Lakers Sign Jabari Brown To Second 10-Day
SATURDAY, 12:43pm: The signing is official, the Lakers have announced.
FRIDAY, 8:36am: The Lakers will re-sign Jabari Brown to a second 10-day contract on Saturday, reports Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). Brown said he spoke with GM Mitch Kupchak and confirmed that’s the plan to reporters, including Mike Trudell of Lakers.com (Twitter link). Coach Byron Scott had said minutes earlier that he anticipated Brown would be back, according to Pincus (on Twitter). Scott expressed his desire on Thursday afternoon for the team to re-sign the shooting guard.
A second deal for Brown presumably means the NBA has granted the Lakers another 10-day hardship exception to carry a 16th man on the roster. That was the allowance the league provided when the Lakers inked Brown to his first 10-day contract even though they already had 15 players. Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Julius Randle are all out for the season and Ronnie Price is probably in the same situation, giving the Lakers enough injured players to qualify to apply for the extra roster spot. Nick Young also remains out with a small fracture in his left kneecap.
Brown’s initial contract expired after Thursday’s game. Waiting until Saturday to sign a second 10-day deal enables the Lakers to have him for their game on March 30th against the Sixers without having to sign him for the balance of the season. The rookie has played a prominent role, averaging 7.0 points in 20.0 minutes per contest over four games on his first 10-day contract.
2015/16 Salary Commitments: Nuggets
With the NBA trade deadline now passed, teams are focusing on locking down playoff spots or vying for a better chance in the draft lottery. Outside of the players who are added on 10-day deals, or those lucky enough to turn those auditions into long-term contracts, teams’ rosters are relatively set for the remainder of the season.
We at Hoops Rumors are in the process of taking a look ahead at each franchise’s salary cap situation heading into the summer, and the free agent frenzy that occurs every offseason. While the exact amount of the 2015/16 salary cap won’t be announced until July, the cap is projected to come in somewhere around $67.4MM, with the luxury tax threshold projected at approximately $81MM. This year’s $63.065MM cap represented an increase of 7.7% over 2013/14, which was well above the league’s projected annual increase of 4.5%.
We’ll continue onward by taking a look at the Nuggets’ cap outlook for 2015/16…
Here are the players with guaranteed contracts:
- Kenneth Faried — $11,235,955
- Danilo Gallinari — $11,559,225
- Gary Harris — $1,587,480
- J.J. Hickson — $5,613,500
- Joffrey Lauvergne — $1,709,719
- Ty Lawson — $12,404,595
- Jusuf Nurkic — $1,842,000
Here are the players with non-guaranteed contracts:
- Wilson Chandler — $7,171,662 ($2MM Guaranteed)
- Randy Foye — $3,135,000
- Erick Green — $845,059
Players with options:
- Jameer Nelson (Player Option) — $2,854,940
The Nuggets’ Cap Summary for 2015/16:
- Guaranteed Salary: $47,952,474
- Options/Non-Guaranteed Salary: $12,006,661
- Total: $59,959,135
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Hoops Rumors Originals 3/15/15-3/21/15
Here’s a look back at the original analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this past week…
- Chuck Myron ran down potential free agents who could be hitting the market in 2018 when the salary cap may decrease.
- Chuck listed all of the NBA players making over $10MM per season who had won NCAA championships.
- Check out Hoops Rumors’ 2014/15 Reverse Standings to see what your favorite team’s current chances of nabbing the No. 1 overall pick in June’s NBA draft are.
- Chuck listed all the players who are drawing paychecks from multiple teams.
- The Jazz currently lead the NBA in 10-day contract signings, as Chuck relayed in his look around the league.
- I ran down the Cavaliers’ salary cap commitments for the 2015/16 campaign.
- Chuck looked at adjustments to qualifying offers based on the starter criteria.
- If you missed our weekly live chat you can check out the full transcript here.
- Chuck ran down the players who have the largest cap holds for the 2015/16 season.
- Stay on top of all the players who are inked to 10-day contracts with our tracker.
