Former USF center Solomon Jones has had a quiet role in his first
three seasons with the NBA's Atlanta Hawks, coming off the bench for
career averages of 2.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.

But the
start of the NBA's free-agent season today could change things for
Jones. He's a restricted free agent, which means Atlanta has the right
to match any offer made to him by other teams. But one of the primary
players in front of him, Zaza Pachulia, is an unrestricted free agent
and could be landing elsewhere, giving Jones more minutes as a backup
to starter Al Horford.

Bleacherreport.com
named Jones among its "top underdogs for each team" next season,
arguing that Jones could see his playing time double if Pachulia leaves
and the Hawks don't acquire another big man.

-- Another former
USF big man, Kentrell Gransberry, played this season for the Colorado
14ers of the NBA Development League, helping the 14ers to a D-league
championship. You can see video from their playoff run here, with a few shots of Gransberry, who averaged 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds off the bench.

Gransberry
won't be back in Colorado next season, but only because the Colorado
franchise is being moved to Frisco, Texas, and won't play next season.
We'll get another update on his future soon ...

-- Big East news: Cincinnati has added a McDonald's All-American in 6-6 forward Lance Stephenson, who has off-court issues but should be an impact player for the Bearcats. Zagsblog has a good writeup.