D-League Notes: Barron, Moultrie, Hairston
A pair of reports earlier today revealed that Othyus Jeffers is set to rejoin the Iowa Energry while Jarvis Varnado, Jeffers’ teammate in Des Moines for the time being, is drawing interest from several NBA clubs. Here’s a look at more news from around the D-League:
- Another former member of the Energy, Earl Barron, has inked a deal to play in Lebanon with Moutahed, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. After making his NBA debut in 2005, Barron has played for seven different NBA clubs and seen action in 121 D-League contests.
- We heard yesterday that the Sixers assigned Arnett Moultrie to the D-League following comments he made on Monday about frustration over a lack of playing time. However, Tom Moore of Calkins Media hears that the assignment to Delaware is unrelated to Moultrie’s venting, and that the big man will return to Philly once he meets certain conditioning standards (Twitter links).
- It’s been nearly a month since P.J. Hairston joined the D-League’s Texas Legends, and he’s still trying to move on from his playing days as a Tar Heel. Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com suggests that now is the time for Hairston to focus on impressing NBA executives to improve his draft stock.
- Thunder GM Sam Presti recently sat down and discussed his club’s innovative use of its D-League affiliate with Anthony Slater of the Oklahoman.
Hoops Rumors Features
Hoops Rumors passes along the latest news and rumors on NBA player movement 365 days a year, but those aren’t the only updates you’ll see on the site. On our right sidebar, you’ll find a number of additional features and featured posts. Here’s a rundown of a few of them:
- You can follow all of our updates about your favorite teams or players on your iPhone or iPad using the Hoops Rumors app.
- We’re still keeping a close eye on free agency with the help of our list of 2013 free agents. If you want to look ahead to the summer of 2014 or 2015, we’ve rounded up those free agents as well. These lists be continually updated.
- Our list of 2013/14 roster counts is a convenient tool for keeping tabs on how many players your favorite NBA team is carrying and how many guaranteed contracts are on each club’s books.
- It’s trade season in the NBA, so we’re tracking this season’s deals and profiling players we consider trade candidates.
- If your favorite team has a better chance at Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker than a playoff berth, be sure to follow our reverse standings, which are updated daily to reflect the projected 2014 draft order.
- We’re keeping tabs on this season’s D-League assignments right here.
- Our agency database is a handy reference point for determining the representation for virtually every NBA player.
- Using our 10-day contract tracker, you can find any 10-day contract signed since the 2006/07 season, and you can sort by player, team, year and other variables.
- On Mondays at 4:00pm CT, I answer reader questions in a live chat. You can check out transcripts of our past live discussions here.
- Our list of outstanding traded player exceptions is updated whenever a trade exception is created, used or expires.
- We’re tracking each team’s use of the amnesty clause. Our complete table shows which clubs have used the amnesty clause and which will have it available next summer.
- The Hoops Rumors glossary helps explain some of the more complex concepts in the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement.
- Zach Links rounds up the best of the blogosphere every Sunday in his weekly Hoops Links feature.
- If you’re looking to catch up, our Week in Review posts compile the top news and rumors from the past seven days, while our Hoops Rumors Originals posts recap the site’s original content for the week. Both roundups are published every Sunday.
- Be sure to check out the Featured Posts section on the right sidebar for more original pieces from the Hoops Rumors writing team. Recently, we detailed how January’s three-way trade between the Warriors, Celtics and Heat worked financially, explained how proximity to the luxury tax line could affect the moves the Bulls make the rest of this season, and listed the teams unable to trade first-round picks at this year’s deadline.
Eastern Notes: Ewing, Gay, Bynum, Celtics
Patrick Ewing is the lead assistant coach for the Bobcats, but the Hall-of-Fame 7-footer thinks front offices have a bias against centers that helps keep him from becoming a head coach, as he tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. None of the current NBA head coaches who played in the league were centers, and none of the 10 winningest coaches in league history were true centers, either, as Spears points out. Ewing has long been anxious to take over a team, and Bobcats head coach Steve Clifford says Ewing’s put in the work necessary to break the mold. Here’s the latest from the Eastern Conference:
- Rudy Gay will face the Raptors for the first time as a member of the Kings tonight, and Matt Kawahara of The Sacramento Bee examines how Gay and his former team have both emerged better for the deal.
- Andrew Bynum‘s pitch to the Pacers during a three-hour meeting with the team the night before he signed was key to the deal, GM Kevin Pritchard said Tuesday on ESPN Radio with Colin Cowherd. Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star provides a transcription.
