2013 September | Hoops Rumors

Mavericks Sign Renaldo Balkman

September 30th, 2013 at 6:26pm CST by Alex Lee

SEPTEMBER 30TH: The Mavs have officially announced the signing via press release.

SEPTEMBER 25TH: The Mavericks have reached an agreement on a non-guaranteed contact with free agent Renaldo Balkman, reports Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas. Balkman, who was said to be considering Dallas' offer as of earlier today, was the 20th pick of the 2006 NBA draft by the Knicks.

Balkman will fill the Mavs' 20th and last roster spot for training camp and certainly fits the profile of the type of "active defensive-minded bodies" the team is said to be interested in. However, it will take some manuevering for Balkman, or any other Mav without a guarantee, to make the team considering Dallas already has 15 players with guaranteed deals on the roster.

Balkman, 29, last appeared in the league in 2011/12 with New York, where he played in only 14 games. Last season he averaged impressive numbers (25 PPG and 13.4 RPG) in the Philippine Basketball Association before he was banned for a year in March after choking a teammate. His career NBA averages are 4 PPG and 3.5 RPG over six seasons out of South Carolina.

Grant Jerrett To Sign With D-League

September 30th, 2013 at 6:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

Grant Jerrett is the highest remaining unsigned draft pick from this year's draft, but it appears he'll soon be under contract with a D-League team. Jerrett, whose NBA rights are held by the Thunder, is expected to join the Oklahoma City's D-League affiliate, reports Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. Players who aren't under contract with an NBA club, as is the case with Jerrett, usually have to enter the D-League draft before they can hook up with a specific D-League team, so it's not entirely certain that he'll be with the Tulsa 66ers, who are OKC's affiliate. In any case, the Thunder will retain his NBA rights while he plays in the D-League, making him something of a domestic "draft-and-stash" player.

Jerrett played one collegiate season at Arizona before the Blazers took him in the draft and promptly traded him to Oklahoma City. The 6'10" power forward saw just 17.8 minutes a game for the Wildcats, averaging 5.2 points and 3.6 rebounds, but he worked out for several teams prior to the draft and saw more action for the Thunder's summer-league team, notching 10.8 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 28.6 MPG.

The Thunder have just 17 players under contract and 12 fully guaranteed deals, so it isn't a numbers crunch that prevented the team from signing him for camp. Instead, it seems like the club views him as a project, and is content to watch him develop in the D-League for now.

Bobcats Sign Abdul Gaddy

September 30th, 2013 at 5:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bobcats have officially announced their training camp roster, which includes Abdul Gaddy, confirming that he accepted the team's invitation. Fellow camp invitees Troy Daniels, Patrick O'Bryant and James Southerland are also listed on the 18-man roster, as expected. They join Jeff Adrien, who signed with the team last season, as Bobcats with non-guaranteed contracts. Jannero Pargo's deal is partially guaranteed for $300K.

Gaddy played with Charlotte's summer league team this year after going undrafted out of Washington in June. The point guard averaged 5.3 points and 2.3 assists for the summer Bobcats, but may have authored his most impressive performance at the Portsmouth Invitational before the draft, where he dished out an average of 6.3 assists in a little more than 31 minutes a game.

Charlotte has only 12 fully guaranteed deals, which would, on the surface at least, give Gaddy a decent shot to make the opening-night roster. However, Pargo is in line to be the team's third-string point guard behind Kemba Walker and Ramon Sessions, so Gaddy would likely have to unseat the veteran and convince the team to waive Pargo despite his partial guarantee.

Nuggets Rumors: Fogg, Shaw, Connelly

September 30th, 2013 at 4:14pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's the latest news out of Denver..

The Nuggets announced their complete training camp roster which includes a new name in guard Kyle Fogg. The 6'3" guard averaged 6.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists for the D-League's Rio Grande Valley Vipers last season. Fogg averaged 13.5 PPG in his senior season at Arizona in 2011/12, but went undrafted.
Coach Brian Shaw won't say that this year's Nuggets squad will finish with less wins than last year (57), but he does acknowledge that there will be a focus on player development, writes Terry Frei of The Denver Post. The coach was also asked about a timetable for the return of Danilo Gallinari, but that's still an unknown at this point.
General Manager Tim Connelly says that Denver was lucky to land Nate Robinson because he was being pursued by playoff teams, tweets Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post. The GM also acknowledged that the team isn't where he'd like it to be as the season draws near. While he likes the players he has, he won't hesitate to make a change if one is needed.

Pelicans Sign Lazar Hayward

September 30th, 2013 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

One of the only NBA teams still carrying just 15 players, the Pelicans have added at least one more name to their training camp roster. Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com reports (via Twitter) that Lazar Hayward will participate in camp with the club.

Hayward, 26, was a first-round draft pick in 2010, but has yet to make a real impact in his limited NBA action. In 72 total games for the Timberwolves and Thunder, the 6'6" swingman has averaged 2.9 PPG and a 9.0 PER.

The Pelicans may not be done adding players to their camp roster, since they still have four available spots on the roster. At the moment, the team has 13 players on guaranteed contracts, plus Lance Thomas on a partially guaranteed deal, and Hayward and Arinze Onuaku on non-guaranteed pacts.

