Raptors Sign Lucas Nogueira
SUNDAY: The signing is now official, the team announced via press release.
TUESDAY: The Raptors and Lucas Nogueira will buy out his contract with Estudiantes of Spain, as Javier Maestro of Encestando.es reports (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Toronto is expected to pay most of the roughly $800K the NBA release clause requires. The maximum Toronto is allowed to pay is $600K, and Nogueira will cover the rest.
The Raptors acquired the rights to Nogueira, the No. 16 pick from the 2013 draft, in a trade with the Hawks last month. Toronto was known to be planning on bringing the Brazilian big man to the NBA this season. He will still be bound by the rookie scale, so his salary will likely start at over $1.75MM.
Nogueira, a center, is expected to join forward Bruno Caboclo as Brazilian additions to the Raptors this season, but Nogueira likely has a clearer path to playing time than Caboclo, the 20th overall selection from this year’s draft. The 7’0″ Nogueira will join a roster featuring only a single true center in Jonas Valanciunas, and Toronto is also open to dealing away forward/center combo Chuck Hayes.
Raptors Sign Will Cherry
SUNDAY: The signing is official, the team has announced via press release. The exact terms were not disclosed.
WEDNESDAY: The Raptors have agreed in principle to sign Will Cherry to a two-year minimum deal, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). It had been previously reported that both Toronto and the Cavaliers were interested in the guard’s services. Cherry went undrafted out of Montana in 2013, and he wasn’t in an NBA training camp last fall.
The 6’1″ 23-year-old averaged 12.8 PPG and 4.0 RPG while logging 25.3 minutes per contest in five games for the Cavs Summer League team in Las Vegas. Cherry also played for the Cavs’ D-League affiliate last season, when he provided 11.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, and 4.5 APG in 30.4 MPG.
The Raptors currently have 13 guaranteed contracts on their roster and Cherry will provide depth in the backcourt, primarily behind Kyle Lowry and Greivis Vasquez at the point guard position.
Eastern Notes: Wiggins, Celtics, Cole
With all the rumblings that he is going to be traded to the Wolves for Kevin Love as soon as the required 30 days from when he inked his contract pass, Andrew Wiggins’ days in Cleveland appear numbered, writes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. For his part, Wiggins is remaining upbeat, saying, “I just want to play for a team that wants me, so whichever team wants me I’ll play for.” When asked if he expected to be a teammate of LeBron James this season, Wiggins said, “I don’t really know what to say. When I’m in Cleveland I’m going to play as hard as I can, give it my all and I’ll play for whoever.”
Here’s more from the east:
- The Celtics are working to clear roster space over the next few weeks in order to make room for Evan Turner in their rotation, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Washburn notes that Boston isn’t expected to officially announce the signing until those moves are made, although the sides have reached an agreement. The Celtics currently have 18 players on their roster, including the non-guaranteed deals of Keith Bogans, Chris Babb, and Chris Johnson, notes Washburn.
- With the loss of Paul George for what is likely the entire 2014/15 season, the Pacers are unlikely to make the playoffs, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. Winderman also opines that Indiana could have benefited from Danny Granger‘s presence and production in the wake of George’s loss.
- Heat guard Norris Cole has changed agents and is now being represented by Klutch Sports’ Rich Paul, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Cole was previously represented by Joel Bell of Bell Management.
Western Notes: Cuban, Pleiss, Sterling
In the wake of Paul George‘s terrible injury Friday night, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban blasted the IOC, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. Cuban hopes the injury will spur the NBA into creating its own international tournament where the league has more control as well as receives the benefits of holding such competitions. Cuban also said, “I think it’s a bigger issue than star players. We are being taken advantage of by the IOC (International Olympic Committee) and to a lesser extent FIBA (International Federal Basketball Association). We take on an inordinate amount of financial risk for little, if any, quantifiable gain. It’s like our guiding principle is to lose money on every game and make it up in volume. There is no logic to our position. (We) just hope we get value somewhere in the future.”
Here’s more from out west:
- Thunder 2010 draft-and-stash pick Tibor Pleiss is expected to sign a two-year deal with Barcelona, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Oklahoma City had made an attempt to bring the German big man to the NBA this season but his buyout amount became an issue, but the team was still hoping to work out a deal for the 2015/16 campaign. Details of Pleiss’ potential deal with Barcelona and buyout amount haven’t yet been announced.
