Week In Review 9/6/15-9/12/15
The NBA’s Board of Governors unanimously approved changes to how teams qualify for the playoffs and how they will be seeded. The eight playoff teams in each conference will now be seeded based on the order of their regular-season records. Previously, every division winner was guaranteed a top four seed in its conference regardless of record but did not receive home-court advantage if its playoff opponent had a better regular season mark. The new seeding structure will commence this season.
The Board also approved changes to tiebreaker criteria for playoff seeding and determining home-court advantage. Head-to-head results have become the first criteria to break ties for playoff seeding and home-court advantage between two teams with identical regular season records, with the second criteria being if a team won its division. Under the old system, a division winner was awarded the higher seed and received home-court advantage in series between two teams with identical records.
Here’s more from the week that was…
Free Agent Signings
- Jerrelle Benimon agreed to a training camp deal with the Cavaliers.
- The Nets signed Dahntay Jones.
- The Grizzlies signed a training camp deal with point guard Lazeric Jones.
- The Nuggets agreed to a training camp contract with Matt Janning.
- D.J. Stephens agreed to a training camp deal with the Cavaliers.
- The Wizards agreed to a deal with Ish Smith.
- The Pelicans signed shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick.
- The Nuggets agreed to training camp deals with unrestricted free agents Oleksiy Pecherov and Devin Sweetney.
- The Pacers agreed to a deal with small forward C.J. Fair.
- The Clippers agreed to a deal with 2002 No. 5 overall pick Nikoloz Tskitishvili.
- The Knicks agreed to a pact with undrafted Michigan State point guard Travis Trice.
- The Warriors and undrafted West Virginia point guard Juwan Staten agreed to a one-year deal.
- The Bucks are expected to sign power forward Jon Horford to a deal for training camp.
You can stay up to date on all of the signings with Hoops Rumors’ free agent tracker.
Miscellaneous News
- The Timberwolves named assistant coach Sam Mitchell as interim head coach while Flip Saunders continues to battle cancer.
- Several players and key figures within the Clippers organization reportedly feel that president of business operations Gillian Zucker is overstepping her bounds and usurping the authority of coach/president of basketball operations Doc Rivers.
- The Nets declined to extend the required tender necessary to keep the draft rights to Xavier Thames, the 59th overall pick from 2014, so he’s now free to negotiate a deal with any NBA team.
- Casper Ware, who last played in the league in 2013/14 as a member of the Sixers, signed a $350K deal with Tianjin Steel of China.
- Former Raptors and Lakers point guard Dwight Buycks has turned down multiple non-guaranteed offers from NBA teams and agreed to a deal to play in China for the 2015/16 season.
- Sixers 2015 second-round pick J.P. Tokoto signed a one-year, non-guaranteed deal with the team.
- The NBA hit Markieff Morris with a fine of $10K for publicly demanding a trade from the Suns.
- The Pacers purchased the D-League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants.
- Joe Johnson split with the Wasserman Media Group amid the departure of longtime agent Arn Tellem and signed with Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management.
- The Sixers made their required tender of a one-year, non-guaranteed, minimum salary offer to Jordan McRae that will allow the franchise to retain his draft rights.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 9/11/15
The Timberwolves have named assistant coach Sam Mitchell as interim head coach while Flip Saunders continues to battle cancer, which was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports on Thursday. The team still has the hope that Saunders will be able to return to his coaching duties sometime during the coming campaign. The first concern, of course, is with Saunders’ health. But the franchise also has to worry about the coming campaign, which will be an important one, as it needs to determine which of its talented young players are long-term building blocks.
This brings me to today’s topic: How will the absence of Flip Saunders affect the Timberwolves’ 2015/16 season?
The Timberwolves are not expected to be title contenders this season, and the team will need to show marked improvement to even have a shot at a playoff berth in the notoriously difficult Western Conference. Mitchell has previous head coaching experience, having spent four plus seasons as coach of the Raptors from 2004/05 through part of the 2008/09 campaign. Through 345 regular season games Mitchell has compiled a mark of 156-189, and he owns a lackluster 3-8 postseason mark. He was named Coach of the Year back in 2007, when he guided Toronto to a 47-35 regular season record, and secured the Atlantic Division crown.
