Blazers Sign Luis Montero
Luis Montero, a 6’7″ swingman out of the Dominican Republic, has signed with the Trail Blazers, President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey announced today (hat tip to The Oregonian’s Mike Richman). Montero, 22, worked out for Portland before the draft and is part of the Blazers’ summer league team.
Terms of the agreement were not released. However, RealGM lists Montero as eligible for restricted free agency in 2018, a signal that he’s on a three-year deal.
Montero last played in 2013-14 at Westchester Community College. He averaged 15.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
Lakers Rumors: Bass, Young, Kupchak, Hibbert
Newly acquired Brandon Bass will be in the mix for a starting job, coach Byron Scott told Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. The former Celtic, who signed with L.A. as a free agent this week, played for Scott when he began his career in New Orleans. “I’m hoping that Julius [Randle] takes the lead and jumps on that opportunity to be our starting power forward,” Scott said. “But I’ll let it play out.”
There’s more from Los Angeles:
- GM Mitch Kupchak told Medina in the same story that Nick Young, the subject of frequent trade rumors, needs to expand his game to have a long-term future with the Lakers. “He has to convince our coaching staff he can play within the system,” Kupchak said. “That doesn’t only mean score the ball. That means defending and doing the ltitle things, which I know he can do.” Young may be expendable after the free agent signing of Lou Williams.
- Kupchak is adopting a “live-and-learn” attitude about this year’s free agency failings, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com. The Lakers had meetings with LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre Jordan and Greg Monroe, but all elected to sign elsewhere. “There are 30 very, very competitive NBA teams,” Kupchak said. “All general managers are smart. They’re armed with brilliant supporting staffs, owners that are very successful, and it’s a very, very competitive market. It’s unrealistic to think in this day and age that every time you go into the free-agent market that you’re going to get exactly who you target.” He also disputed reports of a disastrous first meeting with Aldridge, saying it wasn’t “as bad as people have heard it was, nor do I think it was as good as we hoped it would be.”
- With the bonus added in, Roy Hibbert‘s new salary cap figure is $15,592,216, tweets Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times. That number is up from $15,514,031. Hibbert’s contract includes a 15% trade kicker worth more than $2.3MM, but he waived part of that total and will receive $78,185.
Nets Waive Deron Williams In Buyout
SATURDAY, 2:33pm: The Nets have waived Williams, the team announced in a press release.
5:22pm: It appears that Brooklyn will waive Williams using the stretch provision, and he will receive $27.5MM spread out over five years from the team, Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com tweets. This means that Williams will count as roughly $5.5MM against the salary cap through the 2019/20 season for the Nets.
4:13pm: The point guard’s buyout is expected to drop the value of his contract to the $25-$30MM range, Stein tweets.
4:05pm: Williams is expected to sign a two-year deal with the Mavericks in the $10MM range after he clears waivers, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets.
4:01pm: The Nets and Williams have reached an agreement on a buyout arrangement, David Aldridge of TNT reports (on Twitter). The details of the agreement are not yet known.
8:46am: Sources who spoke with Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News this past season believed that he wanted to leave the Nets so much that he would opt out a year from now (Twitter link). The early termination option on Williams’ contract for 2016/17 is worth more than $22.331MM. Meanwhile, the Nets haven’t been pleased with the point guard’s attitude or declining production, notes Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
2:44am: The Nets have opened buyout talks with Deron Williams, and the point guard holds a strong mutual interest in signing with the Mavericks if he becomes a free agent this summer, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. One source who spoke to Stein gave it a 60-70% chance that the Jeff Schwartz client ends up with Dallas.
Williams was the prime target of the Mavs three years ago, when he was a free agent, but the Dallas-area native eschewed a homecoming for a more lucrative contract with the Nets. The Mavs aren’t pursuing a trade for Williams because of the expense of the two years and nearly $43.374MM remaining on that deal, sources told Stein.
Brooklyn had been trying to trade Williams, notes Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com (on Twitter), most notably to the Kings, but the Nets didn’t want to give up Mason Plumlee and no deal to came to fruition out of those talks this past season. Plumlee fell out of favor with the Nets later in the season, and Brooklyn traded him last month. The Kings are no longer believed to have interest in Williams now that they’re set to sign Rajon Rondo, Stein writes. As unsuccessful trade efforts persisted, higher-ups in the Nets organization had been giving thought to a buyout, as Mazzeo also writes in his tweet. The Nets don’t want to simply waive Williams and eat the entire contract, and even using the stretch provision to spread the money over five years doesn’t hold appeal, as GM Billy King has said and as Stein notes.