- Sam Cassell is leaving the Wizards to join Doc Rivers‘ coaching staff with the Clippers, reports Michael Lee of The Washington Post. Los Angeles’ bench had recently lost Tyronn Lue to the Cavs and Alvin Gentry to the Warriors.
- Donald Sterling built an empire but words were his undoing, write Nathan Fenno, Kim Christensen, and James Rainey of The Los Angeles Times. The trio profile the seemingly soon-to-be former Clippers owner’s rise and fall.
And-Ones: Love, Telfair, Options
The conversation regarding NBA players in international competition will dominate the summer, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (video links), with widespread efforts within the league to exert more control on the nature of international play. However, Stein thinks it’s too early to suggest NBA players will be removed from the international equation in the near future. Here’s more from around the association:
- A source seconds Wolves owner Glen Taylor’s expectation of a Kevin Love trade between the Wolves and Cavs to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, and maintains that Andrew Wiggins would have to be included in the deal (Twitter links).
- A source close to Wiggins tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com that the Cavs haven’t informed the rookie of any potential trade.
- Sebastian Telfair tells Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman that his time playing in China provided a needed boost to his perspective and his game. “I was able to prove things to myself, getting an opportunity to play 30-something minutes a night, just go out there and hoop,” Telfair said. “Your team expects you to be a guy who scores 30 points a night for you to win. That was a big part of me going down there. Just to get that opportunity to get my legs back up under me.”
- In addition to current rookie scale extension candidates, Eric Pincus of Baskeball Insiders lists every player on their rookie deal whose team must decide by October 31 to pick up or decline their options for the 2015/16 season.
Fallout From Paul George Injury
Pacers GM Kevin Pritchard tells Bob Kravitz of USA Today that he first thought Paul George‘s horrific leg injury would be career-ending when he saw it live at last night’s Team USA scrimmage, but has since grown confident in George’s eventual return.
“What I’ve learned through this process is that it’s not [career-ending],” said Pritchard. “We’re not trying to project when he’s coming back, just trying to get him through this week and then we’ll know more…I have no fear he’ll be back and back in a big way. We’re not going to put a timetable on it but I don’t think there’s any doubt he’ll be back.”
Aside from concerns about George’s long-term health and the impact for his team, the injury has sparked an NBA discussion about the drawbacks of international play. Here’s a rundown:
- George’s father tells Candace Buckner of The Indianapolis Star that his doctors believe the star will make a full recovery to the same level of athleticism he had prior to the injury.
- The NBA is determined to reshape the FIBA model to its own interests, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports writes. Wojnarowski says teams have long been more wary of NBA players participating on national teams outside of the US, where they have no control over the conditions and medical services available. Aging players are also pressured to play more for other nations with thinner talent than Team USA, Wojnarowski notes.
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban believes it’s time for the NBA to push for an under-21 international competition model, he writes on his personal blog (H/T Diamond Leung of Bay Area News Group).
- Lee Jenkins of SI.com cautions that a ban on international competition for NBA players would also mean unregulated summer basketball at fan-favorite events like Drew League would be outlawed.
- Frank Isola of New York Daily News thinks that a mass exodus of NBA players from international competition would be an overreaction to George’s “freak accident,” as he describes it. Isola suggests that athletes are no more safe from harm during their off-the-court summer activities than in FIBA tournaments and the Olympics.
- Bulls GM Gar Forman told K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune that the team still supports Derrick Rose‘s involvement in Team USA basketball in the wake of George’s injury. Rose has a well-documented history of catastrophic injuries over the last few seasons.
Wolves Owner Expects He’ll Trade Kevin Love
Wolves owner Glen Taylor tells Charley Walters of St. Paul Pioneer Press that the team expects to trade Kevin Love shortly after August 23rd, when Andrew Wiggins‘ contract with the Cavs can be moved. “I’m saying it’s most likely because Kevin has made it pretty clear that that’s what he wants to do,” said Taylor, who would still prefer Love to remain in Minnesota.
Walters reports that while Cleveland is still the front-runner to acquire Love in a trade, the Warriors and Bulls are still pitching offers to the Wolves as well. The Sixers are expected to facilitate a three-team deal, should one occur. While the acknowledgment points to Wiggins as Minnesota’s primary target in a Love trade, it’s unclear if the Wolves are assured that the No. 1 pick will be made available by Cleveland. There have been conflicting reports as to Cleveland’s willingness to part with Wiggins, as well as some suspicion regarding Flip Saunders‘ leaking tactics.