Knicks Notes: Mills, Carmelo, Thomas

September 30th, 2013 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

It was Media Day in New York today, and after a busy offseason for the Knicks, there was plenty to discuss. New general manager Steve Mills deflected questions about the timing of his hiring, or James Dolan's motive for that decision or any others, but he, coach Mike Woodson, and several Knicks players still delivered a few quotes of note. Here are the highlights, via a collection of Knicks beat writers (links go to Twitter unless otherwise indicated):

Asked about Carmelo Anthony's future, Mills stressed that the team has no plans to let him get away next summer: "We’ve made it clear that we have every intention of making Carmelo a Knick for a long time to come."
For his part, Anthony declined to talk extensively about his contract situation, telling reporters that he'll deal with it when the time comes. However, teammates Kenyon Martin and Raymond Felton both indicated that they couldn't imagine Carmelo leaving New York.
Mills made it sounds as if Dolan was interested in completely overhauling the basketball operations department, according to Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press. The GM also confirmed that he's considering adding someone to work beneath him, potentially an internal candidate.
Prior to accepting the Knicks' GM position, Mills was considering becoming the NBPA's executive director or the athletic director at Princeton, but felt like the New York job was a perfect fit. It's not clear whether Mills had been offered either of those other positions, or whether he was simply in the running.
Mills, who originally hired Isiah Thomas for the Knicks back in 2003, said that Thomas wouldn't be returning to the franchise (link via RealGM.com).

Odds & Ends: Heat, Jazz, Bulls, NBPA, Collins

September 30th, 2013 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The potential expiring contracts for the Heat's Big Three will be a major topic of conversation throughout the 2013/14 season, but LeBron James and Dwyane Wade both downplayed the subject at Media Day in Miami today.

"You have concern when you feel people want to go elsewhere," Wade said, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (via Twitter). "I don't think nobody is looking to go elsewhere."

Here's more from around the NBA:

Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey confirmed that the team is still in talks with Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward about possible rookie-scale extensions, tweets Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune.
In talking to reporters, including Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, about why he decided to sign with the Bulls, Mike Dunleavy Jr. pointed to the team's "high character."
Dahntay Jones is ready to compete in training camp for a spot on the Bulls' regular-season roster, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune details.
Former Illinois guard Brandon Paul, who went undrafted in June, explains to Gino Pilato of Ridiculous Upside why he's heading overseas rather than to NBA training camp. According to Paul, he received and passed on camp invites from the Wolves, Nets, Blazers, and Heat.
After previously having tackled ten of the best contracts of the offseason, Mark Deeks of HoopsWorld shifts his focus and identifies ten of the worst contracts, including the Bobcats' signing of Al Jefferson, and the Pistons' deal with Josh Smith.
The NBA Players Association is aiming to have a new executive director in place by the 2014 All-Star break, sources tell Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe.
ESPN.com's Marc Stein tweets that Jason Collins continues to work out "a ton" as he attempts to stay in shape in the hopes that an NBA team will show interest in signing him once the season gets underway.
Evaluating the Kings' signing of DeMarcus Cousins to a max extension, Daniel Leroux of RealGM.com gives the team a grade of D+ and the player a grade of A.

Spurs Add Three To Camp Roster

September 30th, 2013 at 2:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have finalized their roster for training camp, and there are three names on the list which hadn't previously been reported. According to Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News (via Twitter), Marcus Cousin, Courtney Fells, and Daniel Nwaelele will be with the club in camp.

Cousin, 26, went undrafted in 2009 and has played for multiple D-League and international teams since then, as well as appearing in four games for the Jazz in 2011. The 6'11" big man was the leading scorer for Japan's Kyoto Hannaryz last season, averaging 14.5 PPG and 9.7 RPG in 57 contests.

Fells played his college ball in 2009 and, like Cousin, has bounced around since then. He played in Israel with Hapoel Jerusalem last season, and earned a spot on the Celtics' Summer League squad in July. As for Nwaelele, he was reportedly offered a contract by the Spurs back in 2007, but was still committed to service in the Air Force. The 6'5" guard finished his five-year commitment to the Air Force last year and joined the D-League's Santa Cruz Warriors for the 2012/13 season.

Blazers Pick Up Lillard, Robinson, Leonard Options

September 30th, 2013 at 1:17pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have exercised their third-year options on three players, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). The 2014/15 salaries for Damian Lillard, Thomas Robinson, and Meyers Leonard are now guaranteed, according to Wojnarowski.

Options decisions for second- and third-year players are due by the end of October, and some of those decisions will be easier than others. When Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors examined the upcoming rookie-scale options, he classified Lillard's as a "no-brainer," while Robinson's and Leonard's were both considered very likely to be picked up as well.

As the fifth overall pick in 2012's draft, Robinson will be in line for a 2014/15 salary of $3.68MM, while Lillard (No. 6) will earn $3.34MM and Leonard (No. 11) will earn $2.32MM. Assuming none of those players are traded or released within the next year, the Blazers will face another round of decisions next fall on each player's fourth-year option for 2015/16.

Cavs Sign DeSagana Diop, Michael Lee

September 30th, 2013 at 12:14pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers have increased their training camp roster to the maximum allowable 20 players, rounding out their list of camp invitees with DeSagana Diop and Michael Lee, the team announced today in a press release.

Several Cleveland camp invitees have been reported within the last couple days, including Elliot Williams, Jermaine Taylor, and Henry Sims. Diop and Lee will join those players and others in a competition for the final couple spots on the regular season roster.

Diop, 31, was drafted by the Cavs eighth overall back in 2001, and spent four underwhelming seasons with the team before heading to Dallas as a free agent. Diop has spent the last few years with the Bobcats, and while he never developed into more than an extra rebounder and defender off the bench, he earned $7.37MM in 2012/13.

Lee, meanwhile, played his college ball at St. Bonaventure before going undrafted in 2008. He has played internationally since then, spending time on clubs in Ukraine, Serbia, Hungary, Croatia, and France.

Month: May 2024