Latest On Potential Heat Trades, Mario Chalmers
The Heat expect to keep Mario Chalmers until at least the start of training camp, and owner Micky Arison has made no demand that the team shed salary, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The prospect of trading for Jamal Crawford, an idea the Heat reportedly raised in talks with the Clippers nearly two months ago, “can’t be ruled out,” but Miami is satisfied with its depth on the perimeter, Jackson writes. The Heat are still willing to trade Chris Andersen, but the market for him has been soft, Jackson hears from a higher-up who’s been in contact with the Heat, and no evidence suggests the Clippers are interested in him as part of a swap involving Crawford, Jackson adds.
The Heat would still prefer to offload salary and haven’t ruled out trading Chalmers, set to make a guaranteed $4.3MM in the final season of his contract this year, as soon as October, according to Jackson. The point guard hasn’t given indications that he’s expecting to be traded, and team president Pat Riley denied reports around draft time indicating that the team was shopping Chalmers and Andersen. Grantland’s Zach Lowe nonetheless heard a couple of weeks later that Chalmers and Andersen were available “for nothing.” Andersen didn’t seem concerned about the rumors when he made a public appearance earlier this week, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel chronicles.
An opposing GM told Jackson in mid-July that Chalmers and Shabazz Napier were the players the Heat were shopping the most aggressively, and Miami dealt Napier to the Magic later that month for no salary in return. That, plus the swap that sent Zoran Dragic to the Celtics with no other salary involved, helped Miami lower its payroll, though the Heat still have about $90.4MM in guaranteed salary, which puts them about $5.66MM above the $84.74MM luxury tax threshold. The Heat would have to pay repeat-offender tax penalties if they’re still above the tax line on the final day of the regular season. Miami only has 12 players on fully guaranteed deals, and if they keep Hassan Whiteside on his partially guaranteed contract but get rid of everyone else, they’d have a tax bill of roughly $16.3MM. Jackson estimates the tax bill at around $23MM, though that appears to include some of the non-guaranteed contracts.
Do you think the Heat will move below the luxury tax line this season? If so, how do you think they’ll manage to do it? Leave a comment to tell us.
Greg Oden To Play In China
AUGUST 26TH, 8:18am: Oden has passed his tryout, so his deal is official, Sportando’s Enea Trapani writes. The club’s sponsor company referred to the signing as official earlier this week on Facebook.
AUGUST 12TH, 7:04pm: Former 2007 No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden has signed with the Jiangsu Dragons of the Chinese Basketball Association, the team announced (translation by RealGM). The exact length and terms of the deal were not announced, though I would speculate that it is a one year pact. Oden was reportedly set to have a tryout with the club at the end of the month, so it’s unclear if this deal is contingent on that.
Oden last appeared in the NBA during the 2013/14 campaign when he played in 23 games for the Heat, averaging 2.9 points and 2.3 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per contest. It was the first NBA action since 2009/10 for the oft-injured 7-footer. His career numbers through 105 games are 8.0 PPG, 6.2 RPG, and 1.2 BPG to go along with a slash line of .574/.000/.648.
The 27-year-old center out of Ohio State reportedly drew eyes from the Mavericks, Hornets and Grizzlies earlier this summer. Oden sat out the 2014/15 campaign as he faced multiple charges related to domestic violence. He avoided jail time as part of a plea agreement in February in which he pleaded guilty to a felony battery charge and the three other charges against him were dismissed.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 8/25/15
The Hornets and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist are reportedly putting the finishing touches on a four-year, $52MM contract extension for the small forward. The 21-year-old out of the University of Kentucky has had an inconsistent NBA career thus far, with him struggling to improve upon his shaky outside game over the past three campaigns. But Kidd-Gilchrist has been working hard behind the scenes to improve upon that aspect of his game, according to coach Steve Clifford, who said, “He’s totally changed his shooting mechanics really more than any player I’ve ever seen. It’s increased his confidence level. His whole leadership, assertiveness on the court and his understanding of the game has come out more for his teammates as he’s gotten more confident.”
