Hello and welcome to the Evening News.
As free agency continues, we’ll keep you updated every night.
What’s happening today?
Lakers focus on LeBron and Melo
According to ESPN.com’s Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst, the Lakers have quickly moved on from Dwight Howard’s departure and are gearing up for the summer of 2014. 
With only Steve Nash under contract past next season, the Lakers can legitimately position themselves to sign two max contracts outright next summer. While Kobe Bryant previously stated that he would not take a pay cut or give the Lakers a discount in contract negotiations, it is realistic to think he would change his stance if the Lakers managed to bring in either LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony.
One source called the plan “realistic” while another considered it to be “farfetched.”
“It’s all wishful thinking at this point,” a league source with knowledge of the situation said. “Teams are doing more wishing than LeBron is wanting right now.
Beyond the Lakers and Heat, the Cleveland Cavaliers are also believed to be serious suitors for James next summer.
Even though the Knicks stand as the overwhelming favorites to sign Anthony next summer, there is a small possibility that he leaves New York should the Knicks show signs of serious decline.
Clippers, Rockets, and Bulls after Camby
The Toronto Raptors have reached a buyout agreement with Marcus Camby.
Camby, who was the 2nd overall pick by Toronto in 1996, was brought back to the Raptors as a piece in the Andrea Bargnani trade. 
The 38-year-old had two years and $7.5 million remaining on his contract.
Yahoo! Sports’ Marc J. Spears reports that the Los Angeles Clippers, Houston Rockets, and Chicago Bulls all have interest in Camby.
For the Clippers, Camby seems like an ideal fit. When healthy, he is one of the league’s premier rebounding big men. Moreover, his length and timing would give the Clippers’ defense an added dimension in the paint. As it stands, both DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin are works-in-progress defensively.
Moreover, while Camby is by no means a sharpshooter from the line, his career 67% on free throws would be a significant upgrade over Jordan’s 42.4% in the final minutes of close games.
Camby left New York disappointed that he was never granted a serious opportunity to shine for the Knicks. While he played in Houston in 2012 and left the Rockets on good terms, I doubt he would choose to play backup to Dwight Howard when he could have the opportunity to play a significant role for the Clippers.
For the Bulls, the top thing working in their favor is the relationship Camby has with Tom Thibodeau. Thibodeau was an assistant in New York during Camby’s first go-round with the Knicks in the late 1990s.
Pelicans to offer Oden $3 million
For months, there has been speculation that a contender would take a flyer on Greg Oden and offer him a one year deal at the veteran’s minimum.
The up and coming New Orleans Pelicans, however, are planning to up the ante in the Oden sweepstakes:
Pelicans expect to meet free agent center Greg Oden next week, sources told Y! Sports. Pelicans poised to make offer close to $3 million.
— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) July 17, 2013
The Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, and Sacramento Kings have all been linked to Oden this week as well. The Cleveland Cavaliers, who were once considered the favorites to sign Oden, chose to invest their money in another young center with shaky knees, Andrew Bynum.
Oden has not played in an NBA game since 2010 and is still rounding himself into basketball shape. Still, he is only 25 years old and proved himself to be a productive player when healthy in his first two seasons in the league.
Put it this way: I’d rather take the risk on Oden at $3 million for one season than take Philadelphia’s approach and offer a known backup like Kwame Brown three years for $9 million.
With Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday, Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson, and Tyreke Evans on the roster, New Orleans is slowly becoming one of the league’s most promising teams.
