The Phoenix Suns will pick fifth overall in the 2013 NBA Draft, their highest selection since 1987 when they selected Armen Gilliam at No. 2 after David Robinson went to the San Antonio Spurs. The draft is considered very flat, which benefits the Suns at No. 5 more than certain seasons in the past. “The guy who goes there might not be much different, or any different, than guys who go in the top three,” McDonough said. The Suns will be the first team from the Western Conference selecting in this draft. “I think generally we need to get more athletic,” Ryan McDonough said. “I think we need more shooting. My philosophy is always to draft the best available player. There are some good pieces in place here. But at the same time, we won 25 games here, so we need to get better across the board.”

Mitch Kupchak denied a report that indicated his exit interview conversation with Dwight Howard included the impending free agent venting about Mike D'Antoni. Howard met with Kupchak privately after also meeting with both he and D'Antoni.  "To be honest with you, I wouldn’t let it go there anyway," said Kupchak about letting a player dictate the Lakers' coaching situation.  Kupchak has worked to gain the trust of Howard during the 12-13 season, which he has by all accounts. "I'm not saying they don't have differences like with any coach or any player," said Kupchak. "I don't think it's anything that goes beyond." 

The Phoenix Suns have received permission to interview J.B. Bickerstaff and Steve Clifford for their head coaching vacancy. Bickerstaff is currently an assistant coach with the Houston Rockets, while Clifford is under contract with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Suns fired Alvin Gentry after a 13-28 finish and Lindsey Hunter finished the season on an interim basis.

D.J. Stephens has recorded a 46-inch vertical leap during a workout on Wednesday hosted by the Brooklyn Nets, according to a Tweet from ESPN's Chad Ford. Stephens averaged 7.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game in his senior season at Memphis, his first in which he received significant minutes. Stephens was also named Conference-USA Defensive Player of the Year. Stephens has developed a reputation as a dunk artist due to his immense leaping ability.

The Dallas Mavericks are hoping to trade the 13th overall pick in order to clear additional cap space to pursue Dwight Howard, according to sources. The 13th overall pick has a cap hold of $1,655,300. The Mavericks' future first rounder was traded to the Lakers in the Lamar Odom tarde and is top-20 protected through 2017.

Victor Oladipo appears to be the most popular player in the 2013 NBA Draft for general managers, even if he isn't on top of draft boards. "Oladipo is the guy that GMs love in this draft," wrote Chad Ford. "May be the only one. I've talked to 14 or 15 who tell me he's their favorite player. Almost zero downside and still significant upside. Not sure he's a fit in Cleveland or Washington -- but Orlando and Phoenix both look like strong fits. (Trey) Burke may be a bigger need (for Orlando), but Oladipo might be the better player long-term." Oladipo was a first team All-American in his junior season at Indiana.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have hired Phil Handy as an assistant coach. Handy was previously a player development coach with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Cavaliers hired Mike Brown as head coach this offseason.

When Phil Jackson received a phone call from Mitch Kupchak late on Sunday, Nov. 11 that the Los Angeles Lakers had decided to hire Mike D'Antoni to replace Mike Brown as head coach, he had an amused reaction. "I laughed," Jackson said on Wednesday. "It was humorous to me when Mitch said that we think that Mike is a better coach for this group of guys." Jackson had been prepared to tell Kupchak that he was interested in coaching the Lakers again. Jackson believes the move to hire D'Antoni was made to cater to Steve Nash. "I think it didn't happen because there was some concern how are we going to move in the right direction for this ballclub," Jackson said. "When Mitch gave me the call close to midnight on Sunday night right before I was going to give them an answer Monday morning and said, 'We've made a choice. We're going to hire Mike D'Antoni. We think he's the best coach for this group of guys.' My answer was, 'For Steve Nash, yes, I agree but for Dwight Howard, I'm not so sure.' "In the process of thinking about how they could best use the team I think they thought first and foremost about Steve Nash and how Steve Nash was going to fit inside of an offensive system that I coach. ... I think that was a concern for them." Jackson felt that his system would have allowed Pau Gasol and Howard to have a similar type of success as Gasol and Andrew Bynum. Jackson claims to not be interested in coaching, but does seek a front office position in the NBA. "I don't see myself coaching again, I really don't," Jackson said. "When I discussed this with Jeanie Buss, she said make sure you tell them that Jeanie still thinks you can coach even though you might say you're not going to coach again. Jeanie still thinks I can coach but I'm not going to go there."

The 2013 NBA Draft Lottery was held on Tuesday in Times Square with the Cleveland Cavaliers winning for the second time in three years and third time in ten years. The Washington Wizards moved up from the eighth slot to draft third. 1. Cleveland Cavaliers2. Orlando Magic3. Washington Wizards4. Charlotte Bobcats5. Phoenix Suns6. New Orleans Pelicans7. Sacramento Kings8. Detroit Pistons9. Minnesota Timberwolves10. Portland Trail Blazers11. Philadelphia 76ers12. Toronto Raptors13. Dallas Mavericks14. Utah Jazz

Kevin Durant has donated $1 million to relief efforts following tornadoes in the Oklahoma City region. "As the day went on and I saw the footage and the casualties and the houses being blown away, it was tough to see," said Durant. "I call Oklahoma City my home. I go through Moore all the time. It's unfortunate. We're going to come together as a city like we always do and we're going to bounce back." Durant was in Minneapolis and hopes to return to Oklahoma City on Wednesday. "Just to get to the hospital, see some kids," Durant said. "Something. Just something to give some hope. Playing for the Thunder, we mean so much to the state. So many people support us and I just want to go back and support those people." The American Red Cross said the gift from The Durant Family Foundation is meant to match other donations and be an incentive for more people to give. The Thunder also announced a $1 million donation, as did the NBA and players' union.

