Northwest Notes: Afflalo, Wolves, Thunder
The Thunder are reaching out to teams with the hope of unloading a contract to solidify their ability to re-sign Enes Kanter and Kyle Singler, both of whom are restricted free agents this summer, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets. OKC has reportedly dealt Jeremy Lamb and his $3,034,356 salary for 2015/16 to the Hornets, so it’s unclear if further moves are in the works. The deal includes Matt Barnes and his $3.543MM salary for next season coming to Oklahoma City, though only $1MM of that amount is guaranteed unless he remains on the roster past July 1st, at which point the team would be on the hook for the entire amount. The Thunder aren’t expected to keep Barnes, though it wasn’t specified if a third team was involved, or if he would simply be released.
Here’s more from the Northwest Division:
- The Blazers shouldn’t prioritize re-signing unrestricted free agent Arron Afflalo this offseason, opines Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. Freeman notes that Afflalo and Portland were never a good match, with the swingman struggling to find his place and never looking completely comfortable in the Blazers’ system. Couple that with the late-season emergence of C.J. McCollum, and Portland re-signing Afflalo becomes less of a need, regardless of what transpires with fellow unrestricted free agent Wesley Matthews, Freeman concludes.
- When asked what the Timberwolves would be targeting in the second round of the draft and in free agency this summer, coach/executive Flip Saunders said backcourt [depth], shooting and ball-handling, Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press tweets. Saunders not mentioning a big man seemingly reinforces the opinion that the team will select Karl-Anthony Towns with the No. 1 overall pick, Krawczynski adds.
- The Timberwolves are expected to extend their lease on the Target Center with the city of Minneapolis through 2035, Charley Walters of The Pioneer Press relays (Twitter link).
Hornets Acquire Nicolas Batum
8:09pm: The trade is official, the Blazers announced. “Nic Batum was a key contributor to all of our recent success,” said Blazers executive Neil Olshey. “He will truly be missed as a person and a player. We wish Nic all the best for the future.”
6:08 pm: The Blazers and Hornets are finalizing a deal that would send Nicolas Batum to Charlotte in exchange for Noah Vonleh and Gerald Henderson, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). The Yahoo! scribe had reported earlier today that the Hornets were seeking to acquire a wing player in advance of the NBA Draft, but Wojnarowski had relayed that the team was aggressively shopping big man Cody Zeller.
Batum, 26, certainly can be considered an upgrade for Charlotte, despite him coming off a subpar 2014/15 campaign. He appeared in 71 contests for the Blazers, averaging 9.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 4.8 assists. His career numbers are 11.2 PPG, 5.1 RPG, and 4.8 APG, with a slash line of .446/.363/.834. Batum is set to earn $12,235,750 for the 2015/16 season, and that amount is fully guaranteed.
It’s a bit of a surprise that the Hornets would deal away Vonleh, the team’s lottery selection of a year ago. The 19-year-old only appeared in 25 contests for the Hornets after getting off to late start due to a preseason sports hernia injury. The immediate conclusion would be that Vonleh was acquired by the Blazers to protect themselves in the event that unrestricted free agent LaMarcus Aldridge departs this offseason, but the deal was made with Aldridge’s knowledge, and was done independently of his free agent decision, Wojnarowski tweets. Vonleh averaged 3.3 points and 3.4 rebounds in 10.4 minutes per contest this past season, and is set to earn $2,637,720 in 2015/16.
Henderson, 27, recently picked up his $6MM player option for next season, and is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. He appeared in 80 games for Charlotte during the 2014/15 campaign, and averaged 12.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 28.9 minutes per contest. His shooting numbers last season were .437/.331/.848.
