4.1 apg and a 2.97 g.p.a. to the University of North Carolina. “I’m preparing myself beyond college,” Carter explains. “I dream about making the NBA. If I just wanted to be the star of the team, I probably would go to Florida or Florida State.” No offense to ‘Da Meat Hook or JC, but hey, it’s true!

Vince’s main focus is on fine-tuning his game at both ends of the court, and in choosing Dean Smith, he’s got the best mechanics in the business.

John Gabriel, VP of Basketball Operations-Player Personnel for the Orlando Magic agrees: “Vince’s choice of UNC will serve him well. UNC is a plus-four school, meaning that if I rate a player as the tenth best in the NBA Draft, being a Tar Heel automatically jumps him to number six. The plus-four rating is based upon the success of former Tar Heels in the NBA.” (Do the names Worthy and Perkins ring a bell?)

On the hardwood, Vince wants to be an extension of his coach. “I want to earn the confidence of my teammates,” he says, “so that in tight situations, if we need a big basket or a stop on ‘D’, they can count on me to step up and make things happen.”

He’s legit, and unlike Rush Limbaugh, Carter can go to the left as easily as he goes to the right. In a game against Socastee, in Myrtle Beach, he chipped a bone in his right wrist after being undercut on a breakaway jam. Unaware of the severity of the injury, VI returned. “I couldn’t use my right hand,” says Carter. “It was taped heavily and I felt a lot of pain, so I switched to my left. I went four of six at the line, and finished with 25 points. I even got a (southpaw) dunk.”

So, who is responsible for creating this monster of hoops? Is there a Dr. Frankenstein in the house? Yes, and this acorn didn’t fall far from the tree. It’s Vince’s uncle, Oliver Lee. Lee, a 1981 NBA draft pick of the Chicago Bulls who led Marquette University in scoring and rebounding in ‘81, got VI fixated on hoops at the age of two. Sixteen years later, Vince is posterizing local prep stars like 6-7 forward Tim James of Miami Northwestern.

One last piece of advice to Coach K, Bobby Cremins and the rest of the ACC: Don’t schedule UNC on January 26; it’s Vince’s birthday. So what, you say? Consider this: Last year instead of blowing out candles, Vince was busy torching Lake Mary High, posting 26 points, 16 rebounds, 8 assists and 17 blocks. Yes, 17 blocks. Yes, he’s a two. It was the worst M & M’er since the lickin’ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar got vs. Bruce Lee in The Game of Death.

If the proof is in the pudding, VI’s game could have Bill Cosby grinning ear to ear. 100 percent Jello, baby.

16 Responses to “Carter Country”

NBA free agency begins, furious activity expected

NEW YORK – In what was supposed to be a grand time for the league, with the official start of training camp and free agency today, the NBA is off to a problematic start followed a contentious and exasperating lockout, which reduced the league’s normal 82-game team schedule to 66 games.

The league’s move to quash the trade of New Orleans Hornets All-Star guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers is being felt on many fronts — including at the start of the Lakers’ training camp Friday. Forward Pau Gasol, who would have been traded to the Hornets, showed up at camp but forward Lamar Odom, who was set to be traded to the Houston Rockets, was at the facility briefly and left.

Odom’s absence was not a complete surprise. He had told The Los Angeles Times on Thursday after the league nixed the trade: “You don’t want to go to no place you’re not wanted.”

Gasol wrote on Twitter: “New day my friends. n my way to El Segundo for the first day of training camp #staypositive #NBAisBack”

Paul showed up at the Hornets’ camp wearing a black team practice jersey.

“Of course, (Hornets general manager) Dell (Demps) and (coach) Monty (Williams) were very upset when everything fell through,” a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation. “They had spent a lot of time on it and they thought it was a great deal for the team.”

The Rockets would have sent forward Luis Scola, guards Kevin Martin and Goran Dragic and a first-round draft pick to New Orleans. Scola, Martin and Dragic all showed up at camp Friday. Scola even had a little fun with it, tweeting: “I’m on my way to the Toyota Center, this is going to be fun. The good thing is that the TC it’s on the way to the airport, just in case…”

In Houston, new coach Kevin McHale had to open camp under a cloud.

“I’ve got nothing to share. These guys are here today, we talked about it today. In the NBA, lots of stuff happens. A lot happens that’s really good, a lot happens sometimes that’s bad. I felt bad for those guys,” McHale said. “I felt terrible, seeing their names all over the place, they’re traded, they’re not traded.