Advancing to the playoffs would be a huge step for the Wolves as a franchise, but that should be considered a secondary goal in 2015/16. The team’s priority should be to develop the wealth of young talent it possesses on the roster. Mitchell, being a former NBA player, may have an advantage over Saunders in that regard, having had first hand experience regarding what is required to be an NBA player. Mitchell does have the reputation of being more of a staunch disciplinarian than Saunders, and it’s unknown how that may affect the team’s locker room chemistry.
What are your thoughts on the matter? Will the absence of Saunders hamper the team’s development, or will things remain status quo in Minnesota this season? What chance do you give Mitchell of having the interim tag removed from his title and officially becoming the head coach? He is a favorite of owner Glen Taylor after having spent 10 seasons with the franchise as a player, which certainly won’t hurt Mitchell’s cause.
Take to the comments to share your thoughts and opinions on this topic. We look forward to what you have to say.
Northwest Notes: D-League, Wolves, Westbrook
The acquisition of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants by the Pacers will certainly change how teams around the NBA without their own affiliates utilize the D-League. The Blazers severed their partnership with the Idaho Stampede, who are now the Jazz‘s affiliate, at the completion of the 2013/14 campaign, but not having a D-League franchise of its own hasn’t hurt Portland’s player development yet, Mike Richman of the Oregonian opines. The franchise was still able to add point guard Tim Frazier last season, who was the D-League’s MVP and Rookie of the Year, despite not having their own affiliate, Richman notes. Establishing its own D-League affiliate isn’t currently a priority for Portland, Richman adds.
Here’s more out of the Northwest Division:
- Timberwolves GM Milt Newton, who’s in charge of the team’s front office while Flip Saunders recovers from cancer, wants to add two more players for training camp and he’ll need to unload one of the team’s 16 fully guaranteed contracts before opening night, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link).
- Kevin Durant expressed his admiration for what teammate Russell Westbrook was able to accomplish last season with the rash of injuries the Thunder had suffered, including Durant himself missing a total of 55 contests, Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report writes. “It was amazing to see a guy at the point guard position take over the game from all aspects and will his team with his passion, his enthusiasm, his energy on top of his skill,” Durant said. “It was incredible to watch. I was [expletive] I wasn’t out there to help him out. But I could tell he learned a lot and gained a lot of confidence.“
- The Nuggets are in for a long, difficult season, but the franchise does possess solid building blocks in Jusuf Nurkic and Emmanuel Mudiay, as well as a revitalized Danilo Gallinari, which should give the team hope for the future, writes Tim Bontemps of The New York Post (Facebook link) in his season preview.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
2015 NBA Draft Grades: Southeast Division
The 2015 NBA Draft is squarely in the rearview and a number of draftees have already provided a taste of what is to come with their summer league play. I held off on my grades until now because I wanted a better context in which to evaluate each team’s selections, with free agency and summer league providing greater perspective. Sometimes, selecting the best available player isn’t the best course of action and it is wiser to nab a player who fits a clear need, which should always be considered when rating how each front office fared in the draft. I’ve already run down my thoughts on the Atlantic and Central Divisions, and next up is a look at the Southeast Division:
Atlanta Hawks
Team Needs: Depth, scoring.
Draft Picks:
- No. 50 Overall — Marcus Eriksson, SG, Sweden
- No. 59 Overall — Dimitrios Agravanis, F, Greece
Atlanta’s haul on draft night amounted to two draft-and-stash players whose NBA futures are murky at best, and Tim Hardaway Jr., whom the team acquired from the Knicks in exchange for the No. 19 overall pick that had been garnered in a swap with the Wizards earlier in the draft. So in essence, the Hawks dealt the No. 15 overall pick in the 2015 draft for 2013’s No. 24 overall choice. While I do think that Hardaway could benefit from a change of scenery, I firmly believe that Atlanta would have done better to hold onto its original pick and simply used it to select Kelly Oubre, who was taken by Washington at No. 15 overall.
Oubre, while he didn’t live up to expectations during his lone season at Kansas, has the potential to be a two-way star in the NBA. Hardaway, while being a nice complementary offensive player, has shown himself to be fairly one-dimensional thus far in his professional career. Hardaway is also a bit of a redundant a piece with Kyle Korver already on the roster, which makes the trade even more of a head-scratcher in my view. I would even go as far as saying that keeping the No. 19 overall pick, Jerian Grant, would have benefited the franchise more than adding the former Knicks shooting guard.