Offseason Outlook: Sacramento Kings
Guaranteed Contracts
- DeMarcus Cousins ($15,851,950)
- Rudy Gay ($12,403,101)
- Carl Landry ($6,500,000)
- Jason Thompson ($6,431,250)
- Darren Collison ($5,013,559)
- Ben McLemore ($3,156,600)
- Nik Stauskas ($2,869,440)
- (Wayne Ellington $882,630)1
Non-Guaranteed Contracts
- Ray McCallum ($947,276)
- Eric Moreland ($845,059)
- David Stockton ($845,059)
Options
- None
Restricted Free Agents/Cap Holds
- Derrick Williams ($12,662,808) — $4,045,894 qualifying offer
Unrestricted Free Agents/Cap Holds
- Andre Miller ($8,787,500)
- Reggie Evans ($3,360,441)
- No. 6 pick ($2,831,900)
- Ryan Hollins ($947,276)
- Omri Casspi ($947,276)
Draft Picks
- 1st Round (6th overall)
Cap Outlook
- Guaranteed Salary: $53,108,530
- Non-Guaranteed Salary: $2,637,394
- Options: $0
- Cap Holds: $29,537,201
- Total: $85,283,125
For the ninth straight time, the Kings suffered a losing season and failed to make the playoffs. The hope, from Sacramento’s perspective, is that the team will finally take a quantum leap forward in its long rebuilding process. Time, however, is running out for that procedure to include star DeMarcus Cousins, who lately has been the subject of a bevy of trade rumors. This offseason is a particularly important one for the Kings because of the front office shakeup the franchise experienced and the fact they will be playing their last season at the old arena before moving into their new downtown arena in the fall of 2016.
While the Kings have seven players under guaranteed contracts for next season, that doesn’t mean they necessarily have depth, and they are without several areas that are in need of improvement. Cousins is locked in for three more seasons for a total of $47MM, and he had a terrific year, with averages of 24.1 points per game and 12.7 rebounds per game. He will turn 25 going into the 2015/16 seasons, with his first five seasons in the league ending without a playoff appearance. Yet despite four consecutive draft lottery selections, the Kings are yet to find a secondary star with the ability to support Cousins.
This might be the season the Kings ditch him and move in an entirely different direction, according to recent reports that claim coach George Karl has an intense desire for the Kings to trade him. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports Karl and some members of the team’s front office have expressed to executives and coaches from other teams that they hope to have owner Vivek Ranadive’s blessing to trade the All-Star soon.
Ranadive and vice president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac have insisted time and again that the team has no plans to trade Cousins, however, according to Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. Divac has said the team is looking for players who will complement Cousins’ skills.
“That is not happening,” Divac said about the possibility of moving Cousins, “but I would love to do something, a smaller move, before the draft. We have a lot of changes to make. The league is much more up-tempo now, and we need more three-point shooting. If we don’t get that in the draft, we’ll be active in free agency and see about making trades later in the offseason.”
Still, the Lakers, Celtics, Knicks and Nuggets have been tied to Cousins as potential suitors and trade partners. The Nuggets’ interest is tied to the fact that both Denver’s coach and GM were let go by the Kings. The Nuggets have been increasingly viewed as a team likely to go after Cousins since Denver’s hiring of ex-Kings coach Michael Malone this month, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
The idea that he might be on the block was ignited earlier this season amid Sacramento’s pair of midseason coaching changes. Cousins, who connected with Malone, released a statement expressing support for then-candidate Karl. The Kings also hired Divac late in the season and displaced GM Pete D’Alessandro, who’s now with the Nuggets. Cousins has asked not to be traded, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee notes (Twitter link).
Cousins has privately feared that Karl wanted him out, especially after Karl’s remark in April that he’s never had one player who would be untradeable, tweets Jones. One player that Karl would reportedly like to have replace Cousins is free agent big man JaVale McGee, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). McGee previously played for Karl in Denver.
For now, at the very least, Cousins is on the Kings, and small forward Rudy Gay is his partner on the perimeter, with three years and $40MM left on his deal. Gay, too, has been a subject of trade rumors. Kings executives believe it’ll be tough to find value for Cousins and believe they have a better chance to find the right trade for Gay, according to Wojnarowski in the aforementioned piece. Sacramento is pursuing trades for Gay and the rest of its roster, Wojnarowski reports.
Cousins and Gay aside, the Kings do not have much else in terms of dependable talent. That, of course, is part of the reason they experienced another losing season. There were a few exceptions. Point guard Darren Collison, who is signed for two more years at $10MM, played well in his return to a starting role. Ben McLemore, after getting more minutes, improved his shooting statistics to respectable figures. McLemore improved his field goal percentage from 38% in 2013/14 to 44% this past season.