King said Thursday morning that his team would probably make moves designed to bring its payroll, which Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders estimates to have $95MM worth of guaranteed salary, beneath the $84.74MM tax line or to a smaller margin above it. Still, King said this morning that he expects Williams and Joe Johnson will be on the Nets roster when the season begins.
Stein has heard “steady rumblings” in recent weeks that a return to the Jazz is a possibility for Williams, but the 10-year veteran would prefer the Mavs, in part because of the presence of ex-Jazz teammate Wesley Matthews, Stein adds. Williams would fill the need at point guard in Dallas, though he’s not nearly the star that he was when the Mavs chased him three years ago.
Mavericks Rumors: Cuban, Matthews, Williams
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban dismissed DeAndre Jordan‘s apology and celebrated the trade for Zaza Pachulia today on CyberDust, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com. “When is an apology not an apology? When you didn’t write it yourself. Next,” Cuban wrote of the Clippers’ center, who committed to Dallas before changing his mind Thursday. He also said the the Mavericks have been working for some time to acquire Pachulia. “He is a good rebounder,” Cuban stated, “and in the hard to believe category he shoots the 15 foot pick and pop at the same level as … Dirk [Nowitzki]. Look it up!”
There’s more this afternoon from Dallas:
- Wesley Matthews never considered reneging on his deal with Dallas after hearing about Jordan, MacMahon writes. Matthews spent time in Los Angeles with Jordan and Chandler Parsons the weekend before free agency began, and they had several conversations about playing together. Matthews said Cuban gave him the opportunity to back out of his deal after the news about Jordan broke, but that wasn’t an option for the former Blazer. “I came to Dallas with one intention, and that’s to win,” Matthews said. “I’m excited about it. With DeAndre or without DeAndre, I know that this organization is a championship organization.”
- Had Jordan come to the Mavericks, the team would not have had enough cap space to offer Deron Williams a two-year, $10MM deal, MacMahon tweets. Williams is expected to sign with Dallas for that figure after clearing waivers.
- Although the Mavericks were interested in Williams, they didn’t consider a trade with the Nets because he would have consumed too much cap space, according to ESPN.
Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Bargnani, Shved, Johnson
Knicks GM Steve Mills says that the team didn’t strike out in free agency despite missing out on the top available names on the market, but instead New York focused on building a solid team to surround star forward Carmelo Anthony with, Mitch Abramson of The New York Daily News relays. “We tried to be as clear as we could possibly be that we weren’t chasing the biggest stars,” Mills said. “That’s not how we’re trying to build this team. Obviously, when LaMarcus Aldridge says he wants to meet with you and he’s going to meet with six teams, we agree to go meet with him. DeAndre Jordan was willing to meet with us, so of course we go and meet him. And when you go in, you want guys to say yes. But our goal starting out with this was to spend our money wisely and to get guys in who we thought would bring this team along together and fill holes and as it turned out, we were better suited going with multiple guys as opposed to just going after one.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Former Knicks forward Andrea Bargnani, in an interview with La Gazetta (h/t to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com), said he has several free agent options and hasn’t ruled out returning to play in Europe for the 2015/16 season.
- Mills said that the Knicks could use their $2.8MM room exception to add some scoring punch to the team, and New York could look to ink guard Alexey Shved, Marc Berman of The New York Post relays (Twitter link). Shved, 26, appeared in 16 contests last season for the Knicks, averaging 14.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 3.6 assists in 26.4 minutes per game. He already rejected a minimum offer from the team, reports Begley (Twitter link).
- In the wake of the Nets‘ reported buyout arrangement with point guard Deron Williams, the team now appears intent on keeping Joe Johnson, Marc Stein of ESPN.com relays (via Twitter). Stein’s sources inform him that moving Williams was always the team’s preferred option.
Hoops Rumors Originals 7/5/15-7/11/15
Here’s a look back at the original analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this past week…
- Chuck Myron examined some 2015 NBA free agency trends.
- I ran down the 2015/16 roster count for the Thunder.
