Associated Press
Raymond Felton is returning to New York, calling into question whether the Knicks plan to re-sign fellow point guard Jeremy Lin.
Felton’s agent confirmed a Yahoo Sports report Saturday that Felton would be signed and traded by Portland to New York.
Lin has signed an offer sheet with the Houston Rockets, and the Knicks have repeatedly said they would match any offer for their breakout star. But with the third year of the contract worth about $15 million, they can certainly pass now after signing Jason Kidd and getting Felton back.
Felton played well in half a season in New York, averaging 17.1 points before the Knicks sent him to Denver as part of the package for Carmelo Anthony in February 2011. He struggled this season with the Trail Blazers, scoring 11.4 points per game on 40.7 percent shooting and briefly losing his starting job.
Still, he was considered an option as a veteran backup to Lin if the Knicks didn’t get Steve Nash or Kidd. They signed Kidd, and still pursued Felton.
Now the question is where will Lin play next season.
Coach Mike Woodson said Wednesday that Lin would not only be back but would enter next season as the Knicks’ starting point guard. He then signed his offer sheet worth about $25 million for three years Friday and the Knicks have until 11:59 p.m. EDT Tuesday to match the offer.
The Knicks already lost one guard Saturday when they elected not to match the offer Landry Fields signed with Toronto, worth around $20 million over three years.
HORNETS: Charlotte matched the Phoenix Suns’ four-year, $58 million offer to Eric Gordon, keeping the restricted free agent guard in New Orleans.
The move to retain Gordon on Saturday was expected, as Hornets general manager Dell Demps and coach Monty Williams had indicated they hoped the 23-year-old former Indiana standout could be the center piece of a rebuilding effort that will also include first overall draft choice Anthony Davis and No. 10 pick Austin Rivers.
CAVALIERS: Kyrie Irving, the NBA’s reigning rookie of the year, broke his right hand during the Cavaliers’ practice in Las Vegas.
Irving will return to Cleveland to be examined by team doctors today and said he likely will undergo surgery. The Cavs said in a release Saturday night that they expect Irving, their leading scorer last season who recently dazzled during scrimmages against the U.S. Olympic team, to be ready for the start of training camp in late September. However, the team said it will not have a timeline for Irving’s return until after he is examined.
The team said Irving injured his hand slapping the padding on a wall at the team’s practice site. The injury occurred after Irving committed a turnover toward the end of the morning practice. Irving was in Las Vegas practicing with Cleveland’s summer league team.