While Kidd-Gilchrist apparently has his coach’s support, the results in the stat sheet haven’t been as readily apparent. The player’s field goal percentage from the 2014/15 season was 46.5%, down from the 47.3% of his shots he connected on back in 2013/14. Of course, Clifford was likely referring to Kidd-Gilchrist’s improved shooting form, which will hopefully garner the player and team better results moving forward. The forward did manage to notch career bests in points (10.9) and rebounds last season (7.6), though his campaign was cut short thanks to an ankle injury he suffered at the end of March.
Despite his debatable offensive skills, Kidd-Gilchrist’s defensive abilities are some of the best at his position in the entire league. The Hornets were 27-28 in 2014/15 with him in the lineup and just 7-18 without him on the court. “Last year he was a really good individual defender and a very solid team defender. But now he’s much more verbal and takes much more of a lead in organizing our defense,” Clifford said of Kidd-Gilchrist. “I think he is one of the few guys in this league who has the ability to make it hard on many of the primary scorers.”
This brings me to the topic of the day: Is Michael Kidd-Gilchrist worth the $13MM annually he is set to make on his contract extension?
In today’s NBA, where outside shooting is a major focus, is a throwback type of player like Kidd-Gilchrist worth that level of financial investment? A defensive stopper like Kidd-Gilchrist can change an opponent’s strategy on a nightly basis, which is arguably just as valuable as dropping 20 points a night in the league. The other factor that needs to be considered when weighing the value of any new contract is the impending salary cap explosion that is set to occur next offseason. The economics of deals and how they are viewed are certainly going to change over the next few seasons as a result, which could potentially make $13MM per season for the young forward seem like a bargain.
What do you think? Is $13MM in line with what Kidd-Gildchrist is worth on the open market? If he were to hit unrestricted free agency, what sort of offers do you think he would draw? Take to the comments section below to weigh in with your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have top say.
Note: Since these Shootarounds are meant to be guided by you the reader, we certainly welcome your input on the topics we present. If there is something you’d like to see pop up here for a discussion, shoot us a message at hoopsrumorsmailbag@gmail.com.
Western Notes: Waiters, Ezeli, Withey
The Thunder are open to the idea of a rookie scale extension for Dion Waiters, but only if the shooting guard is willing to give them a discount, sources tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. That casts doubt on whether the former No. 4 overall pick would sign before the deadline this fall, particularly coming off a career-low scoring average this past season.
Here’s more out of the Western Conference:
- The Warriors would sign Festus Ezeli to a rookie scale extension if the price is right, Kyler also relays. GM Bob Myers recently indicated to Monte Poole of CSNBayArea.com that the team would consider the idea of doing a deal with the backup center that would keep him out of restricted free agency next summer.
- The two-year pact that Jeff Withey inked with the Jazz includes a partial guarantee of $200K, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link).
- Mavericks swingman Wesley Matthews told Mavs.com scribe Bobby Karalla (on Twitter) that he will be ready to play come opening night. The shooting guard tore his left Achilles tendon on March 5th, and missed the last 22 games of the 2014/15 season. Matthews inked a four-year max deal with Dallas this offseason.
- The most likely scenario for the Jazz heading into training camp will be for the team to stand pat and continue to carry just four point guards on its roster, Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune tweets. Utah, in the wake of the season-ending injury Dante Exum suffered, plans on going with Trey Burke as the starter, and will utilize Raul Neto and Bryce Cotton as the reserves. The Jazz are said to be interested in acquiring Wizards guard Garrett Temple, but Washington reportedly isn’t in any rush to part with the 29-year-old.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Atlantic Notes: Valanciunas, Zeller, Rozier, Hunter
Grantland’s Zach Lowe finds the four-year, $64MM extension that Jonas Valanciunas received from the Raptors more surprising than fellow Leon Rose client’s Michael Kidd-Gilchrist‘s apparent agreement to sign for $52MM over that same span of years, given the center’s potential earnings (Twitter links). Valanciunas could have come away with a four-year deal worth closer to $75MM if he’d waited until the extension deadline in the fall, and the max if he’d passed on an extension in favor of restricted free agency, Lowe opines. Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Chances are 50-50 that Tyler Zeller will sign an extension with the Celtics before the deadline this fall, sources tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. The sides have talked about the idea, Kyler writes. Grantland’s Zach Lowe speculated earlier this summer that the C’s might agree to a deal as long as it was for less than $12MM a year.