Overall Draft Grade: D. While the Hawks did land a proven commodity in Hardaway, Oubre has the potential to be a far better NBA player. Atlanta would have been better served to simply hold onto their original selection instead of wheeling and dealing in the first round.
Charlotte Hornets
Team Needs: Outside shooting, frontcourt depth
Draft Picks:
- No. 9 Overall — Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin
It feels as if the Hornets have been searching for a player who can stretch the floor on offense for ages, with outside shooting being one of the team’s main weaknesses for a few seasons running. That’s why I found it a surprise that Charlotte passed on Devin Booker with its pick and instead went with Kaminsky. Sure, Kaminsky is certainly capable of filling up a stat sheet from the outside, but the team could have used a wing player who can shoot much more than a stretch-four. Or, perhaps I should say, another stretch-four, given that the team traded for Spencer Hawes this offseason. The addition of Hawes should have allowed for GM Rich Cho to land an impact player on the wing like Booker, or Duke’s Justise Winslow, who may end up haunting Charlotte if he becomes a two-way star in the league.
Kaminsky is limited athletically, and while he is certainly a fierce competitor who is very skilled offensively, his defensive shortcomings will lower his overall ceiling as a prospect. I’m rooting for “Frank the Tank” to succeed in the league, but I can easily see him becoming a specialist like Steve Novak, and reduced to sporadic minutes in reserve. Which is not what you want out of a top 10 pick, especially given some of the talent still on the board when Charlotte was on the clock on draft night.
Overall Draft Grade: C+. The selection of Kaminsky was puzzling given the presence of Hawes, the team’s greater needs at the wing and center positions, and the availability of Winslow and Booker at the No. 9 spot. Kaminsky is a solid player, but the team could have utilized this pick much more effectively.
Miami Heat
Team Needs: Youth, depth at wing and at center.
Draft Picks:
- No. 10 Overall — Justise Winslow, SF, Duke
- No. 40 Overall — Josh Richardson, SG, Tennessee
Team president Pat Riley likely stared at his draft board in disbelief when the Heat’s pick was due and he saw that Winslow was still available at No. 10 overall. Winslow had been projected by a number of mock drafts to be a potential top five pick, so landing him where Miami did cannot be considered anything but a steal for the franchise. The former Duke swingman can provide depth for both Dwyane Wade at shooting guard and Luol Deng at small forward, and given the age and injury concerns for both players, that’s a huge boon for the team. There are concerns about Winslow’s ability to hit his outside shots consistently, but his athleticism and defensive abilities should garner Winslow regular minutes as he figures things out.
The addition of Richardson isn’t likely to have much, if any, impact on the coming season for Miami. It’s doubtful that the swingman will make the team’s regular season roster, though his defensive acumen should ensure him a slot on the Heat’s D-League affiliate for 2015/16.
Overall Draft Grade: A+. It’s hard to find any fault with the Heat selecting a player of Winslow’s potential, especially with the 10th overall pick. Fantastic job for Riley, who continues to show why he’s one of the best executives in the game by not overthinking the selection.
Orlando Magic
Team Needs: Depth, outside shooting.
Draft Picks:
- No. 5 Overall — Mario Hezonja, SG, Croatia
- No. 51 Overall — Tyler Harvey, SG, Eastern Washington
Like Charlotte, it seems as if Orlando has been searching for a player who can light up the scoreboard from the outside for an eternity. The Magic are hoping that Hezonja, whom the team selected over better-known talents like Justise Winslow, Stanley Johnson, Devin Booker, and Frank Kaminsky with the fifth overall pick, will be the bounty of their quest. While Hezonja certainly has the skills and athletic ability to justify such a high selection, there are legitimate concerns regarding his maturity level and ability to accept coaching, which, if true, will hamper the Croatian’s development significantly. But if Hezonja manages to live up to his predraft hype, the Magic landed themselves a potential star who can fill up the rim from anywhere inside the arena.
My concern for Orlando is the high washout rate of European draftees in the NBA, and the risk the franchise took in nabbing Hezonja that high in the first round. While the upside of Hezonja is certainly tantalizing, the team may have been better served to select a more NBA-ready player in Willie Cauley-Stein, Winslow, or Booker at that slot. All of whom would have filled an obvious need for Orlando, and carried less risk while doing so.
