NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz Surrounding Top Unsigned Players

A lot of teams are done signing free agents, and there are just a select few guys out there who are still waiting for a phone call from an NBA organization.  

These guys are usually either young players who have yet to make an impact on an NBA team or older veterans who don't have much left in the tank.  Teams usually like to bring in these older players for veteran minimum salaries, mostly due to the fact that they're experienced players who can be leaders and teachers in the locker room.

So, which of these top remaining free agents are garnering actual interest from certain NBA teams?  Well, there are a couple, and they're names that you will likely recognize.

Lamar Odom, Power Forward

It's crazy to think that Lamar Odom was taken with the No. 4 overall pick back in 1999, but he's been in the league for quite a long time.  While it felt like Odom's career may finally be done, there are now rumors about him returning.

Marc J. Spears from Yahoo! Sports recently reported that Doc Rivers and the Los Angeles Clippers are interested in bringing back Odom after hearing good things about him as a teammate.

Odom has had a successful career over the years.  He's averaged 13.3 points and 8.4 rebounds per game during his NBA tenure but averaged just 4.0 points and 5.9 rebounds per game this past season.  He played in all 82 games for the Clippers but started in just two of them.  His field-goal percentage was just 39.9 percent.

While it's unlikely that the team will need Odom to start or take up major minutes, he could be a nice role player who could get some minutes off of the bench.  He's a strong veteran and a good teammate who Rivers would love to have on the team.

Antawn Jamison, Power Forward

Oddly enough, the best chance Jamison has at snagging a job will come if Odom decides he doesn't want to play another year with the Clippers.

Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times reported that Jamison recently met with Rivers and both sides appeared to be interested.  However, Jamison will have to wait on an answer from Odom to see if the Clippers will offer him a contract.

Despite being five years older than Odom, Jamison has been a more productive player recently.  He played in 76 games last season for the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 9.4 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 46.4 percent from the field.

If Jamison lands a spot on the Clippers, it will be his sixth NBA team in his career.  While he may have done a lot of traveling during his time in the league, he's always been a solid scorer and could still put up points off of the bench this late into his career.

Drew Gooden, Power Forward

If there's one thing you've learned so far, it's that there are a number of older power forwards looking for work right now.

The youngest of the three, Gooden is looking for another team, and the New York Knicks could give him a job.  Unfortunately, there's going to be some competition.

A report by Jared Zwerling of ESPN.com stated that the Knicks are looking for a player to fill their final roster spot.  The candidates include Gooden, Lou Amundson, Ivan Johnson and Tyrus Thomas.  

The Knicks would be Gooden's 10th NBA team in his career, meaning that he'll have played on one-third of all of the teams in the league.  He struggled to make an impact last season, playing in just 16 games and averaging 3.3 points per game last year.

Gooden is 31 years old and in theory should have more left in the tank than these other veteran free agents.  However, he's never been an incredibly productive player, and at best he could be a player who can fill a roster spot.  That's what the Knicks want to use him for, and that's the best-case scenario at this point for Gooden.