Pacers, Ty Lawson Deep In Talks
12:27pm: Lawson has gained traction in conversation with two other teams, but the talks with the Pacers are the most serious, league sources told Charania for a full story.
12:00pm: The Pacers and Ty Lawson are in “strong discussions” about a would-be signing, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Lawson is due to clear waivers from the Rockets at 4pm Central today following a buyout deal that beat Tuesday’s deadline for the point guard to remain playoff-eligible for other teams. Indiana has about $1.9MM left on its room exception, while the prorated minimum would give Lawson only about $300K.
The team has appeared to have interest in an upgrade at the point, reportedly offering George Hill to the Hawks for Jeff Teague before last month’s trade deadline. Hill is a combo guard, like backups Rodney Stuckey and Joe Young, so the addition of Lawson would give the team the pure point guard it lacks. Lawson averaged 9.6 assists against just 2.5 turnovers per game last season before bottoming out with Houston this year. He dished out just 3.4 assists per game with the Rockets, and his 5.8 points per contest are a career low as he faded to a bench role behind Patrick Beverley. It was largely a matter of lost confidence, people around the Rockets reportedly believe.
Indiana would have to waive someone to make room for Lawson, since the team is at the 15-man roster limit, and every Pacer is signed through at least the end of the season. The team is just a game and a half up on ninth-place Washington in the fight for the playoffs, but Indiana has emphasized long-term development on the end of its bench. Rakeem Christmas, last year’s 36th overall pick, has spent most of the season in the D-League and has still yet to appear in an NBA game, while second-year man Shayne Whittington has logged just 10 NBA minutes this season amid heavy D-League playing time. Christmas has a full guarantee of slightly more than $1MM for next season, but Whittington’s contract carries no guarantee beyond this season.
How Players Fared Financially In Buyouts
Ten players relinquished part of their salaries in buyout deals between the trade deadline and Tuesday’s de facto buyout deadline, and none of them have benefited financially as much as David Lee has. The 11th-year veteran gave up just $458,575 of the $15,493,680 he originally had coming to him from the Celtics and scored a deal worth the $2,085,671 that the Mavericks had left on their room exception, a profit of $1,627,096. Add to that the tax advantage of working in Texas, a state with no income tax, instead of Massachusetts, and it’s easy to see how the Mark Bartelstein client has every reason to be glad about his new team.
The others on this year’s buyout list didn’t fare nearly as well. Steve Novak, another Bartelstein client, gained $8,017 between his Nuggets buyout and Bucks contract, but he’s the only player other than Lee known to have come out ahead. Kris Humphries pulled off an even exchange, while everyone else so far appears to have lost money. The enchantment of the Heat loomed large, as Beno Udrih relinquished $90K to help the Heat avoid the tax, and with an injury that’s expected to keep him out until at least May, his prospects are bleak for finding a contract to offset that loss. Joe Johnson signed a deal that gives him $2,585,519 less than what he gave up from his Nets contract to play in Miami. That’s the largest loss in terms of raw dollars among those recently doing buyouts, though Florida is another state without an income tax, so that’s a mitigating factor.
It’s possible that other players will arrange buyouts between now and the end of the season, but less motivation exists to do so, since Tuesday was the final day for players to hit waivers and retain eligibility to participate in the playoffs with another team.
Here’s a look at the known financials of the buyouts from the past two weeks. The figures reflect pretax amounts.
- David Lee, Celtics (forfeited $458,575) — Signed with Mavericks (contract worth $2,085,671)
- Steve Novak, Nuggets (forfeited $416,886) — Signed with Bucks (contract worth $424,903)
- Kris Humphries, Suns (forfeited $1MM) — Signed with Hawks (contract worth $1MM)
- J.J. Hickson, Nuggets (forfeited $396,242) — Signed with Wizards (contract worth $366,337)
- Beno Udrih, Heat (forfeited $90K) — Free agent
- Andrea Bargnani, Nets (forfeited $1,551,659 combined for this season and next) — Free agent
- Joe Johnson, Nets (forfeited $3MM) — Signed with Heat (contract worth $414,481)
- Andre Miller, Timberwolves (forfeited unknown amount*) — Signed with Spurs (contract worth $396,844)
- Ty Lawson, Rockets (forfeited unreported amount) — On waivers (scheduled to clear today at 4pm Central)
- Kevin Martin, Timberwolves (forfeited unreported amount) — On waivers (scheduled to clear today at 4pm Central)
* — The amount of Minnesota’s obligation to Miller went down by $256,333 as part of the buyout deal, but that doesn’t account for any reduction in the amount the league pays Miller. The 17th-year veteran was on a one-year contract for the minimum salary, so the Wolves were only responsible for the equivalent of the two-year veteran’s minimum salary, worth $947,276 for the full season. The NBA was to pick up the tab for the difference between that and Miller’s full $1,499,187 salary for veterans of 10 or more years, but it’s unclear how much the league avoids paying as a result of the buyout.