- If you missed the week’s live chat you can view the transcript here.
- I answered reader questions in Hoops Rumors’ Weekly Mailbag.
- Zach Links highlighted some of the better basketball blogs around in his weekly installment of Hoops Links.
- If you missed any of our daily reader-driven discussions, be sure to check out the Community Shootaround archives.
- Here’s how you can follow Hoops Rumors on social media and RSS feeds.
- We reviewed out commenting policy. Play nice everyone.
Week In Review 7/5/15-7/11/15
The NBA announced that the salary cap for 2015/16 will be $70MM, an 11% increase from this past season, and the luxury tax line will be $84.74MM. The last cap projection from the league had been set at $67.1MM, and the projection for the tax had been $81.6MM. These figures mean the maximum salaries for this coming season are also going to be higher than estimated, so LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Kawhi Leonard and others who’ve agreed to max contracts this month will earn more cash than they thought.
The league also tabulated final payrolls for each team from last season, revealing that players collectively made less than the 50.39% of basketball-related income that the collective bargaining agreement holds that they’re entitled to. Thus, the league will pay out the $57,298,826 shortfall to the union, which will distribute that amongst the players.
Here’s the rest of the happenings from the week that was…
Trades
- The Lakers acquired Roy Hibbert from the Pacers in exchange for a future second-rounder.
- The Knicks acquired Kyle O’Quinn via a sign-and-trade deal with the Magic. Orlando will receive cash considerations as well as the rights to swap a second-round draft pick in 2019 in return.
- The Kings dealt Ray McCallum to San Antonio for a future second-round pick.
- The Mavericks acquired Zaza Pachulia from the Bucks for a future second round pick.
You can keep up with all of the offseason trades here.
NBA Signings
Eastern Conference
- LeBron James re-signed with the Cavaliers on a two-year, maximum salary deal.
- The Pistons re-signed restricted free agent guard Reggie Jackson to a five-year, $80MM deal.
- The Cavs and Mo Williams signed a two-year, $4.3MM contract.
- Amar’e Stoudemire signed a one-year deal with the Heat.
- The Raptors signed Bismack Biyombo for two years, and $6MM.
- The Magic agreed to a one-year, $4.3MM deal with Jason Smith.
- The Pacers and Rodney Stuckey reached an agreement on a deal worth $21MM over three years.
- The Raptors signed Cory Joseph to a four-year year deal worth $30MM. The Spurs had pulled their qualifying offer to the point guard, making him an unrestricted free agent.
- The Magic and C.J. Watson reached an agreement on a three-year, $15MM deal.
- The Bulls agreed to a deal to re-sign Aaron Brooks for one year at the minimum salary.
- The Wizards and unrestricted free agent Alan Anderson agreed to a one-year, $4MM pact.
- The Pistons re-signed Joel Anthony to a two-year, $5MM pact.
- The Heat signed Gerald Green to a one-year, minimum salary deal.
- The Hornets signed Jeremy Lin to a two-year, approximately $4MM deal.
- The Hawks signed Justin Holiday to a two-year deal.
- The Raptors signed Luis Scola to a one year, approximately $3MM deal.
- The Nets signed Wayne Ellington to a two-year, $3MM deal.
- The Nets signed Willie Reed to a one-year pact.
- Jordan Hill agreed to sign with the Pacers.
- The Knicks re-signed Lance Thomas to a one-year, $1.6MM deal.
- The Wizards agreed to re-sign Drew Gooden to a one year, $3.3MM contract.
Western Conference
- The Grizzlies agreed to a five-year deal with Marc Gasol.
- The Spurs signed LaMarcus Aldridge to a four year, and approximately $80MM contract.
- DeAndre Jordan re-signed with the Clippers for four years and $87.6MM.
- The Spurs re-signed Tim Duncan to a two-year deal that would pay him $5MM this season with a player option for year two.
- The Spurs signed David West to a one-year, minimum salary deal.
- Lou Williams signed a three-year, $21MM deal with the Lakers.
- Joe Ingles and the Jazz signed a pact worth $4.5MM over two years.
- The Timberwolves signed Kevin Garnett to a two-year deal.
- The Mavericks re-signed J.J. Barea.
- Manu Ginobili agreed to re-sign with the Spurs on a deal worth $5.7MM over two years.