- The Celtics took Terry Rozier with the 16th overall pick, a dozen spots in front of R.J. Hunter, but Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com and the majority of ESPN’s Summer Forecast panel argue that Hunter will make the more significant impact this season.
- Knicks president Phil Jackson shared his thoughts about the team’s offseason additions, but Marc Berman of the New York Post believes the Zen Master’s outlook is far too positive. New York didn’t add a single All-Star caliber player despite its bevy of cap room, Berman writes.
Poll: 2003 NBA Draft Take Two (Pick No. 3)
Drafting players is far from an exact science, and many a GM has been second-guessed for his draft night decisions. I’m willing to bet that every team executive has at least one pick that he would like a mulligan for. While life, and the NBA, doesn’t allow for such opportunities, we at Hoops Rumors decided it would be fun to give our readers a second take at picking players, complete with the benefit of hindsight.
We are in the process of taking you on a journey back to June of 2003, and revisiting a draft that saw the likes of LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh available to potentially change the fortunes of a few struggling franchises. Wade was the first of that group to win an NBA championship, though James and Bosh would later join him in Miami and go on to win multiple titles together years later, while Melo is still seeking his first trip to the NBA Finals. Detroit, which owned the No. 2 overall pick that season, chose to go with Darko Milicic, who didn’t work out so well for the Pistons. Not all picks pan out, but that one is especially painful given the talent that the Pistons passed over to select the big man, who owns career averages of 6.0 points and 4.2 rebounds, and has been out of the NBA since making a single appearance for the Celtics back in 2012/13.
We continue our revisionist history with the Nuggets, who used the No. 3 overall pick to select Anthony, who still happens to be on the board in our draft. Readers, you are now on the clock! Cast your vote for Denver’s pick and check back Wednesday night for the results, as well as to cast your vote for who the Raptors will select with the No. 4 overall pick. But don’t limit yourself to a simple button click. Take to the comments section below and share your thoughts on the No. 3 overall pick and why you voted the way that you did.
Previous Picks
- Cavaliers: LeBron James
- Pistons: Dwyane Wade
If you’re a Trade Rumors app user, click here.
Curry Wants Long-Term Future With Warriors
WEDNESDAY, 4:04pm: Curry again stated his desire to stay with the Warriors in a video posted on his Facebook page (scroll ahead to the 2:33 mark). Asked if he ever thought he’d leave Golden State, Curry said, “Hopefully not. Hopefully everything works out and I can finish my career here. I’ve probably got like 10 good years left.”
MONDAY, 3:12pm: MVP Stephen Curry is tied to his bargain contract with the Warriors for two more seasons, but he has no intention of leaving when he’ll have the chance, as he told Jimmy Spencer of The Sporting News. The former Davidson star said last year that he’d always thought about playing for Charlotte, where he went to high school and where his father made his mark as a member of the Hornets. Still, it doesn’t look like a homecoming will happen anytime soon.
“As I am thinking right now, free agency isn’t really appealing to me because I love where I’m at, love the organization I’m playing for, and the Bay Area is home for me and my family,” Curry said to Spencer.
Curry will see nearly $11.371MM this coming season and $12.112MM in 2016/17 on the extension he signed at a discount in 2012, when a series of ankle injuries had clouded his future. Those ankle problems have since subsided and the deal has become one of the NBA’s most team-friendly. The 27-year-old becomes eligible for a veteran extension on October 31st this year, but it’s much more likely that he’ll let his contract run to term, since an extension would start at only 7.5% more than his 2016/17 salary. Signing a new contract as a free agent in 2017 would allow him to earn a starting salary of an estimated $30.517MM.