- Chuck looked at the colleges that have produced players who earn more than $10MM per season.
- I broke down the Mavericks’ salary commitments for the 2015/16 season.
- In a reader poll we asked you to predict the annual salary Reggie Jackson will earn on his next contract.
- Here’s how you can follow Hoops Rumors on Facebook, Twitter, and your RSS feed.
Eastern Notes: Payton, Knicks, Sixers
Elfrid Payton recorded his second triple-double in as many games and the rookie is starting to help the Magic win games, writes Kyle Hightower of The Associated Press. Antoine Walker is the last player to have two straight triple-doubles as a rookie. He accomplished this feat back in 1997 for the Celtics.
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Trading the player they select with their first round pick would be a colossal mistake for the Knicks, opines Jason Concepcion of Grantland.com. Mortgaging the future in order to put above average talent on the court has long been a problem for the franchise. Concepcion looks at the Lakers’ decision not to trade Andrew Bynum for veteran Jason Kidd in 2007 and hopes Phil Jackson can learn from the team’s patience. Just a few years later, Bynum played a huge role in hanging two more championship banners in the Staples Center.
- Alexey Shved has impressed since arriving in New York and the guard is glad he is no longer playing for the Sixers, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I don’t know why it happened,” Shved said about his lack of playing time in Philadelphia. “I’m just working every day and playing like always. So it’s not a question for me. It’s a question for the [Sixers] coaches. It doesn’t matter, because the time is gone. Now, I play here and don’t what to think about what happened [with the Sixers].” The 26-year-old is averaging 18.1 points, 5.0 assists and 1.4 steals over his last seven games.
- Allen Iverson has interest in a front office role with the Sixers, writes Michael Kaskey-Blomain of Philly.com. “I would like to be even in that war room,” Iverson said. “Even if they don’t go with my decision or whatever, just to have an opinion and putting out what I think and trusting the organization to do what’s right.”
Reaction To Latest On Durant
Kevin Durant hasn’t officially been ruled out for the season, but GM Sam Presti doesn’t sound optimistic about the forward’s injury. Despite the down season, Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com believes the Thunder shouldn’t panic and make rash decisions this offseason. The team still has the talent to contend and unless Durant himself declares he is leaving, the franchise shouldn’t think about trading its superstar.
Here’s more reaction to Durant’s latest news:
- The Thunder have had major injuries in each of the last three years and Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report believes the window for Oklahoma City to win a championship is closing. Ding compares this team to another small market team, the 2004 Wolves. That team was built around Kevin Garnett, Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell and considered a contender to win it all. Cassell injured his hip and Minnesota lost in the Western Conference Finals to the Lakers. The Wolves never even made the playoffs since and a few years later, they traded their star forward to the Celtics. While it’s unlikely the Thunder trade Durant, he becomes an unrestricted free agent after the 2015/16 season.
- The burden of taking over a heralded franchise in a monster market such as New York or Los Angeles is something that may be attractive to Kevin Durant, opines Ding in the same piece. Ding cites Durant’s history in making documentaries as reason why the forward wouldn’t mind the spotlight.
- Preparing for the future without Durant is something the Thunder might have to start thinking about, opines Zach Lowe of Grantland.com. By being extra cautious with Durant’s injury, the Thunder likely lost their last chance to chase a ring before the forward becomes the most talked-about pending free agent since LeBron James. A championship with Oklahoma City would go a long way in keeping the reigning MVP in town, but the buzz surrounding Durant will do nothing but add pressure to the team during the 2015/16 season.
Central Notes: George, Bucks, MCW
Paul George could return to the court within the next week and possibly as early as Saturday against the Nets, multiple sources tell Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. “A lot of guys know I’m pushing to come back,” George said. “It’s a matter of how I’m feeling and [how] the medical staff thinks I look. I definitely want to play still. … But I want to be fully healthy.” The Pacers are currently tied with Boston for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 30-37.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- The plan for the arena in Milwaukee is slow moving, yet progressing. A source familiar with the Bucks‘ plan said the team is expected to come up with better cost estimates in the next week or two, which will allow the city of Milwaukee an opportunity to make adjustments to its plan, according to Don Walker of the Journal Sentinel. Walker notes that the franchise is signalling that its owners will not go beyond their $250MM commitment for the project.