The Basketball Insiders Salary Pages were used in the creation of this post.
Southeast Notes: Morris, Humphries, Fournier
The Wizards are giving Marcin Gortat more minutes down the stretch of late, and he prefers playing with Jared Dudley and Wizards trade acquisition Markieff Morris at power forward instead of Kris Humphries, who went out in the trade for Morris, notes J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic.
“It’s opportunities, being the guy who’s pretty much played the whole fourth quarter. I didn’t have that opportunity in the first 50 games,” Gortat said. “I’m definitely excited about playing more minutes. I think just having Markieff or Jared next to me in the starting lineup it’s a much better fit for me than Kris Humphries. Not picking on him but he just didn’t fit with me well. He’s a totally different player than Keef or Jared. I feel more comfortable playing with them.”
Gortat called Morris “a great teammate” and said the controversy surrounding him in Phoenix was overhyped, quipping that “we’re not giving him towels to throw at people,” a reference to the towel Morris tossed in former Suns coach Jeff Hornacek‘s direction in the midst of a December game, as Michael also relays. See more on the Wizards, and on Humphries, amid news from the Southeast Division:
- The Wizards are likely to allow their $2,806,750 disabled player exception expire, Michael hears, writing in a separate story. Washington couldn’t use the majority of it anyway without going over the tax line. The deadline to use it is a week from today.
- Soon-to-be restricted free agent Evan Fournier would like to re-sign with the Magic, observes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. GM Rob Hennigan has refuted the idea that the team isn’t entirely sold on the swingman, and reports indicated the Magic were hesitant to trade him at the deadline. “I really like to play for this team. I’m having my best year so far. There’s no reason for me to leave,” Fournier said.
- The Hawks dipped into their room exception to sign Humphries to his deal for the rest of the season, giving him an even $1MM and not the prorated minimum salary as previously reported, reveals Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). That gave Humphries an even exchange on the buyout market, since he gave up $1MM to secure his release from the Suns, Pincus notes (on Twitter). Atlanta has about $900K left on its room exception in the wake of the Humphries signing.
Nuggets Consider Shutting Down Danilo Gallinari
The Nuggets are thinking about sitting Danilo Gallinari for the rest of the season even if he returns to health with a few games left on the schedule, coach Michael Malone acknowledged to reporters, including Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. The 27-year-old small forward suffered two torn ligaments in his right ankle during Friday’s game that are expected to sideline him for a month, as Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reported Tuesday, the same day that The Vertical’s Shams Charania reported the team would sign D-League small forward Axel Toupane to a 10-day contract.
Only five games are on the schedule for the Nuggets in April, as Dempsey points out, raising the question of whether it would be wise to put the team’s veteran centerpiece back on the court and risk additional injury with only a few games left to go.
“I’ve already thought about that. I don’t have an answer,” Malone said. “I think it’s a very good question. At that point, depending on where we are, it’s going to depend on four games to go, what is the picture? Are we 15 games out of the playoffs? Well, it probably makes sense to play some of our younger guys and let them get minutes and see what they can do. But we’ll see.”
Denver is six games behind the Rockets, who hold the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Malone said the team would consult Gallinari to see whether he wants to return to action, adding that the Michael Tellem client had earned the right to have input with his performance this season. The eighth-year veteran is in the midst of his best year in the NBA, averaging 19.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in 34.7 minutes per game, all career highs.