The summer of 2017 shapes up as a potential turning point for Golden State. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are the only Warriors with guaranteed salary on the books beyond the expiration of Curry’s deal. Much can change between now and then, but Curry’s apparent plan to re-sign keeps pressure off the organization and allows the Warriors to sell free agent targets on the idea of playing with the supremely talented point guard for years to come.
If there were no salary cap and Curry were a free agent today, how much do you think he’d get? Leave a comment to tell us.
Heat Sign Keith Benson For Camp
AUGUST 25TH, 3:58pm: The deal is official, the team announced.
AUGUST 19TH, 2:44pm: Benson is getting a one-year deal for the minimum salary without any guaranteed money, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). It has limited injury protection, Pincus adds, so it appears it’s an Exhibit 9 contract.
AUGUST 14TH, 6:33pm: Unrestricted free agent center Keith Benson has agreed to a deal with the Heat, Shams Charania of RealGM reports (Twitter link). The length and terms of the agreement are not yet known, but Charania describes it as a training camp deal, which means that it is likely for the minimum salary and may contain a small partial guarantee, though that is merely my speculation.
The 6’11”, 27-year-old, was a second round pick of the Hawks back in the 2011 NBA Draft. His only NBA regular season action came during the 2011/12 campaign when he went scoreless in three appearances for the Warriors. Benson played his college ball at the University of Oakland, notching career averages of 14.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 0.7 assists, and owning a slash line of .558/.379/.679. The big man spent last season playing overseas for both Neptūnas of Lithuania and the Estonian club BC Kalev/Cramo.
The addition of Benson will give the Heat a roster count of 16 players, 12 of whom possess fully guaranteed contracts.
2016 Free Agent Power Rankings
When most NBA observers think of the 2016 free agent class, Kevin Durant is the first name that comes to mind. However, he’s not on top of our inaugural 2016 Free Agent Power Rankings. That title is reserved for the player who’s been on top of these rankings since the beginning: LeBron James. Durant’s struggle with a broken foot this past season injects enough doubt into his future that, if 2016 free agency began today, James would seem like a safer bet.
LeBron’s strategy of signing two-year deals with player options lets him capitalize on a rising salary cap as he navigates the prime of his career, and perhaps most importantly, gives him leverage every July. He seems overwhelmingly likely to stay in Cleveland for the foreseeable future, but he, like Durant, isn’t giving too many hints about just what he’ll do.
Of course, the ranking is subject to change, and we’ll no doubt see plenty of movement in this top 10 as we check back on a regular basis between now and next June. Still, even as a few notable names remain in this year’s free agent class, here’s our first look at how they stack up for 2016:
- LeBron James (player option) — Yes, he’s almost four years older than Durant. But LeBron just dragged a banged-up Cavs team to the Eastern Conference title and drew Finals MVP consideration even though he was on the losing team. Durant sat out all but 27 games this past season. Once Durant proves healthy, he probably eclipses LeBron. But for now, King James remains in his throne atop these rankings.
- Kevin Durant — That broken foot keeps him from the top spot, but he needn’t bounce back to his MVP form of 2013/14 to vault to No. 1. He could merely do what he’s done four out of the last six years and win the scoring title. That would give him five scoring titles before his 28th birthday.
- Mike Conley — This ranking might seem high for Conley, who took fewer shot attempts per game than Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph did last season, but in what’s increasingly becoming a point guard’s game, Conley, who turns 28 in October, is among the elite. Multiple reports seem to indicate that he’ll follow in Gasol’s footsteps and make the Grizzlies the clear front-runners to re-sign him.
- Dwight Howard (player option) — Howard, like Durant, can climb this list if he proves his health this year. He played in only 41 games and put up some of his lowest numbers in 10 years this past season. Still, he led the playoffs in rebounds per game and helped the Rockets to the Western Conference Finals.