“That’s very hard. I know sometimes, we all get into that, that they’re athletes and all of that. They’re human beings, and that’s a big change. I felt bad for them, but hey, we discussed it.”

Waiting on Chandler: The New York Knicks were expected to finalize the deal with free-agent center Tyson Chandler and sign him to a four-year, $58 million contract.

To complete that transaction, the Knicks will amnesty guard Chauncey Billups— waiving him without having his salary count against the cap or luxury tax. Billups came to New York from the Denver Nuggets in the Carmelo Anthony trade in February. The Knicks also will trade forward Rony Turiaf, with his landing spot yet to be determined.

With all the comings and goings Fridays, the Knicks had only seven players available to open practice.

Chandler averaged 10.1 points and 9.4 rebounds last season and was the defensive anchor as the Dallas Mavericks won their first NBA championship.

Chandler was supposed to arrive in New York today, but it is not known if he will be at the team’s training facility for practice, which was scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET.

Billups, who was not thrilled about last season’s trade, which removed him from his hometown and family in Denver, was not happy about the Knicks’ decision to use the amnesty provision. Billups, not in the mood to speak to news reporters, flew home to Denver.

Billups will still be paid the $14 million he is due this season (prorated by a 66-game season). Now, he will go through a waiver process that makes him available to teams under the salary cap. If he clears waivers, he is free to sign with the team of his choice.

His new team and the Knicks will be responsible for paying Billups.

Under the new collective bargaining agreement, teams not having to pay the luxury tax for going over the cap will submit bids for the waived player’s service. The highest bidder wins and the remaining portion of the player’s contract will be paid by the team that amnestied him.

So, if a team acquires Billups with a high bid of, say, $2 million, the Knicks would pay the difference of his $14 million deal: $12 million.

• Free agent big man Jared Jeffries plans to re-sign with the Knicks for one year at the veteran’s minimum.

Magic consider tampering charges: The Orlando Magic might pursue tampering charges against two teams for speaking to center Dwight Howard in violation of league rules. They have not done so yet, according to a person with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

One of the teams could be New Jersey. The Nets denied wrongdoing.

“Contrary to published reports, the New Jersey Nets did not meet with Dwight Howard,” general manager Billy King said in a statement.

Howard’s agent Dan Fegan, said the Magic have given the center permission to speak to three teams.

Howard can become a free agent after the season and, like Paul, might decide not to sign an extension with the Magic. Orlando is preparing for that situation by entertaining offers for teams in trade, but the Magic contend the two undisclosed teams went too far in trying to gauge Howard’s interest in them.

•The Magic waived guard Gilbert Arenas, using the amnesty clause. Arenas played in 70 games last season, for both the Washington Wizards and the Magic, averaging a combined 10.8 points in 25.7 minutes.

• The agent for Magic forward Brandon Bass says Orlando is close to finalizing a trade that will send his client to Boston for Celtics forward Glen “Big Baby” Davis. … Orlando also signed free agent guards Larry Hughes and Gabe Pruitt, rookie forward Justin Harper (for a fully guaranteed two-year, $1.3 million deal) and rookie guard DeAndre Liggins.

Pistons part with Hamilton: The Detroit Pistons are working on a buyout deal with veteran guard Richard Hamilton, 33, who spent his nine-year career with the Pistons and led them to the 2004 NBA title. He had a falling out last season with coach John Kuester and was benched for most of a seven-week stretch. The two appeared to be on better terms toward the end of the season, but Hamilton averaged only 14.1 points and Kuester was replaced by Lawrence Frank.

Davis dilemma:Cleveland Cavaliers general manager Chris Grant says he has not decided to keep or waive veteran guard Baron Davis, who was acquired in a trade last season and would be due about $28 million in a buyout. They may do that to clear the way for No. 1 overall draft pick Kyrie Irving to be their starting point guard. Coach Byron Scott, a former standout NBA guard, was asked whether Davis would mentor Irving. “You know who the best mentor for Kyrie Irving is? You’re looking at him,” Scott said.

Suns’ moves: Free agent Grant Hill will re-sign with the Phoenix Suns for one year, $6.5 million, an increase of about $1.5 million, The Arizona Republic reported, as the veteran forward was being pursued by the Knicks, Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers. Hill, 39, is the second oldest player in the league.

