Some had thought that salary-cap drop could be as much as $6 million or $7 million, according to ESPN, but that seems like an outsize number at this point. It is still expected that the cap will drop while simultaneously the streets swell the number of talented free agents becoming available this summer.

The current salary cap is $57.7 million and ESPN has dug up what a few teams are projecting to be the numbers for next season as they plan out their free-agent-signing strategies: The Miami Heat apparently has the biggest projected drop in the cap and is planning around a budget of $52 million. Meanwhile, the New York Knicks are banking on the number being closer to $53 million. And the New Jersey Nets are hoping things don’t drop that much and are projecting a budget of between $54 million and $55 million to work with.

Two general managers supposedly told the paper that Steve Blake(notes) has been offered to them when they called asking for Miller. One thing that apparently bugs Blazers coach Nate McMillan is that he supposedly feels like he has to play Blake even when he’s struggling because Brandon Roy(notes) likes to play with him rather than Miller. Blake doesn’t make that much dough and has a contract that will end at year’s end so he’d be more attractive in a trade than Miller.

The idea is supposedly to get Blake out of Portland so the Roy pressure is relieved and Miller has more room to gain confidence and playing time. Plus, the team would like to give Jerryd Bayless(notes) some more playing time, particularly since he’s been vocal about his lack of time on the court.

Bayless hasn’t reportedly asked for a trade but is planning to if things remain the same.

The city is about to sign a deal to have a feasibility study done for a downtown 20,000-seat, $145 million arena to be built and Goodman believes that once that arena is built, the city will get a team, based on conversations Goodman has had with NBA execs. "I believe as soon as we have an arena – this is my belief, I have nothing that is signed in blood, there’s no contract – but I believe we’ll have a team," he said.

Goodman also said it’s possible the city could get a professional hockey team. "I don’t know anything about hockey," he said, laughing. "Whatever the market is gonna be, it’s gonna be."

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman visited Vegas a few months back and Goodman says he’s "high on Las Vegas." Sounds dangerous.

He apparently said last week, "It is vital that I start to memorize the plays." Um, yeah, that would be good. He went on to say, "I’ve been used to a certain system for 17 years, so I have to work on that. I still have a few days before we start."

Guess Shaq has been too busy hosting his own reality show to learn his plays. You’d think for $21 million, the Cavs would have a guy who would at least study his playbook more than a week before the season gets underway.

The Hall of Famer says he’s ready to take whatever good opportunity comes up. "Every job is not a good job, but I think if a good job came up, I would take it," he said. "But I am not going to leave TNT for no bad job.”

Guess this means the Round Mound of Rebound has finally given up on the dream he once had of becoming governor of Alabama.

Bell is supposedly waiting to hear what a specialist in Chicago says about the hand. Meanwhile, he’s wrapping up the hand and practicing layups and three pointers. What ligament tear?

Bell is saying he’s split down the middle between the obligation he’s made to himself, his family, and his career and the obligation he’s made to the team. "Being a competitor and a businessman, I’m kind of split down the middle," he said. "Hopefully this (specialist) comes back, tells me I’m fine to play, and then I don’t have to make a decision.”

Meanwhile, some residents of Brooklyn, where the team is planning to move, are hoping that the team hits enough legal hurdles in its plans for a new arena and also finds Newark so welcoming that it will bag on its plan. Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, who only needs to gain approval from other owners in order to take over the team, seems more interested in having a team in New York City’s five boroughs than in Newark, though.

Prokhorov apparently met up with a bunch of owners this week and NBA Comissioner David Stern is seeing no reason the basketball-loving fella who is worth $9.5 billion won’t be pass muster. Who woldn’t want that kind of cash around in these rough financial times?

So Ratner is one ownership vote that the richest man in Russia can count on when team owners meet to say yes or no on the deal. Before then, though, Prokhorov has to go through an extremely thorough background check that NBA Commissioner David Stern says some people classify as "invasive," but he wouldn’t, according to the New York Times.

The word is that Prokhorov’s background check will be slightly more detailed than the usual ownership transaction since he will be the first non-North American to take controlling interest in any team of the NFL, Major League Baseball, and NBA since Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi took over the Seattle Mariners in 1992.

Prokhorov begins his attempt to woo NBA owners when he meets with the league’s advisory and finance committee in Manhattan on Wednesday.

The team was reportedly pretty disappointed by the performance of Mario Chalmers(notes) and Chris Quinn(notes) on Monday evening so another guard could be added soon enough. Rumor has it that Jamaal Tinsley(notes) is near the top of the list. He’s been working out in Vegas. Other names that could be on the list are Bobby Jackson(notes) and Brevin Knight(notes).

Quinn thinks he’s got one thing working against him. The 6′2", 175-pounder tells the paper that he is always underestimated "because of the way I look. I don’t pass the look test.” Whatever that means. His 0-2 shooting on Monday in more than seven minutes of playing probably didn’t help him too much, either.

Prokhorov, the 40th wealthiest man in the world, according to Forbes, is worth about $9.5 billion even though he supposedly lost 51% of his treasure within the last 12 months. Ouch. Still, the guy apparently wants in on this team and is ready to throw in $700 million to help Ratner steamroll all the local opposition to the arena project and take majority ownership of the team.

Prokhorov was arrested in 2007 when he was in France skiing for supposedly flying in Russian women that he provided to his pals with big money. The charges were dropped and nothing was proven but it remains a stain on Prokhorov’s past.