http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/11838893/15920813
With two days to go until the official signing period begins, here's the latest free-agent buzz gathered from conversations with executives, agents, and others in the know:

* Despite reports that the Trail Blazers were preparing to make a major bid for Knicks restricted free agent David Lee, a coaching source familiar with the situation said Portland is more interested in the Lakers' Lamar Odom. And the source described the Odom situation with Portland as "lukewarm." The Blazers and Lee's agent, Mark Bartelstein, discussed the situation early in the negotiating period, but Portland was preoccupied at that time with its pursuit of Hedo Turkoglu. Now that Turkoglu has spurned the Blazers and committed to the Raptors, Portland is deliberating what to do with its $9 million in cap space. The Blazers have been exploring point-guard options for some time, but the coaching source said Sixers free agent Andre Miller isn't the answer because of his sub-part shooting ability.

* Lee's situation is complicated by the fact that the teams with cap space have either spent it on other players (Detroit, Toronto, Memphis) or are proceeding cautiously in the first wave of free agency (Oklahoma City, Sacramento). The market for Lee is difficult to navigate because teams are hesitant to endure the seven-day period during which the Knicks would have the right to match. Sign-and-trades, too, are untenable due to the fact that Lee's first-year cap number would be exorbitant based on his status as a base-year compensation player. Knicks president Donnie Walsh has played this as close to perfectly as possible from the beginning.

* A rumored trade discussion sending Richard Hamilton from Detroit to Utah for Carlos Boozer is just that, for now: a rumor. "Not at all," said a person who would have knowledge of the talks when asked if there was anything there. Even so, it's worth keeping in mind because it makes too much sense for both teams. Boozer's decision not to invoke his player option opened the door for the Jazz to trade him while retaining restricted free agent Paul Millsap, who like Lee has been met with lukewarm interest. The backcourt situation in Detroit with Rodney Stuckey, Hamilton, and Ben Gordon bears watching, as does the $50 million or so left on Hamilton's contract.

* The Wizards are pursuing Antonio McDyess, but word is he's heading back to the Pistons. A decision from 'Dyess is coming soon, according to a source, and it appears to be between Detroit and San Antonio. Blazers restricted free agent Channing Frye could be a fallback option for Washington. But according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Cavs are the latest team to meet with Frye, who also has drawn interest from Denver, Phoenix, and San Antonio.

* If you're having serious hoops withdrawal, you can watch the Orlando Summer League action live online. I'll be watching the first few days of the Las Vegas Summer League in person from July 10-14. You can follow my updates on Twitter. But then, you already should have been doing that.

Knicks president Donnie Walsh has played this as close to perfectly as possible from the beginning

Hmmm... This will not meet warm acceptance from some UK frontrunners...

Posted by arkrud:

Knicks president Donnie Walsh has played this as close to perfectly as possible from the beginning

Hmmm... This will not meet warm acceptance from some UK frontrunners...

My thoughts exactly.

Posted by VDesai:

If Portland was gonna make a smart move the should've locked up Andre Miller

i don't think andre miller works well with them. he becomes somewhat useless down the stretch of games b/c he doesn't have a good 3 point shot.

i thought frye verbally committed to pheonix.

Posted by Allanfan20:

Posted by arkrud:

Knicks president Donnie Walsh has played this as close to perfectly as possible from the beginning

Hmmm... This will not meet warm acceptance from some UK frontrunners...

I don't know why. He gave Lee a small offer that's good for the Knicks. So far, it seems like either Lee has had zero offers or only offers smaller than what the Knicks handed to him.

If that continues, the worst case scenario is Lee takes the QO, which is what some of us had pipe dreams about. Or, Lee takes what Walsh offers and that hardly affects our cap situation. Or not that much at least.

if Walsh had traded Lee for a lottery pick at the last deadline we could have had the means to move up to take Rubio in this draft or at the very least end up w/both Hill & another high upside prospect like Derozan... whether Lee signs or not that decision not to trade him then will always be debateable IMHO.

Posted by joec32033:

There was a blurb in today's Daily News about Portland willing to do Blake and Outlaw for Lee. I don't know if it is possible but I would rather they do Miles' expiring and Bayless for Lee. Makes much more sense for both teams.

Miles is a free agent, he's just still on their cap. Regarding Bayless, I guess we'll have to see what happens with Rubio in the next few days (after the S&T period begins). I haven't seen him play in the last year and don't know how he would be as a pg. Anybody watch him on Portland last year? As an understudy to Duhon, yeah...

Odom makes more sense for the Blazers since he can play both forward spots. But I've read that Odom would rather stay with the Lakers. I don't understand why anyone is interested in Channing Frye.