- The Celtics have recalled Vitor Faverani from the D-League a day after sending him down, the team announced. He suffered a left knee injury while with the Maine Red Claws on Tuesday, as Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe details.
- Philadelphia’s shuttling of Lorenzo Brown continues, as the Sixers today recalled the point guard from the D-League after sending him down Tuesday, the team announced via Twitter. It was his fourth assignment of one day or less.
Jarvis Varnado Drawing NBA Interest
An injury scuttled the audition that former Celtics and Heat big man Jarvis Varnado had set up with the Sixers last month, but he continues to hear from NBA teams, reports Gino Pilato of D-League Digest. The former second-round pick suffered a hip strain just before trying out with Philadelphia, but he’s almost fully healthy and is preparing to take part in the D-League All-Star game this month.
Pilato suggests multiple NBA teams are in touch with the Impact Sports Basketball client, but it’s unclear which teams are in the mix. The Sixers plucked Dewayne Dedmon from the audition that Varnado missed, signing him to a pair of 10-day deals, but they elected not to re-sign Dedmon for the season, so the Sixers have an open roster spot if they want to circle back to Varnado.
Varnado is averaging an eye-popping five blocks per game for the Iowa Energy, and it’s a skill he also displayed during his time in the D-League last year and in college at Mississippi State. He didn’t get much chance to do so in the NBA last season, playing only a total of 58 minutes for Boston and Miami. The Heat brought him camp this past fall, but cut him before opening night.
Players Up For Rookie Scale Extensions In 2014
Perhaps the most intriguing sideshow in the lead-up to this year’s trade deadline has involved Kyrie Irving, who’s denied a report that he wants out of Cleveland amid a depressing season for the Cavs. Central to that story line is Cleveland’s ability to offer Irving an extension this summer, which will be Irving’s first opportunity at salaries commensurate with his ability. If the Cavs see Irving as a maximum-salary player, there’s little Irving can do even if he turns down the extension, since Cleveland would be able to match any team’s offer to him in the summer of 2015.
Still, Irving could signal his dissatisfaction with the Cavs organization if he turns down a max extension, so the negotiations provide a forum for him to express any desire he may have for changes. The Cavs will also have a chance to give Tristan Thompson a rookie scale extension this summer, and what they do with him might be even more interesting to watch. Thompson probably isn’t a maximum-salary player, making his worth harder to define. Pegging the value of second-tier guys is a challenge for teams and agents alike, and since the extensions usually entail a four-year commitment, the consequences are long-lasting. If the sides can’t come to an agreement, the team may pull off a trade, as the Thunder did with James Harden before last season.
Negotiations can start on rookie scale extensions July 1st, and the deadline to finalize deals is October 31st. Most deals don’t happen until the last minute, but max-level players, like John Wall this past summer and Blake Griffin in 2012, often ink their extensions in the summer.
Here’s a list of each player eligible for a rookie scale extension this year, sorted by team:
- 76ers: None
- Bobcats: Bismack Biyombo, Kemba Walker
- Bucks: Brandon Knight,
- Bulls: Jimmy Butler
- Cavaliers: Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson
- Celtics: None
- Clippers: None
- Grizzlies: None
- Hawks: None
- Heat: Norris Cole
- Jazz: Alec Burks, Enes Kanter
- Kings: Derrick Williams
- Knicks: Iman Shumpert
- Lakers: None
- Magic: Tobias Harris, Nikola Vucevic
- Mavericks
- Nets: None
- Nuggets: Kenneth Faried
- Pacers: None
- Pelicans: None
- Pistons: None
- Raptors: None
- Rockets: None
- Spurs: Kawhi Leonard, Cory Joseph
- Suns: Marcus Morris, Markieff Morris
- Thunder: Reggie Jackson
- Timberwolves: Ricky Rubio
- Trail Blazers: Joel Freeland, Victor Claver
- Warriors: Klay Thompson
- Wizards: None
Othyus Jeffers To Rejoin D-League
Recent Spurs 10-day signee Othyus Jeffers will return to the D-League’s Iowa Energy, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM.com. The Spurs terminated their deal with Jeffers a day early this past weekend so they could sign Shannon Brown. Jeffers has spent part of five of the last six seasons with the Energy, who retain his D-League rights.
The 28-year-old appeared in four games and even started one for injury-hit San Antonio, taking just five shots and scoring seven points in 34 total minutes. Jeffers has otherwise experienced his best season in the D-League this year, setting career highs of 22.8 points and 11.4 rebounds per game.