Depth and improved shooting are two major areas of concern this offseason for the Kings — besides, of course, the Cousins saga. The Kings, who have some cap space this summer, but not much wiggle room, have been a poor shooting team for a couple of years now, and that didn’t change this past season. They ranked 28th in both 3-pointers made and 3-pointers attempted. Sacramento has about $53MM in guaranteed salary against a projected $67.1MM cap for next season, not counting its first-round pick at No. 6., but with the team seemingly checking in on so many potential trades, it’s challenging to predict how much the Kings will have in terms of money and assets.
Ty Lawson is someone who can help in the area of shooting and has been linked to the Kings recently. The Nuggets and Kings have discussed a deal involving Lawson, but the sides have found little traction, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Karl is “enamored” with the notion of trading for Lawson, Kenneth Faried and Wilson Chandler, Berger writes in another piece, presumably in a deal that ships out Cousins.
Another name is soon-to-be free agent Rajon Rondo. The Kings and Rondo have mutual interest, as the idea of signing a one-year deal with Sacramento to rehabilitate his value around the league intrigues the point guard, Wojnarowski reports. Sacramento has long coveted Rondo, as reports have indicated, and the Kings were apparently among the teams who spoke with the Celtics shortly before Boston traded him to Dallas in December. Rondo is a name that makes sense for the Kings, with or without Cousins, because of how much Karl likes to push the ball in an up-tempo offense.
While it appears the team will be active on both the trade and free agent markets, the Kings also have the No. 6 pick in the draft. It’s an asset they are likely to move, however, tweets Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. If the Kings hold on to the pick, I would expect them to scoop up a big man. It’s a good year for big men in the draft, and the Kings have a hole at power forward because Jason Thompson is among the least productive starters in the league. What’s more, the Kings are intrigued by the pairing of Frank Kaminsky and Cousins, according to Mannix (Twitter link). Kaminsky had a strong workout with the Kings on Monday, Mannix adds.
It’s already shaping up to be an intriguing offseason for the Kings, who have a new coach, new vice president of basketball and franchise operations and a new arena on the way, yet have suffered the same fate for nine straight seasons. Whether or not the team moves Cousins dictates the rest of the summer, one that Divac has promised would be the last the Kings go through as a team with a top-10 draft pick.
Cap Footnotes
1 — The Kings waived Ellington in August 2014 and used the stretch provision to spread his remaining guaranteed salary over the next three seasons.
The Basketball Insiders Salary Pages were used in the creation of this post.
Ed Davis Opts Out With Lakers
Lakers forward Ed Davis has declined his player option for the 2015/16 campaign and will become an unrestricted free agent, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link). The move comes as no surprise since it had previously been reported that Davis intended to decline his option worth $1,100,602 and test free agency. Davis has said that he would prefer to return to Los Angeles next season.
The Lakers have also expressed a willingness to bring back Davis, and would be open inking him to a multiyear arrangement as long as the cap hit was a reasonable amount. With Los Angeles likely to turn down its 2015/16 team option for Jordan Hill worth $9MM, the Lakers will need depth in its frontcourt, and Davis could certainly fit the bill. The Lakers have approximately $35MM in guaranteed salary already on the books for next season, so they wouldn’t have much trouble re-signing Davis or Hill under the projected $67.1MM cap. Though the team is certainly hoping to use its available cap space on a big ticket free agent this summer.
Davis was solid for the Lakers this past season, appearing in 79 games, 24 as a starter. He averaged 8.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 23.3 minutes per contest. His career stats are 7.2 PPG, 6.3 RPG, and 1.0 BPG, and owning a shooting line of .556/.000/.566.
Brandon Rush Opts In With Warriors
Brandon Rush has picked up his minimum-salary player option with the Warriors, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). The team hasn’t made a public announcement, but it appears as though the move has indeed taken place. The news isn’t surprising, since the seven-year veteran saw sparse playing time this past season for the NBA champs.
Rush signed with Golden State last summer, returning to the team with which the former 13th overall pick scored a career-high 9.8 points per game as a valuable sixth man in 2011/12. A Mark Bartelstein client, he wound up with a two-year, $8MM pact the following summer but tore his ACL in the opening week of the 2012/13 season, and his career hasn’t gotten back on track since. Rush averaged less than a point in 8.2 minutes per game across 33 appearances this past season.
