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NBA D-League Affiliate Players For 2016/17

November 3rd, 2016 at 12:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Throughout the offseason, and in the weeks leading up to the start of the regular season, NBA teams are permitted to carry 20 players, but that total must be cut down to 15 in advance of opening night. However, up to four players waived by teams before the season can be designated as affiliate players and assigned to their D-League squads.

The players have some say in the decision — if they’d prefer to sign with a team overseas, or if they get an opportunity with another NBA club, they’re free to turn down their team’s request to have them play in the D-League. Most NBA and international teams have fairly set rosters by late October though, so having the opportunity to continue playing in the same system is appealing to many of those preseason cuts. Especially since they’ll maintain NBA free agency while they play in the D-League.

There are a few other rules related to D-League affiliate players. A player whose returning rights are held by a D-League team can’t be an affiliate player for another club, which is why undrafted free agents from the current year are commonly signed and assigned. Additionally, an affiliate player must have signed with his team during the current league year, which explains why we often see players signed and quickly waived in the days leading up to the regular season. And, of course, not every NBA team has a D-League affiliate, so clubs like the Hawks, Nuggets, or Clippers have no place to send affiliate players.

With all that in mind, here are the NBA D-League affiliate players to start the 2016/17 season:

Austin Spurs (San Antonio Spurs)

Canton Charge (Cleveland Cavaliers)

Jonathan Holmes
Eric Moreland

Delaware 87ers (Philadelphia 76ers)

Warriors Waive Elgin Cook, Scott Wood

October 9th, 2016 at 5:08pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors reduced their training camp roster to 18 today by waiving Elgin Cook and Scott Wood, the team announced in a press release.

Both players received $50K guarantees to come to camp, and both were considered long shots to make Golden State’s talent-laden roster. They may get a chance to prove themselves with the Warriors’ D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz.

Cook signed with Golden State in September after being undrafted out of Oregon. A 6’6″ small forward, he averaged 14.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per game as a senior with the Ducks, and played for the Kings’ team in summer league.

Contract Details: Warriors, Nuggets, Celtics, Pistons

September 27th, 2016 at 12:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Teams signing players to training camp deals in the hopes that those players will eventually land with their D-League affiliates often incentivize their offers by including partial guarantees. That appears to be the case with the Warriors — as we noted earlier today, Golden State awarded $50K guarantees to Cameron Jones, Scott Wood, and Elgin Cook, who all seem like good bets to end up with Santa Cruz. Given how modest D-League salaries are, that extra guaranteed money can motivate players to accept D-League assignments rather than seeking more lucrative jobs overseas.

According to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link), another Warriors camp invitee, Phil Pressey, also received a small guarantee, worth $35K. However, JaVale McGee‘s contract with the team is fully non-guaranteed. Of course, McGee seems more likely to earn a spot on Golden State’s regular-season roster than many of his fellow camp invitees, in which case he’d have an opportunity to earn his full $1.4MM+ salary.

Here are a few more salary details from around the NBA, via Pincus:

According to Pincus’ salary information, the Nuggets signed Robbie Hummel and Jarnell Stokes to two-year, minimum-salary contracts, while Nate Wolters got a three-year, minimum-salary deal. Hummel and Stokes received guarantees worth $150K apiece, while Wolters received $50K in guaranteed money.
The Celtics signed Damion Lee to a two-year, minimum-salary contract that features $50K in guaranteed money, while Jalen Jones got a one-year deal with a $25K guarantee, per Pincus (Twitter link).
The one-year, minimum-salary deals Nikola Jovanovic and Trey Freeman inked with the Pistons are both worth about $543K, the rookie minimum. However, Jovanovic got a $30K guarantee from the team, while Freeman’s deal is fully non-guaranteed, Pincus notes.

Pacific Notes: Gay, West, Pierce, Lawson, Warriors

September 27th, 2016 at 11:34am CST by Luke Adams

A report last week indicated that Rudy Gay will opt out of his contract with the Kings in 2017, and the veteran forward confirmed as much when he spoke to reporters on Monday. “I made the decision to opt out,” Gay said during the club’s media day, per Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. “Whether I sign here, whether I’m here the rest of the season or whether I start here, it’s really not up to me. Wherever I am, I’m going play to the best of my ability.”

While Gay has not explicitly requested a trade, his comments on Monday, and throughout the offseason, suggest he’s not overly excited about spending another season with the Kings, so it will be interesting to see how aggressive the team is as it explores potential trade scenarios in the coming weeks or months.