Charania suggests part of Jeffers’ motivation for heading back to the D-League is his desire to stay on the radar of NBA teams. Given his extensive D-League resume and lack of international experience, the move is no surprise.
Western Rumors: Clippers, Aldridge, Gay
Brian Windhorst and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com examine the chances that the Clippers could wind up with LeBron James this summer, calling them “perhaps the most serious competitor” the Heat will face for the four-time MVP. The Clippers aren’t set to have cap space, but Miami had to pull off some last-minute moves to open up room for their free agent haul in 2010, and a source close to James tells the ESPN.com scribes that James will consider teams without cap room. It would require the Heat to cooperate, and league executives believe they’d ask for Blake Griffin as part of a sign-and-trade, according to Windhorst and Shelburne. While we wait to see if that scenario plays out, here’s more from the West:
- LaMarcus Aldridge says he’ll make “winning and happiness and making sure my worth is valued” his priorities in his next contract negotiations, and tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com that he wants to wait until summer to talk about an extension. That’s the same timetable Blazers owner Paul Allen said he’ll take shortly after Aldridge revealed he’d be open to an extension.
- Rudy Gay tells Marc Stein of ESPN.com that he isn’t leaning one way or another about whether to exercise his player option this summer, but he says he appreciates the on-court freedom the Kings have given him since December’s trade.
- The Suns have assigned Archie Goodwin to the D-League, the team announced. The rookie performed well on his first trip to the Bakersfield Jam late last month, averaging 29.5 points and 6.0 rebounds in a pair of games.
- Andre Roberson is back from yesterday’s assignment to the D-League, the Thunder announced. The power forward put up 20 points and 11 rebounds Tuesday for the Tulsa 66ers.
Kyler’s Latest: Rivers, Bobcats, Sixers
Sources tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders that the Pelicans have had a deal in place all season to trade Austin Rivers if he didn’t start seeing minutes. His playing time has perked up of late, and Kyler wonders if the Pelicans are merely showcasing him for other trades. The Pelicans are also open to trading Eric Gordon and Tyreke Evans, according to Kyler, who shares plenty more in his latest piece. We’ll hit the highlights here:
- The Bobcats are “kicking around” the idea of trading for Greg Monroe, Kyler writes. He also hears they’d be willing to throw Bismack Biyombo into a Ben Gordon trade to convince teams to take on Gordon’s inflated deal, but as Kyler notes, that wouldn’t do much to persuade reluctant trade partners.
- The Sixers could wind up dealing away all of their three veteran trade candidates — Spencer Hawes, Evan Turner and Thaddeus Young — by the deadline, Kyler writes, adding that the Rockets have been targeting Young all season. We heard Young connected to Houston in December, but this is the first report suggesting the Rockets have had interest in him since.
- Dion Waiters and Alonzo Gee are the names most frequently mentioned around the league when the subject of Cavs trade candidates comes up, according to Kyler. Cleveland is reluctant to make Anderson Varejao a part of its talks, but the Cavs are coming around to ideas they hadn’t previously considered, Kyler observes, adding that the team looks like it will be a seller, either at the deadline or around draft time.
- Almost everyone on the Bucks, outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo and John Henson, is fair game for a trade, according to Kyler, who hears that the Rockets have been eyeing Ersan Ilyasova.
- Marcus Thornton and Jimmer Fredette are the Kings that Kyler keeps hearing in trade chatter, but there’s little market for either, he writes.
- Rival teams are getting the sense that the Pistons will stand pat at the deadline, which Kyler finds vexing.
- Sources close to the Raptors tell Kyler that their trade talk is simply due diligence, and that they’re only considering overwhelming offers.
Teams That Can’t Trade First-Round Picks
The trade deadline is two weeks and one day away, so there are plenty of ideas, proposals, and scenarios being bandied about between teams, reporters and fans alike. Not all of them are feasible. Many run afoul of the league’s salary-matching requirements, but others center on draft picks that teams are unable to convey.
Teams that have already traded their 2014 first-round picks aren’t the only ones that face restrictions. Thanks to the Ted Stepien Rule, a team can’t trade a 2014 first-round draft pick if it would leave the club without future first-rounders in consecutive years. So, a team without a 2015 first-rounder can’t trade its 2014 first-round choice. And if the protections attached to a pick carry through subsequent years, the earliest pick the team can trade would be for two years after the final year the traded pick could possibly be conveyed. So, if a 2014 pick is protected through 2017 and becomes unprotected for 2018, the team that owes the pick can’t deal a first-rounder for any year until 2020.