I’m a bigger fan of GM Rob Hennigan nabbing Eastern Washington sharpshooter Tyler Harvey toward the bottom of the second round than I am of his selection of Hezonja. Harvey needs development as a player, but he’s a lethal shooter who needs to be accounted for by defenders the moment he crosses the halfcourt line. There are concerns with his level of athleticism, but he is a smart and savvy player who has the potential to become a solid contributor off of the bench for Orlando in a few seasons.
Overall Draft Grade: B+. I’ll give Hennigan credit for taking a gamble on the upside of Hezonja, but there were a number of players who could have filled the team’s needs at No. 5 overall who didn’t possess as many question marks about their NBA future.
Washington Wizards
Team Needs: Small forward, depth.
Draft Picks:
- No. 15 Overall — Kelly Oubre, SF, Kansas*
- No. 49 Overall — Aaron White, F, Iowa
*Acquired from Hawks in exchange for the No. 19 overall pick and two future second-rounders.
The Wizards entered the draft needing to land themselves a wing player who would complement their starting backcourt tandem of John Wall and Bradley Beal, as well as to replace Paul Pierce, who signed a free agent deal with the Clippers this offseason. Washington made a smart trade with Atlanta, swapping first-rounders and giving up two future second round picks in exchange for the opportunity to land Oubre.
The swingman out of Kansas was a disappointment during his lone season with the Jayhawks, never coming close to delivering on the preseason hype that his impending arrival in Lawrence wrought. Oubre’s freshman campaign had a rocky start, with the 19-year-old often looking completely lost on the court and receiving sporadic playing time as a result. But Oubre did turn things around as the season progressed, and Washington landed itself a heck of a talent outside of the lottery. Oubre’s defense is more NBA-ready than his offense is, and he’ll learn the hard way that it takes more than athleticism to be an effective scorer in the pros. But I do expect Oubre to develop into a starter, and possibly a future All-Star, though it often won’t be a smooth ride. But full credit is due to the Wizards’ front office, who made a solid deal on draft night to land themselves a player who fits their needs perfectly.
Overall Draft Grade: A+. Great move by GM Ernie Grunfeld to move up in the first round via trade and to land Oubre at No. 15 overall. He fits an obvious team need, and Oubre has the potential to be a two-way star in a few seasons.
Poll: 2003 NBA Draft Take Two (Pick No. 17)
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 Suns, who used the No. 17 pick in 2003 to select Žarko Čabarkapa. Readers, you are now on the clock! Cast your vote for Phoenix’s pick and check back Saturday for the results, as well as to cast your vote for who the Pelicans, or Hornets as they were known at the time, will select with the No. 18 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. 17 overall pick and why you voted the way that you did.
Previous Picks
- Cavaliers: LeBron James
- Pistons: Dwyane Wade
- Nuggets: Carmelo Anthony
- Raptors: Chris Bosh
- Heat: David West
- Clippers: Kyle Korver
- Bulls: Mo Williams
- Bucks: Chris Kaman
- Knicks: Boris Diaw
- Wizards: Kirk Hinrich
- Warriors: Jose Calderon
- Thunder: Josh Howard
- Celtics: Leandro Barbosa
- Thunder: Kendrick Perkins
- Magic: Nick Collison
- Grizzlies: Zaza Pachulia
With the No. 17 Overall Pick the Suns Select...
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Darko Milicic 23% (130)
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Steve Blake 20% (117)
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Luke Ridnour 9% (50)
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Matt Bonner 9% (50)
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T.J. Ford 8% (45)
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Mickael Pietrus 7% (43)
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Carlos Delfino 5% (28)
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James Jones 5% (27)
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Travis Outlaw 3% (20)
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Jason Kapono 2% (11)
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Dahntay Jones 2% (10)
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Keith Bogans 1% (8)
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Willie Green 1% (8)
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Žarko Čabarkapa 1% (8)
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Luke Walton 1% (7)
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Sasha Pavlovic 1% (6)
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Marcus Banks 1% (5)
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Troy Bell 1% (3)
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Brian Cook 0% (1)
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Michael Sweetney 0% (0)
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Jarvis Hayes 0% (0)
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Reece Gaines 0% (0)
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Jerome Beasley 0% (0)
Total votes: 577
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Atlantic Notes: Anthony, McRae, Larkin
Despite some speculation that the Knicks would be willing to entertain the idea of trading away Carmelo Anthony to the Suns in exchange for disgruntled forward Markieff Morris, it’s not a deal that is likely to ever come to fruition, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes. New York hasn’t had internal discussions about trying to get Anthony to waive his no trade clause and hitting the reset button on the franchise, Berger notes. Team president Phil Jackson is also likely aware of the value of a superstar like ‘Melo in the league, and how it would be virtually impossible to recoup an acceptable return for the star, the CBS scribe adds.
Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- The Sixers have made their required tender of a one-year, non-guaranteed, minimum salary offer to Jordan McRae, which will allow the franchise to retain his draft rights, Derek Bodner of DraftExpress relays (Twitter links). McRae, who was selected with the 58th overall pick in 2014 by the Spurs and was dealt to the Sixers on draft night, has not signed the tender yet, though he is expected to attend training camp with Philly, Bodner adds.
- The appeal of playing in New York and the team’s system are two reasons why Shane Larkin felt comfortable signing with the Nets this offseason, Brett Pollakoff of The Sporting News writes. “At the end of the day, the Nets situation was the most appealing for me, just because of the way they play. Their style of play really fits my game well, and I like the New York area,” Larkin told Pollakoff. “I like being in the city. So staying up here was definitely a plus, and just the opportunity that the Nets presented me with — what [GM] Billy King was telling me, what coach [Lionel] Hollins was telling me, how they want me to play, what they want me to do for the team — it just put everything over the top. That’s pretty much why I decided to stay in New York and play for the Nets.“
A.J. Price Signs With Chinese Team
SEPTEMBER 11TH, 4:53pm: Price has signed with the Sharks, Pick reports (via Twitter).
SEPTEMBER 5TH, 9:15am: A.J. Price is finalizing a contract to play in China with the Shanghai Sharks, international journalist David Pick tweets.
Pick reported in July that Price was mulling a move overseas and that Serbia’s Red Star Belgrade was a possible destination. The journeyman point guard turned down that offer, which led Red Star, also known as Crvena Zvezda, to a deal with fellow NBA veteran Gal Mekel.
Price played for three NBA teams last season. He appeared in 10 games with the Pacers in November, then was waived late that month. He was claimed by the Cavaliers and played 11 games for the Eastern Conference champions before he was waived in early January. He was out of the league until signing a 10-day contract with the Suns in March. Price came off the bench in five games for Phoenix but the Suns declined to offer him another 10-day contract.
The 28-year-old Price also had a 28-game stint with the Timberwolves in 2013/14 and appeared in 57 games, including 22 starts, for the Wizards in 2012/13. The former University of Connecticut guard began his career with the Pacers in 2009/10 and remained there his first three seasons.
For his career, Price has made 261 NBA appearances and averaged 5.8 points and 2.2 assists in 15.1 minutes. He’s a career 38.0% shooter overall and 31.6% from 3-point range.
Rivers: Clippers Unlikely To Trade Jamal Crawford
Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said today that it’s unlikely the team will trade Jamal Crawford this season, the last one on the swingman’s contract. Rivers made his remarks to host Fred Roggin on The Beast 980 radio in Southern California (audio link), as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register passes along via Twitter. The Clippers were reportedly exploring trades involving the two-time Sixth Man of the Year shortly before the draft, with other reports this summer indicating that the Heat, Cavs and Knicks have held interest. Crawford has helped fuel the rumors on social media, tweeting in July that he wished he was a free agent, as I noted when I examined the 35-year-old’s trade candidacy.
“Jamal’s a Clipper, and I’d be very surprised if he’s not a Clipper at season’s end,” Rivers said in his radio appearance, one in which he also denied rumors that president of business operations Gillian Zucker was exerting authority over basketball decisions.
The Clippers, under Rivers’ guidance as president of basketball operations, upgraded their depth this summer, trading for Lance Stephenson, and signing Wesley Johnson, Paul Pierce and Pablo Prigioni. Another trade sent Matt Barnes away, but the team re-signed Austin Rivers, Doc’s son. All of it would appear to put a squeeze on Crawford’s playing time, particularly if the acquisition of Stephenson proves fruitful.