Here’s more from around the Pacific division:

The Warriors‘ season-long recruitment of Kevin Durant last year was well-chronicled, and apparently Durant wasn’t the only free-agent-to-be Golden State pursued prior to July. According to David West, the Warriors reached out to his agent immediately after the Spurs were eliminated from the postseason by the Thunder in May (Twitter link via Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post).
Noting that the Clippers‘ elimination last season “left a bad taste” in his mouth, Paul Pierce explained why he decided to return to the team for one more year, and Rowan Kavner of Clippers.com has the details and quotes.
Ty Lawson is hoping to rebuild his image and his NBA career with the Kings this season, per Michael Wagaman of The Associated Press (link via The Denver Post). “I think I’ve grown a lot and I’m just ready to move forward,” Lawson said. “I heard a GM said, ‘I think he lost a step. He can’t shoot anymore.’ I’ve got a lot to prove and I got a chip on my shoulder to prove it.”
Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders provides some salary information for the Warriors, tweeting that Cameron Jones, Scott Wood, and Elgin Cook all received $50K guarantees on their one-year deals. There’s a good chance those three players end up with Golden State’s D-League affiliate.

Warriors Sign Elgin Cook

September 16th, 2016 at 6:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

SEPTEMBER 16th: The signing is official, per the RealGM transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 14th: The Warriors have signed former Oregon star Elgin Cook, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Details were not released, but Golden State is far over the salary cap, so it is assumed to be a minimum-salary deal.

The signing of Cook brings the Warriors up to the maximum of 20 players for training camp. Golden State has just 14 guaranteed contracts, so there should be a camp battle for the final roster spot.

The 6’6″ small forward wasn’t selected in this year’s draft and played for the Kings’ entry in the summer league, averaging 6.3 points and 2.8 rebounds in four games. He averaged 14.7 points and 5.1 rebounds during his senior season with the Ducks.

Central Notes: LeBron, Pistons, Bucks, Draft

June 20th, 2016 at 4:24pm CST by Luke Adams

After leading the Cavaliers to a historic NBA Finals comeback, and the first championship in franchise history, LeBron James likely won’t be attempting to lead Team USA to Olympic gold later this summer. According to Chris Mannix of The Vertical, the Finals MVP is leaning toward not participating in the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. As Mannix details, James has yet to inform USA Basketball of his decision, one way or the other. However, team officials are operating under the expectation that the 31-year-old superstar is unlikely to play in Rio.

Here are a few more updates from out of the Central division:

The Pistons‘ pre-draft workout today, highlighted by Ivica Zubac, also featured five other players, according to David Mayo of MLive (Twitter link). The other participants were Nikola Jovanovic (USC), Kyle Wiltjer (Gonzaga), Stefan Jankovic (Hawaii), Elgin Cook (Oregon), and Brannen Greene (Kansas).
The Bucks also worked out several players today, conducting an individual workout for Michigan State’s Deyonta Davis and a group session for six other prospects. As announced in a press release, those six players were Matt Costello (Michigan State), Isaiah Cousins (Oklahoma), Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame), Gary Payton II (Oregon State), Diamond Stone (Maryland), and Isaiah Whitehead (Seton Hall).
The Bucks formally broke ground on their new downtown Milwaukee arena over the weekend, according to a report from Genaro C. Armas of The Associated Press. The project is expected to cost approximately $524MM, and the club is expected to begin playing games in the new building at the start of the 2018/19 season.

Workouts Update: Suns, Hornets, Kings, Grizzlies

June 19th, 2016 at 10:33am CST by Arthur Hill

Two prominent power forward prospects had individual workouts with the Suns this weekend, writes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Croatian star Dragan Bender and Washington freshman Marquese Chriss both were in Phoenix for unannounced sessions that may influence the Suns’ thinking with the No. 4 pick. Coro adds that Bender worked out for Minnesota, which holds the fifth selection, on Thursday and will visit Boston, which has the No. 3 choice, early this week.

In addition, Phoenix held a workout Saturday for three players who may be options with the 13th pick: Michigan State power forward Deyonta Davis and shooting guard Denzel Valentine, along with small forward Timothe Luwawu of France. Also at the session were Louisville center Chinanu Onuaku and Arizona State center Eric Jabobsen.

There’s more workout news as draft day draws closer:

The Hornets, who have the 22nd pick, will welcome six players for a workout today, the team tweeted. The session will feature Virginia shooting guard Malcolm Brogdon, High Point combo forward John Brown, South Carolina small forward Michael Carrera, North Carolina power forward Joel James, UNLV shooting guard Patrick McCaw and Virginia center Mike Tobey.
The Kings are also planning to bring in six players today for a workout, the organization announced. Participants will be Arkansas-Little Rock point guard Josh Hagins, Arizona point guard Gabe York, Kansas small forward Brannen Greene, Oakland shooting guard Max Hooper, UC Santa Barbara combo guard Mike Bryson and Utah small forward Jordan Loveridge. The Kings hold pick No. 8.
The Grizzlies have a workout scheduled this afternoon with Texas A&M combo guard Alex Caruso, Oregon small forward Elgin Cook, Kansas center Cheick Diallo, Memphis power forward Shaq Goodwin, Baylor small forward Taurean Prince and LSU combo guard Tim Quarterman. Memphis has the 17th pick.
The Raptors, who own picks No. 9 and 27, will hold a workout today for Syracuse shooting guard Malachi Richardson, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv.
The Bulls held a workout Friday, tweets Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops. Attending were Maryland center Diamond Stone, UNLV center Stephen Zimmerman, Toledo power forward/center Nathan Boothe and Northern Iowa point guard Wes Washpun. The Bulls have the 14th pick.