The Nuggets couldn’t get a disabled player exception, even if Gallinari becomes likely to miss the rest of the season, and while Wilson Chandler and Jameer Nelson are also sidelined, Denver still falls short of the four long-term injuries needed to qualify for an extra roster spot via hardship. The team already spent the disabled player exception it reaped from Chandler’s season-ending injury in the deadline-day trade with the Thunder. Nelson hasn’t played since January 30th because of a severely sprained left wrist, though he was available for Wednesday’s game, Dempsey notes. Kenneth Faried and Emmanuel Mudiay did play Wednesday despite minor ailments.
Gallinari is signed through next season with a player option for 2017/18, thanks to a rare renegotiation and extension deal that he and the team pulled off this past summer. The Nuggets reportedly turned away interest that the Celtics had in trading for him before last month’s deadline.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 3/2/16
The Knicks’ 2015/16 season has quickly spiraled out of control and with an overall record of 25-37, the team’s playoff chances appear to be slim at best. One reason for New York’s woeful record has been the performance of the team’s point guards, who have done little to distinguish themselves this campaign. Starter Jose Calderon has looked far older than his 34 years of age while contributing just 7.6 points and 3.4 assists per contest. Backing up Calderon are second-year playmaker Langston Galloway and rookie Jerian Grant, neither of whom appear to be the short-term answer, much less the long-term solution for the team at the one spot.
With 2015/16 all but over for the Knicks, the focus should shift toward finding players who can help the team next season. New York apparently won’t re-sign Jimmer Fredette after his 10-day contract expires at the end of today, which isn’t a surprise given his lackluster track record since entering the NBA and relative ineffectiveness during his brief run with the team. The Knicks will also take a pass on signing Ty Lawson, who’s poised to become a free agent in the wake of his buyout from the Rockets, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. The Knicks reportedly spoke with the Rockets about trading for Lawson before last month’s deadline, but New York’s playoff hopes have faded since then.
While Lawson reportedly remains a possibility in free agency this summer for the Knicks, the team currently has a specific interest in adding younger players, according to interim coach Kurt Rambis. This raises the possibility that New York could look to ink Ray McCallum, who cleared waivers today following his release from the Spurs, former Trail Blazer Tim Frazier or former Sixer Tony Wroten, whom the team recently met with. New York is more likely to ink McCallum or Frazier than Wroten, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.
This brings me to the topic for today: Which available point guard should the Knicks sign?
Should the Knicks take a chance on Lawson despite the potential baggage he brings with him, or should the team look for younger players it can develop? If the younger route is the one you’re advocating, then whom should the team target and try to develop? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say.
And-Ones: Marks, Thibodeau, D-League
The Nets received a glowing endorsement regarding new GM Sean Marks from New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman, Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes. “It’s an easy call to make when it’s about Sean Marks,’’ Cashman told Lewis. “We developed a good relationship. … Sean Marks was clearly a graduate of Pop [Spurs coach Gregg Popovich] University, a disciple. What an asset, an asset the Nets were smart enough to acquire.’’
“I recently spent two days in San Antonio, me and our mental coach Chad Bohling,” Cashman continued. “We were with Pop, [GM] R.C. Buford, Sean Marks, their performance-science analytics team. We had a chance to watch shootaround, watch the game, and Sean was someone I spent a lot of time with, developed a relationship. He’s an extremely impressive individual. I walked out of there thinking this individual will be a success. I’d want him on my team. He’s an extremely intelligent, compassionate leader. You could tell there was something special there, and shortly thereafter there were the Nets knocking on his door. There were probably going to be more knocks.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Timberwolves still have one open roster spot after inking Greg Smith to a 10-day pact earlier today and interim coach Sam Mitchell said the team will look to bring in a player with NBA experience who would attend training camp this fall, Andy Greder of The Pioneer Press tweets.
- At the request of coach George Karl, the Kings have brought in former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau as a defensive consultant, James Ham of CSNBayArea.com relays (via Twitter). Thibodeau is expected to work with the players over the next few days, Ham adds. Sacramento is ranked dead last in points allowed, surrendering an average of 109.6 per contest.
- The Raptors have recalled Bruno Caboclo and Norman Powell from their D-League affiliate, the team announced.
