SH Blog: Utah Jazz acquire new GM, former player Dan Roundfield passed away trying to save wife

You know transactions in the NBA have drastically slowed down when Louis Amundson is the top free-agent interest of the day, with all due respect. Luckily, there are some other interesting news from around the league that you can find below, along with some sad news:

Dennis Lindsey is officially the new general manager of the Utah Jazz, according to Brian T. Smith. Here is a brief history on Lindsey: “Sixteen years after taking a pay cut just so he could trade the title of assistant men’s basketball coach at Pensacola (Fla.) Junior College for an NBA entry-level position, Lindsey was officially awarded a job Tuesday that instantly became a life-changer. Kevin O’Connor relinquished 13 years’ worth of responsibilities as the Jazz’s general manager, turning Utah’s day-to-day activities over to Lindsey. The well-respected and highly successful O’Connor will remain in his position as Utah’s executive vice president of basketball operations, pairing with Lindsey in the attempt to finally bring an NBA championship to Salt Lake City.”

Former player and all-star Dan Roundfield sadly passed away yesterday trying to save his wife, according to Michael Cunningham: “According to reports, Roundfield’s wife became distressed while swimming off of Baby Beach and Roundfield tried to assist her. The Aruba Herald reported that witnesses saw the woman return to shore but that Roundfield was taken out to sea. Authorities found Roundfield’s body under some rocks, the Herald reported. A police spokesman in Aruba told the Associated Press that Roundfield and his wife went beyond a protected reef area and got caught up in rough waters. The couple were vacationing at the Renaissance Resort.“It’s a real tragedy,” the spokesman, John Larmonie, told the AP. “He drowned saving his wife.”

Chris Tomasson has the update on the status of Louis Amundson and the list of teams that have interest: “A source close to free-agent forward Lou Amundson said Charlotte is looking at Amundson, and that it’s unlikely he would go to Greece. Panathinaikos has been mentioned as a possibility but the Amundson camp is wary about how Josh Childress’ game fell off after he went to play in Greece and returned to the NBA. The source said the New York Knicks are also looking at Amundson. However, the Knicks only can offer the minimum and Amundson is looking for a deal in the area of $3 million a season.”

Jessica Camerato talks about the teacher-student relationship that Ray Allen and Avery Bradley had: “Not surprising Avery Bradley gave Ray Allen credit for helping/teaching him. Here’s what Allen said about Bradley last season: “I think the biggest thing that he does that I’ve noticed is, he always seeks out my advice or attention … He’ll always come to me and ask me what I thought about it or how did I perceive it. When the game starts off, he’ll ask what do I see out there on the floor, what’s going on out there. You can tell he watches, he observes, he asks. Instead of formulating his own opinion, he gets opinions and then tries to determine how he feels about certain things. For me, that’s a very smart vantage point because he’s learning.”

Sam Presti believes players become better when they experience Olympics competition. Sam Amick has the story: “I think it’s really helpful for them to play under different circumstances; it only rounds them out as players and makes them better,” said Presti, who also saw Durant and Westbrook win gold at the 2010 FIBA World Championship. “What we observed from the World Championship was just the mental endurance that it takes to go through an international competition and the training camp that leads up to it in medal-round play just to get there. “Just the level of mental endurance that Kevin and Russell have been exposed to and conditioned themselves to, I think has really helped us in our playoff series. That’s a real benefit. I think Serge’s experiences with the national team, again just being in different situations and adjusting to different styles of play, I only makes him a more well-rounded player. And James now is also getting that level of experience. I really feel like we’ve benefited from all of the exposures that the players have been given, and I think they’re all very grateful for the opportunity too. It’s fun to watch them in these situations.”

In the same article as the one above, Amick also had the story on how James Harden is “pretty 100 percent sure” that he will remain with the Thunder: “I’m pretty, a hundred percent, I’m pretty sure that I’m going to be in Oklahoma City,” Harden said with a slight stutter. “I’ll let my agent and Mr. Presti and [Thunder owner Clay] Bennett discuss all that, so I’ll let them handle that and stay out of it for right now and worry about the USA Olympics.” When asked if he was at all enamored with the idea of being a more featured player elsewhere, Harden said, “I love winning. We have some great guys over here, something special, something I don’t think any other team in the NBA has – young guys who got drafted basically together, year after year after year. We’ve got something special, so I’m focused on what we have and trying to win a championship with these guys.”

DeJuan Blair loves San Antonio, but the team may be looking to trade him, according to Douglas Farmer: “It’s tough, not even playing,” he said. “I kept my teammates into it, kept them going. Once I got my time, I used the best of my minutes. … Last year was last year, just like the year before was the year before. “It’s all the same thing. I’m working really hard to not have the issues at the end of the year, keep my body right, get my shot and just be a pro.” Blair’s offseason improvements could land him a more prominent role somewhere other than San Antonio. He has one more year on his rookie contract, but indications are the Spurs are considering trading Blair after advancing to the Western Conference final without needing much from him.”

While in Australia, Andrew Bogut was repeatedly offered drugs. He discussed his disapproval of the situation, reported by Daryl Timms: “And Bogut, who missed the Olympics because of an ankle injury, says he has been regularly offered drugs in Melbourne nightclubs. He said the latest offer of cocaine was last week. “The first thing the host asked me was do you want some coke,” he told SEN 116. “I said there is no chance because I don’t do that stuff and I never have and I never will. But kids do get caught up with that.” Bogut said he probably didn’t agree with the AFL’s three-strike drug policy, hinting that players should not be given three chances before being suspended. “Take your penalty and you’re gone for a little while,” he said.

Some funky things happened during the game between Team USA and Argentina. Here is Adrian Wojnarowski’s story on Carmelo Anthony being the victim of a cheap shot with intent: “The United States had turned a tight game into a blowout, and restraint no longer resonated within the Argentina guard’s mind when Anthony unleashed one more 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter. Searching for retribution, Campazzo found Anthony an easy target on the release of his statuesque jump shot. “Because before, Chris Paul punched me,” Campazzo said. Anthony hit the floor hard, and Campazzo ultimately declared that he would be issuing no post-game apologies to him. After the 126-97 victory over Argentina, Kobe Bryant came over and told Campazzo that hitting ‘Melo with a low blow was a bad idea, never to be done. Said Bryant: “He said, ‘Yeah, I know. It was my fault. I understand.’ ” So Campazzo apologized to Anthony too? “No,” he said. “Chris Paul didn’t apologize to me.”