The Warriors already had more than $77.6MM in guaranteed salary for 2015/16, well in excess of a projected $67.1MM cap, so Rush’s option, worth nearly $1.271MM, compounds the team’s financial issues. The tax threshold of $81.6MM looms as the team seeks to re-sign Draymond Green, so it’s no surprise that the Warriors are reportedly looking for takers for David Lee and his nearly $15.494MM salary.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 6/24/15
Some of the greatest joys of being a sports fan, besides your favorite team winning the championship, are the debates that arise between fellow sports nuts along the way. It’s with this in mind that we have begun providing a forum for basketball fanatics to voice their opinions, debate trending topics, and simply hang out with like-minded hoops aficionados. We’ve begun been posting a new topic for readers to discuss each weeknight, which we hope that this will become a regular part of your sports day. If you missed our previous discussions you can view them here, or simply head over to the sidebar and select “Hoops Rumors Community Shootarounds.”
Of course, there will be differing opinions from time to time. While we absolutely encourage lively discussion and debate, we do expect everyone to treat each other with respect. So, please refrain from inappropriate language, personal insults or attacks, as well as the other taboo types of discourse laid out in our site’s commenting policy. Speaking of commenting: we’ve made it much easier to leave a comment here at Hoops Rumors. Just put in your name, email address, and comment and submit it; there is no need to become a registered user.
Now that the preamble has been taken care of, on to the topic of the day: What should the Kings do regarding DeMarcus Cousins?
There are reports swirling that new Kings head man George Karl would prefer it if his job description didn’t include coaching the talented big man next season. This is a bit of a puzzler, seeing as team owner Vivek Ranadive and vice president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac have adamantly opposed any idea of dealing away Cousins. If there indeed was a disconnect between Karl and Cousins, one would think that would have come up during the interview process. Nevertheless, there remains the distinct possibility that Boogie may be terrorizing the paint in another uniform during the 2015/16 campaign.
What do you think the team should do regarding Cousins? Firing Karl and replacing him with a coach who embraces Cousins is likely not an option since Karl recently inked a multiyear pact. There has been talk that the Lakers could be in play with the No. 2 overall pick, though it would likely take more than that to land such a talented player. What realistic return should Sacramento expect for Cousins? What does the fact that we’re discussing this potentiality say about the Kings organization as a whole? Sound off in the comments section below with your thoughts, opinions, and trade ideas. We look forward to what you have to say.
Note: There won’t be a Shootaround posted on Thursday night. But I will be hosting a live chat during the NBA Draft that will begin at 6pm (Central). Come join us as we discuss, debate, and critique all of the selections as they occur.
Rockets Exercise Option On Papanikolaou
The Rockets have exercised their team option for Kostas Papanikolaou, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). The forward is set to earn $4,797,664 during the 2015/16 campaign, and though his deal is a non-guaranteed one, it would become fully guaranteed if he remains on Houston’s roster past October 4th.
On Sunday, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle noted that the team was on the fence regarding Papanikolaou’s option. Houston was reportedly considering rolling the dice and declining its option on the forward, and would then try and re-sign him as a free agent this summer. The Rockets already have $54,629,767 in guaranteed salary on the books for the 2015/16 season, and the addition of Papanikoloau’s salary would increase that amount to $59,427,431.
Papanikolaou was a regular part of the Rockets’ rotation during the first half of the 2014/15 season, but the acquisition of Josh Smith cut into the 24-year-old’s minutes the rest of the way. He averaged 6.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in 24.6 minutes per game before Smith joined the team and 2.3 PPG, 1.5 RPG and just 12.1 MPG in 21 appearances afterward.
Hornets Shop Cody Zeller, Seek Wing Players
The Hornets are aggressively shopping big man Cody Zeller, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). Charlotte is seeking wing players in return for the second year center in an effort to improve the team’s offense in advance of the NBA Draft, Wojnarowski adds. If the team is successful in dealing away Zeller, Charlotte will give strong consideration to drafting slick-shooting Wisconsin center Frank Kaminsky with the No. 9 overall pick, the Yahoo! Scribe relays.
Quite a few mock drafts peg the Hornets to target a wing who can stretch the floor with his shooting, so it’s not a shock to learn that Charlotte is actively looking to upgrade at that spot. If GM Rich Cho were able to address that need prior to Thursday night’s big event, it would allow the organization greater freedom to maximize the pick by taking the best player available, rather than trying to plug a specific hole in its roster.