- On the court, the Bucks have struggled since acquiring Michael Carter-Williams, but coach Jason Kidd stresses that success will not be measured by wins this year, writes Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel. “We’re here to build something, not to do something in six months. There’s a bigger picture. We feel we have a core here that will be around for a long time and have success,” Kidd said. Milwaukee is 3-9 since the Syracuse product made his debut, but the team still owns the sixth seed in the conference with a record of 34-34.
- Reggie Jackson will be a restricted free agent this offseason and about 45% of our readers believe the point guard will land a starting salary of less than $11MM in his next contract, according to latest poll by Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors.
Atlantic Notes: Ledo, Nets, Larranaga
Ricky Ledo could be a steal for the Knicks, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban told Marc Berman of the New York Post. Ledo signed a 10-day contract with New York on Thursday because of injuries to shooting guards Tim Hardaway Jr. and Cleanthony Early. The Mavs waived Ledo last month so they could sign Amar’e Stoudemire, who agreed to a buyout with New York. He was playing with the Texas Legends, the D-League affiliate of the Mavs, before the Knicks signed him. “He is incredibly talented,” Cuban stated to Berman via email. “Because we are trying to compete for a championship, we really weren’t in a position to give him minutes to help his development. I think with playing time he will get better and better and could be a steal for the Knicks.’’
In other news around the Atlantic Division:
- The Nets‘ future looks bleak regardless of whether they make the playoffs this season, Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com opines. The Nets don’t have total control over their own first-round pick until 2019 and even with ample cap space in the summer of 2016, Mazzeo doubts the Nets can attract impact free agents. The team has a leadership void and veteran players like Deron Williams and Joe Johnson with big contracts that are difficult to move, Mazzeo adds, plus GM Billy King is entering the final year of his contract.
- The Nets were influential in the move that 2014 59th overall pick Xavier Thames made to join the D-League after he’d run into problems with his Spanish team, as Thames told Scott Kaplan and B.R. Smith of San Diego’s Mighty 1090 AM Radio (audio link), and as Robert Windrem of NetsDaily transcribes. Brooklyn acquired the shooting guard’s NBA rights on draft night in a trade with the Raptors.
- Celtics assistant coach Jay Larranaga has declined to be part of George Mason University’s search for a new head coach, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Chris Crouse contributed to this post.
And-Ones: Lottery, Monroe, Harris
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said changes to the draft lottery favored by the majority of teams will likely be postponed because the NBA Players Association recently turned down the league’s smoothing proposal regarding salary-cap increases, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports. The dramatic increase in the salary cap from $63MM to an estimated $90MM during the summer of 2016 makes changes to the lottery system unfeasible, Silver told Houston-based reporters on Thursday. “What I am hearing from some of the general managers in the league is that because it’s unclear how the cap will operate with a massive amount of cap room in ’16 and ’17 and potentially in the year after that it may be premature to change the lottery until we have a better understanding of what the changed behavior will be, so it’s something we are going to continue to look at,” Silver said.
In other news around the league:
- The Pistons are unlikely to sign and trade Greg Monroe this summer, David Mayo of MLive.com opines. Mayo doubts that any team interested in signing Monroe, who becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer, would give up anything of value for him. The Pistons would probably have to take back a bad contract to execute such a deal, which makes it unwise for them to make such a move, Mayo continues. The only party who would truly benefit from a sign-and-trade deal would be Monroe, who could get a bigger contract without having to return to Detroit, Mayo concludes.
- Dirk Nowitzki is averaging 20.3 points on 52.4% shooting from the field for the Mavericks over the last three games and a less taxing schedule is the primary reason for the veteran forward’s recent outburst, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. Nowitzki said to the team’s beat writers that longer stretches in-between games has made him feel fresher, “Going into the break, I think we had the most games in the league,” Nowitzki said. “Then coming out of the break, we had the shortest break and then we had five games in seven days. A brutal stretch for us, but finally it slowed down a little bit. It allowed us to get a little healthy, mix in some good rest with good work. I think it helped us and helped me.”
