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The Charlotte Bobcats are set to have a top-5 pick in the 2013 draft, but Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer wonders if the team is angling to move back in the order after watching the prospects they interviewed in Chicago last week.

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Dwight Howard is set to hit the free agent market on July 1 and he can expect to hear from several teams once the clock hits 12 am eastern. Those teams include the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks. Howard is expected to to re-sign with the Lakers. however Houston is certainly a viable option.

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Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra has started Chris Bosh at center, Udonis Haslem at power forward and LeBron James at small forward and when Game 1 against Indiana kicks off on Monday that unit will stay intact.

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There was a rumor over the weekend that Toronto has Denver's Masai Ujiri at the top of their list to become the Raptors head of basketball operations. According to Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post, the Nuggets can't afford to lose their vice president of basketball operations. Ujiri was just named the 2012-13 NBA Executive of the Year.

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Vinny Del Negro's future with the Los Angeles Clippers is very much in doubt and we got word from ESPN.com's Marc Stein that owner Donald Sterling may have been scouting a possible replacement on Sunday.

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There had been some speculation that Kendrick Perkins might be amnestied in July to help the Oklahoma City Thunder stay below the luxury tax, but that not going to happen.

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J.R. Smith says he wants to finish out his NBA career by playing with the New York Knicks and that will come to fruition if he re-signs with the team this summer. According to Chris Smith, J.R.'s brother, both players will return to the Knicks.

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According to ESPNNewYork.com's Jared Zwerling, he spoke with agent Richard Kaplan and it doesn't sound like Marcus Camby has any plans to retire.

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The New York Knicks need to upgrade the roster, however making a major move during the summer is difficult as they will begin the 2013-14 salary cap year over the luxury tax line. That leaves them with just the $3.18 million taxpayer mid-level exception to offer free agents and at this time Chris Copeland's agent wants most of it.

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Carmelo Anthony had been dealing with an injured left shoulder since the first round series against Boston and he's set to meet with his doctor to determine the best way to repair the damage, reports the New York Daily News.

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There has been plenty of speculation that Memphis Grizzlies general manager Chris Wallace could be released or have a reduced role in the front office with the team having new owners. Wallace told NBA.com that he still has several years on his contract and that he wants to keep his job.

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The Brooklyn Nets remain a team without a head coach, but they appear to be narrowing their search down, and their short list of candidates includes some interesting options, according to Gery Woelfel of the Journal Times.

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Per ESPN Stats & Information, there is some good news for the Memphis Grizzlies as they prepare to face the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals after taking down the Oklahoma City Thunder, because the last three teams to eliminate the Thunder from the postseason went on to win the NBA title (Lakers in 2010, Mavericks in 2011, Heat in 2012). That's a somewhat random stat, though, so let's look at some deeper stats from ESPN Stats & Info.

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After a regular season where J.R. Smith averaged a career-high 18.1 PPG and 5.3 RPG on his way to being dubbed the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year, it looked like he was going to roll into the offseason as a red-hot free agent. Instead, an ejection, a suspension and a 33.1 postseason FG% later, and it's anyone's guess what his free-agent value will be. Smith is expected to test free agency but said after losing to the Indiana Pacers Saturday that he but wants to "retire a Knick," according to ESPNNewYork.com's Ian Begley.

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