Zeller underwent surgery back in April to repair damage to his right shoulder, and is expected to be able to resume basketball activities in July. The 22-year-old appeared in 62 contests for Charlotte this season, averaging 7.6 points and 5.8 rebounds in 24.0 minutes per game. His career numbers are 6.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 1.3 APG, with a slash line of .443/.500/.750.
Celtics To Pursue Paul Pierce, Robin Lopez
3:45pm: The Celtics consider a frontcourt tandem of Love and Lopez a “dream scenario,” but it’s not one they expect to happen as of right now, Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops tweets.
1:45pm: The Celtics plan to pursue Paul Pierce and Robin Lopez as complementary players to sell Kevin Love on the idea of signing with Boston, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The Celtics have about $40MM on the books against a projected $67.1MM cap already, and if they sign Love to a deal starting at an estimated max of $18.96MM, they’d be hard-pressed to find room for both Pierce and Lopez without making salary-clearing trades. They also face a stiff challenge from the Clippers for Pierce, as the Clips seek to offload bench players in deals that could net them trade exceptions to allow them to sign-and-trade for the 37-year-old small forward, but Pierce is “in play” for the C’s if they can get Love, Wojnarowski adds (on Twitter).
Pierce told Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald in December that he would probably speak with president of basketball operations Danny Ainge and co-owner Wyc Grousbeck about a role with the Celtics for after his playing days. Pierce would like to become a GM someday, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe (on Twitter). It appears that Boston has a different sort of return planned for him if the circumstances are right. Pierce intends to play next season, as Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reported, and he’s turning down a player option worth nearly $5.544MM on the contract he signed last summer with the Wizards, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
The Clippers will have only the $3.376MM taxpayer’s mid-level to spend on outside free agents if they re-sign DeAndre Jordan for the max. They could aggregate bench players to create a trade exception for larger than that amount, as Wojnarowski suggests, though doing so would require the team to find willing trade partners, and they’d also have to convince the Wizards to go along with the plan if they want to sign-and-trade for Pierce. The Nets reportedly resisted the Clips’ efforts to construct sign-and-trade scenarios involving Pierce last year.
Lopez has said he’d prefer to re-sign with the Blazers, though Portland is in flux. Many executives around the league expect LaMarcus Aldridge, for whom Lopez has been a strong complement, to leave the Blazers, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com wrote today.
Grizzlies Acquire Luke Ridnour
2:33pm: The trade is official, the Magic and Grizzlies announced via press releases.
10:21am: The Grizzlies and Magic have agreed to a trade that will send Luke Ridnour to Memphis, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The Magic will get the rights to 2013 second-round pick Janis Timma, Wojnarowski adds (on Twitter).
The 34-year-old Ridnour was reportedly considering retirement as of March, and he hasn’t publicly said whether or not he intends to play next season. His $2.75MM salary is non-guaranteed, though it becomes fully guaranteed if he remains under contract through July 10th. So, the move doesn’t immediately add to the roughly $47MM the Grizzlies have in guaranteed salary for next season, nor does it reduce the Magic’s nearly $39MM in commitments. Orlando was almost certainly going to waive Ridnour before his salary locked in, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
The Grizzlies have a trade exception worth more than $3MM as a vestige of having sent Quincy Pondexter to the Pelicans in January’s Jeff Green trade, so the Grizzlies could use that to officially acquire Ridnour before July 1st. They could open cap space to make the move if they wait until next month to formalize it, though they’re unlikely to go under the cap unless Marc Gasol bolts, so it would seem the trade exception will go to use. Orlando, which is already under the cap, doesn’t have the chance to create a trade exception of its own for Ridnour.
Memphis is gaining a backup point guard who’s also seen time at the two, so his acquisition would seemingly create competition for Beno Udrih, whose salary of nearly $2.175MM is partially guaranteed for $923K, and Nick Calathes, who’s entering free agency. The Grizzlies can make Calathes a restricted free agent if they tender a qualifying offer $1,147,276 by month’s end, though perhaps today’s news is a signal that they’re prepared to move on from him. It’s also possible that the Grizzlies will try to flip Ridnour in another trade, Wojnarowski suggests.
Timma, a small forward who turns 23 next month, averaged 12.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 28.9 minutes per game this past season for VEF Riga of Latvia. It’s assumed that his contract with that team expires this year, as Mark Porcaro notes in our Draft Rights Held Players database.