- The Hawks have assigned center Edy Tavares to the D-League, the team announced via press release. Tavares will report to the Bakersfield Jam, the Suns’ affiliate, pursuant to the NBA’s flexible assignment rule, since Atlanta does not have its own D-League affiliate.
2015/16 Salary Cap Update: Denver Nuggets
The NBA’s salary cap for 2015/16 is set at $70MM, which is good for an 11% increase from last season, and the luxury tax line is fixed at $84.74MM. With the February 18th cutoff date for trades and the de facto deadline of March 1st for buyouts now past, we at Hoops Rumors are in the process of updating the salary cap commitments for each NBA franchise for the 2015/16 campaign. Here’s the cap breakdown for the Denver Nuggets, whose regular season roster can be viewed here:
- 2015/16 Salary Cap= $70,000,000
- 2015/16 Luxury Tax Line= $84,740,000
- Fully Guaranteed Salary Commitments= $71,325,201*
- Remaining Cap Room= –$1,325,201
- Amount Below Luxury Tax Line= $12,862,888*
*Note: This amount includes the $440,000 owed to Pablo Prigioni, the $815,421 owed to Joey Dorsey, the $845,059 due Nick Johnson, the $350,000 owed Kostas Papanikolaou and the $100,000 due Erick Green, all of whom were waived by the team. This amount also includes the $5,217,258 on the books for J.J. Hickson and the $3,333,115 owed to Steve Novak, both of whom agreed to buyouts with the team and were subsequently waived.
**Note: Mike Miller‘s salary for tax purposes is $1,499,187.
Cap Exceptions Available:
- Trade Exception= $135,000 (Randy Foye. Expires February 18th, 2017)
Cash Available to Send Out In Trades= $3,400,000
Cash Available to Receive Via Trade= $2,960,000
Note: Despite the trade deadline having passed, the NBA season technically doesn’t end until June 30th. Teams are able to again make trades upon the completion of the regular season or when/if they are eliminated from the playoffs, whichever comes later. So these cash limits still apply.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Western Notes: McClendon, Looney, Green
Aubrey McClendon, who was part owner of the Thunder, died in a single-car crash in Oklahoma City today, Royce Young of ESPN.com relays. McClendon was indicted Tuesday for allegedly conspiring to rig bids for the purchase of oil and natural gas leases in northwest Oklahoma, Young notes. “He pretty much drove straight into the wall,” Oklahoma City Police Captain Paco Balderrama said. “The information out there at the scene is that he went left of center, went through a grassy area right before colliding into the embankment. There was plenty of opportunity for him to correct and get back on the roadway, and that didn’t occur.”
McClendon owned an estimated 20% of the Thunder and was part of Clay Bennett’s ownership group that relocated the team from Seattle to Oklahoma City in 2008, the ESPN scribe adds. Here’s more from out West:
- Despite his halftime outburst Saturday that saw him share heated words with Warriors coach Steve Kerr, Draymond Green‘s fiery nature is normally a benefit to his game and the team in general, Marcus Thompson of The Bay Area News Group opines. Green has apologized for his behavior and insists this incident shouldn’t define perceptions of him, Thompson adds. “It’s one thing when you’re going into an arena and they’re booing you and you’re the villain,” Green said. “I love that. But to paint me as a bad guy? I don’t get in trouble off the court. I don’t disrespect people. Your kid doesn’t walk up to me and I’m the biggest [jerk] they’ve ever seen. I don’t get arrested. You can try to paint me as that, but anybody who knows me knows that’s false.“
- Mavs small forward Chandler Parsons is thankful that all the hard work he put in while recovering from microfracture surgery on his right knee is starting to pay off on the court, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com writes. “It was just a mess,” Parsons said regarding his rehab. “It was something that was very hard to go through, but I’m glad because all the pain, all the struggle, all the work I put in, I use that every time I step on the floor. I realize no one’s worked as hard as me to get here.”
- The Warriors have assigned combo forward Kevon Looney to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Looney’s third jaunt to Santa Cruz on the season. He is averaging 9.4 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 18.9 minutes over five D-League contests.
Baron Davis Joins Sixers D-League Team
7:35pm: Davis is officially a member of the 87ers, the team announced.
10:18am: The 87ers would technically be claiming Davis rather than signing him, as Adam Johnson of the D-League Digest and Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor clarify (Twitter links).