- The Mavs and Charlie Villanueva agreed to a minimum salary arrangement.
- The Kings and Kosta Koufos agreed to a four-year deal worth $33MM.
- Leandro Barbosa agreed to re-sign with the Warriors on a one-year, $2.5MM pact.
- The Timberwolves agreed to a three-year, $11.7MM deal with draft-and-stash prospect Nemanja Bjelica.
- Omri Casspi re-signed with the Kings on a two-year, $6MM deal.
- The Lakers signed free agent forward Brandon Bass.
- The Suns agreed to sign Mirza Teletovic to a one-year deal for $5.5MM.
- Wesley Johnson signed a minimum salary deal with the Clippers.
- Dante Cunningham re-signed with the Pelicans.
- The Mavs signed Jeremy Evans to a two-year deal.
- The Suns agreed to a two-year, $5.8MM contract with Sonny Weems.
- The Suns agreed to a one-year, minimum salary arrangement with Ronnie Price.
- The Jazz signed draft-and-stash prospect Raul Neto to a three-year, $2.8MM pact.
- The Pelicans agreed to re-sign Luke Babbitt.
- The Spurs reached an agreement with unrestricted free agent Jonathon Simmons.
- The Kings and Caron Butler agreed on a two-year deal.
- The Spurs and All-Euroleague First Team center Boban Marjanovic agreed to a one-year deal.
- The Clippers intend to sign Cole Aldrich to a two-year deal.
- The Nuggets are finalizing a four-year deal with Nikola Jokic, whom Denver drafted 41st overall last year.
- The Pelicans and Alonzo Gee agreed to a two year pact.
You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.
Offer Sheets
- The Trail Blazers signed Thunder restricted free agent Enes Kanter to a four-year, maximum salary offer sheet.
2015 NBA Draft Pick Signings
- The Timberwolves signed No. 1 overall pick Karl-Anthony Towns to a rookie scale deal.
- The Lakers signed first round draft picks D’Angelo Russell and Larry Nance Jr. to rookie scale deals.
- The Nets signed Rondae Hollis-Jefferson to a rookie scale contract.
- The Wolves inked Tyus Jones to a rookie scale deal.
- The Jazz signed Trey Lyles to a rookie scale pact.
- The Sixers signed center Jahlil Okafor to a rookie scale contract.
- The Bulls inked Bobby Portis to a rookie scale deal.
- The Rockets signed Sam Dekker to a rookie scale deal.
- The Warriors signed Kevon Looney to a rookie scale contract.
- The Trail Blazers signed Pat Connaughton to a rookie scale contract.
- The Lakers signed Anthony Brown to a rookie scale deal.
- The Wizards signed Kelly Oubre to a rookie-scale contract.
- The Grizzlies signed Jarell Martin to a rookie scale deal.
- The Magic signed Mario Hezonja to a rookie scale deal.
- The Thunder signed Cameron Payne to a rookie scale deal.
You can stay up to date on all of the 2015 NBA Draft signings here.
Waivers
- The Nets and Deron Williams reportedly reached an agreement on a buyout arrangement. Williams is expected to sign with the Mavericks if he clears waivers.
- The Raptors waived Luke Ridnour.
- The Hawks waived Austin Daye.
Miscellaneous News
- The Timberwolves rescinded their qualifying offer to Robbie Hummel, making him an unrestricted free agent.
- The Bulls announced that Randy Brown and Charlie Henry have been hired as assistant coaches, and that Mike Wilhelm will be retained as an assistant coach on Fred Hoiberg’s coaching staff.
- Jordan Farmar signed with Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv.
- The NBA fined Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban $25k for publicly confirming the team’s pending free-agent deals with DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews.
- The Celtics officially renounced their rights to Shaquille O’Neal, Stephon Marbury, Michael Olowokandi, Michael Finley, Carlos Arroyo, Nenad Krstic, P.J. Brown, and Scot Pollard, which in turn removes their cap holds.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 7/10/15
The offseason is generally a time of hope and optimism for teams. It is the time when rosters are constructed and draftees begin to tantalize their respective teams with what they have to offer on the Summer League court and on the practice floor. It is also a time when every team is still undefeated and dreaming of a championship run. Of course, the moment the regular season tips off, all bets are off and reality quickly sets in for the “also rans” around the NBA. The first person to shoulder the blame when things go poorly is usually the team’s head coach. It’s far easier for teams to replace one man than to overhaul a roster while in the midst of an 82 game campaign. Whether this is fair or not is up for debate, but it is the reality that all professional coaches face.