The Los Angeles Clippers have fired Vinny Del Negro, according to a source. Del Negro has been with the Clippers since the 10-11 season.

The San Antonio Spurs' victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 1 on Sunday drew a 3.9 overnight rating on ABC Sunday afternoon. That is down 41 percent from the Miami Heat/Boston Celtics Game 1 on ESPN last season and down 26 percent from the Oklahoma City Thunder/Dallas Mavericks Game 1 on ESPN in 2011. The game ranks as the lowest rated conference final opener since 2007 when the Cleveland Cavaliers/Detroit Pistons drew a 3.5 on TNT. San Antonio is the 36th larget market, while Memphis ranks 49th. The NBA hopes to soon negotiate new television contracts with their national partners. While the league is generally seen to be on the rise, the new collective bargaining agreement favors parity and incoming commissioner, Adam Silver, has made it an expected touchstone of his regime to continue that trend.

Masai Ujiri has been identified as the Toronto Raptors' top target to replace Bryan Colangelo as general manager. The Raptors could offer Ujiri a salary in excess of $2 million to leave the Denver Nuggets. Ujiri is reportedly earning approximately $500,000 in the final season of his contract with the Nuggets. The Nuggets, however, are confident that they will be able to retain Ujiri.

The Los Angeles Clippers are interested in signing David West this offseason. The Clippers will have to entice West with the $5.15 million midlevel exception available to teams that are non-taxpayers. West played with Chris Paul as members of the New Orleans Hornets. The Indiana Pacers will be able to pay West more money to re-sign.

Iman Shumpert will play in the Vegas Summer League this offseason for the first time. Shumpert missed last season due to rehab for his torn ACL, while the lockout cancelled the Summer League during his rookie season. “They want to see me be more decisive offensively, which I already knew, but that would be big for me to work on this summer…and come in for training camp ready to do that,” Shumpert said.

Carmelo Anthony would like the New York Knicks to re-sign J.R. Smith this offseason. “Without a doubt,” Anthony said Monday when asked about Smith. “J.R. is a special player. To me, and to everybody on this team, he’s made a huge step forward as a basketball player. We look forward to that, for him to come out and be focused, the way he was focused this season, win the Sixth Man of the Year, help us to win another division title, helping us to win 50-plus games. He was a big help to this team and I definitely would love him back here.” The Knicks could be trumped by a rival team with more cap space since they can only offer the early Bird exception beginning at $4.9 million per season.

A death threat was made against Tony Parker with five minutes left in the San Antonio Spurs' win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday in Game 1. The Bexar County Sheriff is investigating a 911 call played on Sunday in which threatened Parker. Security was immediately increased but it was determined there was no immediate threat. Parker was escorted to his home by deputies.

The Houston Rockets have emerged as an attractive free agent possibility for Dwight Howard, according to sources. Howard became familiar with the area after spending part of two summers ago working with Hakeem Olajuwon. Howard is also intrigued by the possibility of playing with James Harden. Howard will engage in the free agency process and is expected to hear pitches from the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks and the Rockets.

Dwight Howard expressed to Mitch Kupchak during his exit interview that he was frustrated by how Mike D'Antoni used him during his first season with the Los Angeles Lakers, according to sources. Howard also felt marginalized by D'Antoni, feeling he looked to Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash for leadership and suggestions. D'Antoni elected not to retain Chuck Person on his coaching staff, who is a confidant of Howard. Furthermore, Steve Clifford has become a head coaching candidate for several NBA vacancies. Clifford was with Howard for five seasons with the Orlando Magic. One source described the potential departure of Clifford, coupled with the loss of Person as "removing the buffers," between Howard and D'Antoni, "which is a bad thing." Howard has been careful not to make public comments after what happened last season with Stan Van Gundy, but the situation with D'Antoni doesn't appear to be irreparable. "It's not a, 'It's me or Mike,' situation for Dwight," said a source. Howard is a free agent and can sign a five-year, $118 million contract with the Lakers, or up to a four-year, $87.6 million deal with a rival team that has cap space.

The Toronto Raptors will announce on Tuesday that Bryan Colangelo's tenure as chief decision-maker of basketball operations is over, but sources say he will remain with the franchise in a corporate role. Colangelo has always been viewed as loyal to the organization and it appears as though new MLSE CEO Tim Leiweke and ownership will honor that. Colangelo will coincidentally represent the Raptors at the lottery on Tuesday. MLSE has hired a search firm to narrow a list of candidates, though Ed Stefanski will likely guide the front office until a new GM is hired.