- The Cavaliers assigned guard Joe Harris to their D-League affiliate, the Canton Charge, Cleveland GM David Griffin announced Friday on the team’s official website. Harris has appeared in 47 games with the Cavs this season, averaging 2.5 points in 9.2 minutes per game. He has played in seven games for the Charge, averaging 17.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 32.3 minutes per game.
Colleges That Produced Multiple $10MM+ Players
The eye-popping volume of high-profile prospects at the University of Kentucky makes their NCAA tournament games required viewing for just about anyone involved in NBA personnel matters. The Wildcats boast six players within the top 50 on Chad Ford’s ESPN.com Big Board and five among the top 50 prospects that Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress compiles. Coach John Calipari’s presence seemingly ensures that Kentucky will produce a steady stream of NBA players, and NBA stars, for years to come.
Already, Kentucky is one of two schools with four former players making at least $10MM in NBA salary this year. The other school is an SEC rival. Florida boasts just as many, and another is probably on his way, as Bradley Beal will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this year.
Eight other schools can boast multiple $10MM players, counting those who signed extensions this past fall that will give them eight-figure salaries next season and those who are receiving $10MM this season on contracts that were waived via the amnesty provision. Still, bluebloods like North Carolina (Ty Lawson), Indiana (Eric Gordon) and Georgetown (Roy Hibbert) only have one such player apiece.
Here’s a breakdown of schools that have produced multiple NBA players making $10MM-plus:
- Florida — David Lee ($15.012MM), Chandler Parsons ($14.7MM), Joakim Noah ($12.7MM), Al Horford ($12MM)
- Kentucky — DeMarcus Cousins ($14.746MM), John Wall ($14.746MM) Eric Bledsoe ($13MM), Rajon Rondo ($12.909MM)
- Connecticut — Rudy Gay ($19.317MM), Kemba Walker ($12MM in 2015/16)
- Duke — Carlos Boozer ($16.8MM), Kyrie Irving ($15.857MM in 2015/16)
- Georgia Tech — Chris Bosh ($20.644MM), Derrick Favors ($12.95MM)
- Memphis — Derrick Rose ($18.863MM), Tyreke Evans ($11.265MM)
- Texas — Kevin Durant ($18.996MM), LaMarcus Aldridge ($16.256MM)
- UCLA — Kevin Love ($15.719MM), Russell Westbrook ($15.719MM)
- USC — Nikola Vucevic ($11.25MM in 2015/16), DeMar DeRozan ($10.1MM)
- Wake Forest — Chris Paul ($20.069MM), Tim Duncan ($10.361MM)
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Clippers Sign Jordan Hamilton To Multiyear Deal
2:24pm: The deal also covers next season with non-guaranteed salary, Woike adds (on Twitter).
2:22pm: The signing is official, the Clippers announced via press release.
2:12pm: The Clippers will sign Jordan Hamilton for the rest of the season in a move that’s expected to take place today, reports Dan Woike of the Orange County Register (Twitter link). Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers had told reporters Sunday that the move would take place, but it appeared as though the team changed course amid concern over Hamilton’s ankle injury. Now, it looks like the Clippers are once more ready to commit to the former 26th overall pick.
Hamilton earlier signed a pair of 10-day contracts with the Clippers, the last of which expired Sunday night. The 24-year-old has averaged 4.0 points in 9.5 minutes per game across eight appearances with the team, draining eight of 14 three-point attempts. He was originally with the Raptors for training camp, earning a $25K partial guarantee, and he briefly spent time with the Jazz at the beginning of the season after Utah claimed him off waivers, though he didn’t see any action there.
The Clippers are limited to the prorated minimum salary for the Aaron Mintz client, though they have the flexibility to tack on an additional season. The move will give the Clippers a full 15-man roster, though the team will retain a modicum of flexibility since Nate Robinson is on a 10-day contract.