Previously, Taylor had insisted it would possible to keep Love in Minnesota for at least this season, but the owner’s statement adds to the growing sentiment that the power forward has played his last game for the Wolves. A trade to Cleveland has been described as “when, not if,” and Love has reportedly made his preference to join LeBron James as a Cavalier known to the Minnesota front office. A trio of James, Love, and Kyrie Irving would immediately make Cleveland one of most dynamic offensive teams in the league, at least on paper.
Western Notes: Mavs, Bledsoe, Jazz
Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that the Mavs organization had its most positive offseason since it won the title in 2011. After falling short on free agent targets in recent summers, the team has brought in the likes of Chandler Parsons and Tyson Chandler while losing Jose Calderon, Vince Carter, and likely Shawn Marion. It will be interesting to see if the new pieces make for a greater sum than last year’s exceptional 8th seed Mavs team, as Dallas fans are hoping. Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- Mavs coach Rick Carlisle added to the growing consensus that Marion will not be back in Dallas, telling Price, “Marion’s been a great player for us. I know he’s going to end up in a good situation.”
- Jess Blancarte of Basketball Insiders compares Eric Bledsoe‘s play to other point guards around the league in an effort to gauge his true value. The market has dried up in the Suns favor, as Blancarte concludes Bledsoe is worth around $15MM per year.
- The Jazz are hoping their first-round selection of Dante Exum will net them a franchise changing talent. Jay Yeomans of Deseret News looks back at the best draft picks in team history.
Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.
Southeast Rumors: Douglas, Wall, Scott, Bosh
Heat free agent Toney Douglas was receiving interest from the Bulls until they signed Aaron Brooks, notes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, who adds that re-signing Douglas might make sense for Miami, given the lack of depth the club currently has in the backcourt. Let’s have a look at more on the Heat and the Southeast..
- Winderman passes along an excerpt from an interview John Wall had with the Washington Post. “[LeBron James‘ departure] helps us in our division, so we can get a top-three seed and homecourt advantage,” said Wall, confident the Wizards can surpass Miami next season. “We still got to battle it out with Charlotte, but we knew it was always going to be tough getting No. 1 in our division with Miami being at the top the whole time. We know they’re not the same team, but they’re still talented.”
- Any rumors suggesting that CSKA Moscow extended a “lucrative” offer to Mike Scott are likely overstated, hears David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Scott agreed to re-sign with the Hawks last night.
- Chris Bosh, who was close to leaving the Heat for Houston, thinks that James’ departure will only motivate Miami’s roster, as he tells 104.3 The Ticket (transcription via Matt Moore of CBSSports.com). “We’re still going to be competitive,” said Bosh. “It gives us an opportunity to play with a chip on our shoulder. It has revitalized my attitude towards basketball a little bit. And I’m really excited.”
Texas Notes: Ginobili, Parker, Nelson
The Spurs sent Manu Ginobili a letter prohibiting him from participating in the FIBA World Cup, but the veteran guard held out hope that he would be able to join Argentina at the tournament in Spain, writes Dan McCarney of the Express-News. It was only after Ginoboli started experiencing leg pains related to his fracture during workouts that he realized participation in the tournament wasn’t worth the risk of injury. Here’s more from the Lone Star State:
- The recently extended Tony Parker is excited to remain a member of the Spurs, and he plans on finishing his career with San Antonio, passes along Jeff McDonald of the Express-News. “I’m very happy and I want to play for the Spurs my whole career and be a Spur for life,” said Parker, who will be 36 when his deal ends, “I love San Antonio and want to live here when my career is over. I love the city, I love the people and our great fans. I couldn’t be happier.”
- Jameer Nelson told Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel that the Mavs’ shot at great success is what drew him to the team. “I’ve dealt with the process of rebuilding, and it’s tough,” said Nelson. “I want to win. I don’t want to sit back and develop anymore.”
- Nelson also mentioned to Robbins that he wishes the Mavs could have worked out an agreement with unrestricted free agent Shawn Marion, implying it’s unlikely the two sides come to terms.
- When asked if there was any truth that Dwight Howard, Nelson’s former teammate in Orlando, had tried to recruit Nelson to the Rockets, the veteran guard laughed and stopped short of addressing the question.