The team has nonetheless been unmotivated to trade Crawford in recent weeks, as Woike observed late last month. The comments from Rivers today appear to indicate his confidence that he won’t change his mind as the season develops, in spite of the roster logjam. Crawford already saw his minutes drop to 26.6 per game this past season, his fewest since the 2002/03 season. Still, a lack of depth was a weakness for the Clippers in the playoffs this spring, so perhaps the new acquisitions will simply fill in gaps elsewhere.
Crawford is due $5.675MM this season, a relative bargain based on his past production. That salary would make it difficult for the Clippers to find decent value in return, since, as taxpayers, they’re limited to taking in no more than 125% plus $100K of his salary without attaching other players to him in a trade.
Do you think Rivers will reconsider his stance and deal Crawford before the trade deadline in February? Comment to share your thoughts.
Southwest Notes: McGee, Motiejunas, Walker
Much will be expected of prominent offseason additions Wesley Matthews and Deron Williams, but the Mavericks will keep it simple with first-round pick Justin Anderson and free agent signee JaVale McGee, observes Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. Anderson, this year’s 21st overall pick, has the comfort of a four-year rookie scale contract on his side, but McGee has only a $250K partial guarantee protecting his place on the roster.
“Well, I definitely feel like we’re different players, the centers that we have, so it’s definitely going to be good competition,” McGee said. “But that’s what basketball is for, competition, so it’s definitely going to make us all better. It’s definitely a positive thing, being a leaper as I am and a shot blocker and a dunker, so that’s definitely what teams need. I’m just somebody who keeps it simple, who dunks the ball, blocks shots and is just a presence in the paint. … [coach Rick Carlisle] just wants me to keep it simple, and just play as hard as I can and be a presence in the paint.”
McGee was a popular choice among Hoops Rumors readers in a recent poll about the starting center job in Dallas, but while we wait to see if McGee makes the regular season roster, much less the starting lineup, here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Donatas Motiejunas won’t say for sure if he’ll be healthy enough for the start of Rockets camp later this month, observes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). A back injury that required surgery ended his 2014/15 season prematurely this spring, and a November 2nd deadline looms for a rookie scale extension. I looked at his extension candidacy last month.
- Chris Walker‘s camp deal with the Rockets is simply a one-year, non-guaranteed arrangement for the minimum salary, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Walker was once a heralded prospect before his stock fell during his time at the University of Florida.
- Pincus clarifies his earlier report on Sean Kilpatrick‘s camp deal with the Pelicans, revealing that Kilpatrick’s partial guarantee of $50K doesn’t kick in unless he sticks with the team through October 27th (Twitter link). Otherwise, it’s a non-guaranteed contract, Pincus says.
Deal Off Between Heat, Briante Weber
1:30pm: The deal is indeed off, since Weber was unable to pass a physical, Winderman writes in a full story.
SEPTEMBER 11TH, 12:33pm: Weber is “still not ready to be signed” as he continues to recover from the knee injury that he suffered on January 31st, his agent told Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel (Twitter links), so presumably the deal is off. His goal is to join the Heat organization eventually, perhaps via the D-League, the agent also said to Winderman. Weber tore his ACL, MCL and meniscus in his right knee while playing for VCU. Weber is a client of Bill Neff of the Saga Sports agency. The Pacers reportedly had interest in him before he struck a deal with the Heat.
SEPTEMBER 3RD, 7:44pm: The Heat have agreed to sign undrafted free agent combo guard Briante Weber, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports reports (Twitter link). Charania refers to the pact as a training camp deal, which means that it is likely a minimum salary arrangement that includes little or no guaranteed salary, though that is merely my speculation.
The addition of Weber will give the Heat a roster count of 19 players, which is one below the preseason maximum. Weber is unlikely to make the final cut and remain on the regular season roster, though the team could have an eye on the 22-year-old playing for its D-League affiliate in Sioux Falls.
Weber, a defensive specialist, played his collegiate ball for VCU, and averaged 8.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 3.9 steals in 26.5 minutes per contest as a Senior. His career collegiate numbers are 6.8 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 3.0 APG, and 2.9 SPG to go along with a slash line of .426/.274/.769.