8:01am: Davis is expected to sign with the Sixers’ D-League team, Charania writes in a full-length story, which appears to clarify that he hasn’t done so yet.
7:47am: Two-time NBA All-Star Baron Davis has signed with the D-League affiliate of the Sixers, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The team, known as the Delaware 87ers, hasn’t made an official announcement, but Charania indicates the signing has taken place. The 36-year-old Davis, who’s been out of the NBA since the 2011/12 season, went unclaimed on D-League waivers when he signed with the league in January. He remains free to join any NBA team, though given the tepid response to his free agency on the D-League level, it appears Davis will have to prove his capabilities before returning to the Association.
Davis has said he indeed plans to use the D-League as a springboard to a return to the NBA, and agent Todd Ramasar claimed that he was drawing NBA interest. Rumors surfaced that the Mavs were eyeing him, but owner Mark Cuban clarified that his team only regarded him as a D-League possibility. One NBA assistant GM told Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher earlier this season that Davis merits consideration if he’s engaged and in shape, though multiple NBA executives didn’t think his comeback attempt was serious because of a film Davis made two years ago that appeared to parody the notion of his return to the league, as Bucher also noted.
The 13-year NBA veteran started four playoff games for the Knicks in 2012, suffering a gruesome knee injury in the last of them that left him with complete tears in his ACL and MCL and a partially torn patella tendon. His contract expired that summer, leaving him with a tough road back to action.
Atlantic Notes: Butler, Stoudemire, Udrih
The Celtics, who were reportedly looking to make a big splash at this year’s trade deadline, held discussions with the Bulls about acquiring star swingman Jimmy Butler, Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald writes. According to Bulpett’s source, the Celtics were willing to give up two first-round draft picks this year — the Nets‘ unprotected pick and Dallas’ first-rounder, which is top-seven protected, as part of a package for Butler. “This is not a case where Chicago was looking to trade Jimmy Butler,” a source involved in the talks told Bulpett. “That would be crazy. But if Boston calls, you have to look at those picks and some of the players they have and at least hear them out. Most times when teams call about your star, you can just dismiss it right away, but you have to think about it with [president of basketball operations Danny] Ainge and the Celtics right now. There’s a lot to go over there with possibilities.”
The Celtics are concerned that they will have too many young players on the roster if they retain all their acquired picks, so it is highly likely the team will be active leading up to the draft in its attempts to acquire a star-caliber player, Bulpett adds. “The term I’ve heard with Danny is that he’s looking for a ‘difference maker,’” a league source told the Herald scribe. “He’s definitely willing to pay you for the right guy, but he wants someone who can move them to the next level.” Ainge also checked in with the Pacers regarding Paul George prior to the deadline, Bulpett relays.
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Amar’e Stoudemire denies that he was talking about former Knicks teammate Carmelo Anthony the other night when he made some pointed comments about his former team, Al Iannazzone of Newsday relays. The big man called Anthony on Sunday to clear the air, Iannazzone notes. “I never mentioned his name once,” Stoudemire told reporters, in reference to his comments. “We’re close friends, family. Our wives are very close friends. He knows I wasn’t talking about him.” When asked about his chat with Stoudemire, Anthony said, “I don’t really want to waste any time on that. What’s understood don’t need to be spoken upon.”
- Beno Udrih cleared waivers from the Heat today, reports Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (Twitter link), meaning the Sixers passed on the chance to add him and draw closer to the $63MM salary floor. The Sixers currently have $60,369,349 in guaranteed salary on the books for 2015/16, which is $2,630,651 below the minimum team payroll. Claiming Udrih’s $2,170,465 salary would have brought Philadelphia to within a couple of minimum-salary contracts of the mark, and it would have come at the actual cost of only a fraction of Udrih’s salary, since the Heat have already given him most of his paychecks for the year. The result of Udrih clearing waivers is potentially more damaging to the Heat, who’d reportedly eyed Marcus Thornton and others but can’t sign anyone until April 6th without again going into tax territory, notes salary cap expert Albert Nahmad (on Twitter). It’s more likely the Heat would wait to sign someone until April 7th so they could fill their second open roster spot on the final day of the regular season, tweets Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.