Draft Notes: Valentine, Murray, Diallo, Brown

June 17th, 2016 at 2:26pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Here’s the latest news and notes regarding the 2016 NBA Draft, which will be held next Thursday in Brooklyn, New York:

The Bucks have a group workout scheduled today for Wade Baldwin (Vanderbilt), Dejounte Murray (Washington), Carrington Love (UWBG), Ron Baker (Wichita State), Goodluck Okonoboh (UNLV) and Prince Ibeh (Texas), the team announced.
Milwaukee will also hold an individual workout today for former Michigan State guard Denzel Valentine, the team announced.
French swingman Timothe Luwawu worked out for the Nuggets on Thursday, the team announced.
The Jazz have a group workout set for today with Nic Moore (SMU), Fred VanVleet (Wichita State), John Brown (High Point), Elgin Cook (Oregon), Jameel McKay (Iowa State) and Marshall Plumlee (Duke), the team announced.
Former Kansas big man Cheick Diallo will work out for the Pacers today and will display his wares for the Grizzlies on Saturday, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv tweets.
The teams that have done the most research on former California forward Jaylen Brown are the Suns, Celtics and Wolves, Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com tweets.

Western Notes: Welch, Davis, Ellis, Selden

June 15th, 2016 at 9:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Here’s the latest news and notes from the Western Conference:

Former Sacramento assistant coach John Welch and the Clippers are in the process of finalizing a deal that will see him join Doc Rivers‘ coaching staff, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (Twitter link).
The Kings held a pre-draft workout today for Zachary Auguste (Notre Dame), Egidijus Mockevicius (Evansville), Wade Baldwin (Vanderbilt), Antwan Scott (Colorado State), Eric McClellan (Gonzaga) and Fred VanVleet (Wichita State), the team announced.
Working out for the Kings on Thursday will be Elgin Cook (Oregon), Isaiah Taylor (Texas), Jarrod Uthoff (Iowa), Shaquille Harrison (Tulsa) and Derrick Jones (UNLV), Sean Cunningham of ABC 10 tweets.
The Jazz have a private workout scheduled on Thursday for former Michigan State power forward Deyonta Davis, the team announced. Davis is the No. 10 overall prospect according to Jonathan Givony of Draft Express.
The Clippers have workouts set for Thursday with Wayne Selden (Kansas), Isaiah Whitehead (Seton Hall), Brandon Austin (NW Florida State), Perry Ellis (Kansas), Kaleb Tarczewski and Tonye Jekiri (Miami), Dan Woike of The Orange County Register tweets.

Draft Notes: Sixers, Richardson, Cook, Forbes

June 15th, 2016 at 1:55pm CST by Luke Adams

As Sharon Katz and Paul Sabin of ESPN.com detail, ESPN Analytics’ projection model for draft prospects views Brandon Ingram as a safer pick than Ben Simmons. While the two players’ odds of developing into All-Stars are even, Simmons has a much higher bust potential than Ingram, according to the model. Jakob Poeltl, Deyonta Davis, Cheick Diallo, and Chinanu Onuaku are among the prospects viewed far more favorably by the ESPN Analytics model than by traditional scouts. This info won’t shake up teams’ big boards significantly, but it’s worth keeping in mind on draft night. Especially with Sixers GM Bryan Colangelo claiming that his team’s plan for the No. 1 pick “changes every day” (link via ESPN.com).

Here’s more on next Thursday’s draft:

ESPN’s Chad Ford (Insider-only link) has updated his top 100 rankings for this year’s draft now that 2016’s early entrant class has been finalized. Ford also broke down the first round and examined what a grade-A draft for each team would look like (Insider link).
Former Syracuse wing Malachi Richardson is taking part in workouts with the Bulls, Bucks, and Raptors this week, writes Mike Waters of Syracuse.com.
In addition to his previously reported workouts, Oregon’s Elgin Cook has gotten a look from the Hawks and Warriors, and still has workouts on tap with the Jazz, Mavericks, Kings, and Pistons, per Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
According to Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com (Twitter link), Michigan State guard Bryn Forbes has also been busy in recent weeks, having worked out for the Celtics, Magic, Hawks, Bulls, Wizards, and Lakers in addition to four more teams that were previously reported. Forbes still has workouts with the Pistons and Spurs on his schedule.
French draft hopeful Boris Dallo has signed with Chris Patrick of Relativity Sports for representation as he looks to make the leap to the NBA, according to Sportando (Twitter link).