Teams can’t trade draft picks more than seven drafts in advance. So, this season, teams can trade picks for the 2020 draft, but not for the 2021 draft or any draft after that. A team may conditionally agree to send out a first-round draft pick that would be conveyed two years after its previous draft debt has been paid. As part of the Dwight Howard trade in the summer of 2012, the Lakers agreed to send a first-round pick to the Magic. Because there was a chance their previous obligation to the Suns might not be fulfilled until 2018, that meant Orlando might not have been in line to get its first-round pick until 2020, which was more than seven drafts ahead. The Lakers and Magic got around this by stipulating that instead of a first-round pick, the Lakers would send two second-rounders instead if the Suns didn’t get their first rounder in time.
So, teams this season with draft obligations that extend as late as 2019 or 2020 can trade first-round draft picks, but they can’t guarantee another team that the first-round pick will actually ever come. Another way a team with that sort of obligation can trade a first-rounder is if it acquires a first-round pick from another team. If the team that owes the pick that’s protected through 2017 has another first-round draft choice coming its way for 2014, it’s free to trade that 2014 pick.
Here’s a list of each team that can’t send a guaranteed 2014 first-round draft pick out via trade, with the year of the first such pick it can guarantee via trade in parentheses.
- Nets (2020): Brooklyn has already traded its 2014, 2016 and 2018 first-rounders.
- Mavericks (2020): Dallas has only traded a single pick, its 2014 selection, but the protections on it extend through 2017, and the selection becomes unprotected in 2018.
- Pistons (2018): The pick Detroit owes the Bobcats could go out anytime between 2014 and 2016.
- Warriors (2019): Golden State owes the Jazz its first-round picks in 2014 and 2017.
- Pacers (no first-rounder to spare): Indiana has only surrendered a single first-round pick, but the protections on the draft choice it sent to the Suns in the Luis Scola deal run through 2019, and it becomes unprotected in 2020.
- Clippers (2017): L.A. has its own first-round pick for 2014, but its 2015 first-rounder is ticketed for Boston thanks to the Doc Rivers deal.
- Lakers (no first-rounder to spare): Like their fellow Staples Center tenants, the Lakers have their own pick this year, but their 2015 and 2017 picks are spoken for. The 2017 pick is protected through 2018, and becomes unprotected in 2019.
- Grizzlies (no first-rounder to spare): The Grizzlies, too, have this year’s pick, but with their 2015 pick headed to the Cavs, their hands are tied thanks to the protections on the pick, which extend through 2018. It becomes unprotected in 2019.
- Heat (2019): The 2015 pick Miami owes the Cavs is protected through 2016 and becomes unprotected in 2017.
- Timberwolves (2018): The protections on the 2014 first-rounder that Minnesota owes the Suns go through 2016, but if it hasn’t been conveyed at that point, it turns into a pair of second-rounders.
- Pelicans (no first-rounder to spare): The protections on the pick New Orleans sent to the Sixers at last year’s draft run through 2019.
- Knicks (2018): New York owes its picks in 2014 and 2016.
- Trail Blazers (2018): The Blazers owe this year’s pick to the Bobcats, but the protections run through next year, and it could become unprotected in 2016.
- Kings (2019): The protections on this year’s first-rounder, which Sacramento owes to Chicago, run through 2017. If it hasn’t gone to the Bulls by then, it turns into a second-rounder.
- Wizards (no first-rounder to spare): Washington’s 2014 first-round pick could head to Phoenix anytime between now and 2020. The protections expire in 2019, and it would be unprotected in 2020.
RealGM.com was used in the creation of this post.
Jared Dudley On Trade Block
ESPN’s Marc Stein reports that the Clippers are “itchy” to make a deal, and with playing time harder to come by and a logjam at the wing positions, Jared Dudley is unexpectedly in play on the trade market and could be dealt on or before the deadline (Twitter links). Dudley, who arrived in Los Angeles via trade alongside J.J. Redick this past summer, is averaging 7.9 PPG on 44.9% shooting from the field and 36.3% from long distance. He has also been a major rotation player for Doc Rivers this year, starting in 42 of 51 games and playing 26.9 MPG.
The 28-year-old forward is currently slated to earn $4.25MM annually through the 2014/15 season and owns a $4.25MM player option in 2015/16. While Stein thinks it’s too soon to consider moving Dudley, it’s also evident that Rivers is still searching for the supporting cast he wants, especially with the recent additions of Hedo Turkoglu and Sasha Vujacic,