But not returning is veteran guard Vince Carter, who was waived according to The Republic and is owed the guaranteed $4 million of his $18 million salary. Don’t be surprised if the Chicago Bulls make a run at Vince Carter for a bargain price.

The Suns also agreed to trade swingman Mickael Pietrus and cash to the Toronto Raptors for a conditional second-round pick, pending a physical. Pietrus underwent minor right knee surgery in July after the French national team declared him unable to play for them. Pietrus is in Toronto for the physical.

• Guard Sebastian Telfair signed with the Suns for one year, $1.5 million, with a partial second-year guarantee, and guard Shannon Brown, formerly with the Lakers, signed a one-year deal.

Robinson balks:Nate Robinson couldn’t crack the rotation with the Oklahoma City Thunder, so he’ll likely become a free agent. Robinson didn’t report to training camp Friday while the Thunder tried to work out a deal to buy him out. Robinson, 27, was traded with Kendrick Perkins from the Celtics to the Thunder late last season. He’s due to make $4.5 million in 2011-12. A 5-9 guard, Robinson only saw action in four regular-season games with the Thunder, averaging 3.3 points in 7.5 minutes.

Other deals: The Miami Heat will re-sign free agent guard Mario Chalmers, free agent swingman James Jones and forward Juwan Howard. And they were close to a deal for oft-injured center Eddy Curry. … The Celtics acquired veteran guard Keyon Dooling and a second-round pick from Milwaukee, giving the Bucks the rights to forward/center Albert Miralles. Dooling, heavily involved in the lockout negotiations as vice president of the players union, has career averages of 8.5 points and 42.1% on three-point shooting. Boston also announced it signed forward Chris Wilcox, who played for Detroit last season. The Celtics also signed Marquis Daniels and Greg Stiemsma. The Boston Herald reported the team has re-signed Jeff Green to a one-year deal, but it doesn’t appear former Hornet David West will be joining him. … The Mavericks signed free agent forward Brandon Wright, a former first-round pick. … The Lakers signed second-round picks in guards Darius Morris and Andre Goudelock and veteran shooting guard Jason Kapono. … The Nets signed first-round pick MarShon Brooks and second-round pick Jordan Williams. … The Philadelphia 76ers signed draft picks Nikola Vucevic and Lavoy Allen and free agents Antonio Anderson, Dwayne Jones, Mike Tisdale and Xavier Silas. … Portland and Greg Oden agreed to a restructured one-year contract after the oft-injured center had another setback in his rehabilitation from microfracture surgery on his left knee.

Bell in trouble:Golden State Warriors guard Charlie Bell wasn’t at training camp, which opened with just 11 players. Bell, 32, was jailed Thursday in his hometown of Flint, Mich., after showing up to court legally drunk for a hearing on his drunken driving case, ABC affiliate WJRT-TV reported.

Bell spent a few hours in custody after he failed a pre-scheduled alcohol assessment test before his case was heard. His blood-alcohol level was .09. The legal limit is .08.

“We are aware of the situation with Charlie Bell in Michigan and obviously are concerned about the report,” the team said in a statement. “At this point, due to the fact it’s a pending legal issue, we will have no further comment.”

• The Warriors signed guard Charles Jenkins, their second-round draft pick.

Contributing: Wire reportsFalgoust reported from McLean, Va.

Second season a new beginning for Fields

Fields worked out at the Knicks training facility with Anthony, Toney Douglas, Andy Rautins, first round pick Iman Shumpert and second round pick Josh Harrellson Monday. Fields’ promising rookie season abruptly ended in the days and weeks following the trade for Anthony. The low point came during the Knicks first round loss to Boston when Fields scored just seven total points in the four-game sweep.

"I think it was a number of things," Fields said. "Just trying to get used to the way we were playing and also 82 (games)… add on preseason, all the practices. It could have been a rookie wall. I definitely felt some fatigue toward the end. But I’m not here to make excuses I know this year is going to be a lot better."

Fields will enter training camp as the incumbent shooting guard but even he acknowledged that after the way last season ended that he "thought about" the Knicks bringing in someone to compete for the spot. In fact, the Knicks have expressed interest in Cavaliers free agent Anthony Parker.

Vince Carter could also be available but there are reports that Carter is considering the Bulls, Heat and Spurs.