It’s with this in mind that I segue to the question of the day: Who will be the first head coach to be issued his walking papers during the 2015/16 season?
Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on who you believe will be the first coach to get some unexpected free time next season, and why. We look forward to what you have to say.
Northwest Notes: Connaughton, Huestis, Singler
Josh Huestis has no regrets about making a D-League arrangement with the Thunder last season, Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman writes. “I think it was a great decision,” Huestis told Mayberry. “I think it was the best decision that I could make in terms of my own career. I think having an opportunity to play in the D-League for a year has really taught me a lot and has prepared me to move forward in my career. And I think if I had to make the decision again I would make the exact same one.”
The forward’s verbal arrangement with the Thunder should have him in line for a roster spot this season, but OKC currently doesn’t have an opening for Huestis, Mayberry notes. Also complicating matters is the torn right pectoral muscle the player suffered eight weeks ago while working out, the Oklahoman scribe adds.
Here’s more out of the NBA’s Northwest Division:
- The Trail Blazers gave Pat Connaughton, the 41st overall pick in this year’s draft, a three-year, $2.5MM deal. It’s worth $625,100 this season, about $100K more than the rookie minimum. The third season is non-guaranteed at the minimum, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (Twitter link). Pincus doesn’t say if it’s worth more than the minimum in year two, but if it’s like most contracts for second-round picks, it’s not.
- The 2016 second-rounder headed to the Thunder in the Jeremy Lamb trade is bottom-five protected, and it would be unprotected for 2017, RealGM shows.
- Kyle Singler‘s five-year deal with the Thunder is worth $24.3MM, though the fifth year is non-guaranteed, Pincus tweets.
- The Jazz are giving Raul Neto $840K this season, about $315K more than the minimum, as a part of three-year deal. He’s in line for slightly more than the minimum in year two and a non-guaranteed minimum salary in year three, for a total of $2.7MM, as Pincus relays (on Twitter).
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Southwest Notes: Parsons, Asik, Aldridge
In a candid Q&A session with Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com, Mavs forward Chandler Parsons detailed the team’s recruitment of DeAndre Jordan, and expressed his disappointment with the center re-signing with the Clippers. When asked about his reaction to Jordan spurning Dallas, Parsons told MacMahon, “I’m shocked, very disappointed, frustrated, disrespected. This is something that I’ve never seen in my career, and I know that it doesn’t happen very often. When a man gives you his word and an organization his word, especially when that organization put in so much effort and I walked him through this process and was very, very open and willing to work with him, it’s just very unethical and disrespectful.”
Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- It’s the Spurs‘ own 2016 second-rounder headed to Sacramento in the Ray McCallum trade, according to RealGM.
- The protection on the 2017 second-round pick headed from the Hawks to the Spurs in the Tiago Splitter trade is for the top 55 picks, as RealGM details.
- The four-year max deal that Wesley Matthews signed with the Mavs includes a player option after year three, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (Twitter link).
- The final season in Omer Asik‘s five-year deal with the Pelicans is an early termination option. That season is partially guaranteed for $3MM, though he can end up with a larger partial guarantee if he triggers incentives, Pincus notes (Twitter links).
- The Grizzlies used the mid-level exception for their deal with Brandan Wright. Pincus pegs its value at $17.1MM, though he’s probably rounding down from $17,129,640, the full value of the mid-level over three years. Wright also has a 15% trade kicker.
- Alexis Ajinca‘s four-year deal with the Pelicans is worth $19.2MM, tweets Pincus.
- The starting salary in Patrick Beverley‘s deal with the Rockets is $6,486,486, but that’s a function of front-loading. It’s worth a total of $23MM over four years, Pincus relays (on Twitter).
- LaMarcus Aldridge has a 15% trade kicker in his max deal with the Spurs, notes Pincus (via Twitter).
- The Mavs considered trying to swing a trade for Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson before Deron Williams reached a buyout arrangement with the Nets, MacMahon tweets. Williams is expected to sign with Dallas if he clears waivers, which is highly likely given the point guard’s player-friendly contract.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.