- Andre Drummond (restricted) — Drummond, in many ways, is like a younger version of Howard. They’ve both played for Stan Van Gundy, they’re both top-flight rebounders, and neither can shoot free throws. It remains to be seen if Drummond can become the sort of devastating force that Howard has been, however. It seems more likely that the Pistons will tie up Drummond with an extension than let him hit free agency.
- Al Horford — The Hawks won 38 games in 2013/14, when Horford missed the majority of the season with injury. Atlanta won 60 games when the big man returned healthy last season. That’s no coincidence. He doesn’t put up gaudy numbers, but his game doesn’t have many holes, and he’s even showing signs of developing a three-point shot.
- Bradley Beal (restricted) — The Wizards reportedly want some non-guaranteed money in the deal if they’re to sign Beal to a max extension this summer, with health a concern, so an extension that seemed on its way last year might not happen. If that’s the case, Beal would hit restricted free agency just three days after his 23rd birthday, and if he merely keeps up his current career numbers, he can boast 40% three-point accuracy and a scoring average of 15.6 points per game.
- Joakim Noah — Horford’s former Florida teammate is yet another top 2016 free agent whose health is in question. He only missed 15 regular season games this past year, but he clearly wasn’t right, and he was well off the pace of his career year in 2013/14. Part of that had to do with the adjustments he made to play with 2014 free agent signee Pau Gasol. Noah has been the anchor of one of the league’s stoutest defenses for too long to ignore, however.
- DeMar DeRozan (player option) — The shooting guard has posted back-to-back 20-plus PPG seasons while nailing slightly fewer than 30% of his three-pointers the last two years combined, a testament to his ability to get to the basket. The early indications are he’ll opt out, and he has plenty of reason to do so, since the option would pay him only $10.05MM.
- Dwyane Wade — The Heat and Wade settled their differences this summer with a one-year, $20MM deal, and if all players only went year to year on their contracts, Wade might be higher on this list, having just averaged 21.5 PPG this past season. But when he enters the market as a 34-year-old with knee trouble next July, he simply won’t be able to command the sort of long-term money that others will.
These free agents make up the next 10:
- Harrison Barnes (restricted)
- Pau Gasol (player option)
- Al Jefferson
- Timofey Mozgov
- Chandler Parsons (player option)
- Roy Hibbert
- Joe Johnson
- Hassan Whiteside
- David Lee
- Luol Deng
The following three players can also hit free agency in 2016, but they’re far more likely to retire than leave their respective teams. So, we’re listing them here, in a special section of sorts, and in alphabetical order.
- Kobe Bryant
- Tim Duncan (player option)
- Dirk Nowitzki (player option)
Who are your top 10 2016 free agents? Leave a comment to give us your list.
Clippers Fined For Pitch To DeAndre Jordan
2:59pm: The Clippers offered Jordan an endorsement deal with Lexus for $200K a year, and that’s apparently what prompted the fine, a source tells Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
12:47pm: The NBA has fined the Clippers $250K for violating the league’s rules against circumventing the salary cap in their pitch to DeAndre Jordan last month, the league announced via press release (Twitter link via Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports). The Clippers presented Jordan with a potential third-party endorsement opportunity during their meeting with him on July 2nd. That was before Jordan gave his commitment to the Mavericks, one that came undone when he later expressed second thoughts to the Clippers, who convinced him to re-sign.
The league’s investigation concluded that the violation didn’t influence Jordan’s ultimate decision to return to the team. However, the NBA is imposing the fine anyway, since rules prohibit teams from arranging compensation for players outside of the salary set forth via the contractual terms allowed under the collective bargaining agreement.
The fine will ultimately have little impact, since it doesn’t have any bearing on the team’s salary cap, and owner Steve Ballmer, who paid $2 billion to purchase the franchise last year, probably won’t feel much of a pinch over losing $250K. That the violation took part during the Clippers’ initial efforts to sign him, and not during the scramble that took place as he reneged on his decision to sign with the Mavs, further diminishes the effect. Still, it’s an odd coda to the already extraordinary story of Jordan’s free agency this summer.
What part of the Jordan storyline sticks out the most in your mind? Leave a comment to tell us.