Dwight Howard Declines Player Option
In a move that was widely expected, Dwight Howard has declined his player option for 2016/17 and will test out the free agent market this summer, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (via Twitter). The Rockets big man was set to earn $23,282,457 next season, but will now attempt to top that amount as an unrestricted free agent.
Howard’s time in Houston hasn’t gone all that smoothly, with the center not meshing well alongside star shooting guard James Harden and seeing his overall involvement in the team’s offense decline steadily the past two campaigns. He made 71 appearances for the Rockets this past season, averaging 13.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.63 blocks in 32.1 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .620/.000/.489.
The 30-year-old hasn’t ruled out re-signing with the Rockets despite his reported unhappiness in Houston, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle tweets. That may be a wise move on Howard’s part, given the decline in his physical skills, production and with the league’s diminished focus on traditional paint-roaming big men, he may find the open market a challenging one to land a long-term deal in. Howard’s best bet may be to ink a short-term deal, perhaps a two-year pact with an opt-out after the first season, in order to rebuild his free agent value and potentially snag a more player-friendly pact in the process during the summer of 2017.
Heat Extend Qualifying Offer To Tyler Johnson
The Heat have formally extended a qualifying offer to combo guard Tyler Johnson, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel relays (via Twitter). By doing so, Miami has made Johnson a restricted free agent, which means the team will have the opportunity to match any offer sheet Johnson were to ink this summer.
Johnson, 24, earned $845,059 for his work in 2015/16 and his qualifying offer is valued at $1,180,431. With the NBA salary cap set to increase to as much as $94MM for 2016/17, Johnson has an excellent shot at significantly increasing his salary for this past season, plus, he has the opportunity to sign a long-term agreement that would provide him with greater security moving forward.
The combo guard’s 2015/16 campaign was shortened due to injury, with Johnson only appearing in 36 contests courtesy of a bum shoulder that required surgery in February. Johnson averaged 8.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 24.0 minutes per outing for the Heat when on the court and his shooting line on the season was .486/.380/.797.
Southwest Rumors: Rockets, Gentile, Gee, Dirk
Italian wing Alessandro Gentile, whose NBA rights are held by the Rockets, is very interested in making the leap to the NBA this year now that Mike D’Antoni is the new head coach in Houston, as he tells Adrian Wojnarwoski of The Vertical. “My goal is to play in the NBA next year,” Gentile told The Vertical. “I really hope this can happen. For me, Mike D’Antoni is like a legend in Italian basketball, an example for everyone. For him to coach me would be very, very nice.”
While the Rockets have “significant interest” in signing Gentile, according to Wojnarowski, the team may wait to see what happens at the start of July’s free agent period before negotiating a deal with the 23-year-old. It’s also possible that Houston could trade his rights, if the team “becomes hesitant or financially unwilling” to lock him up — in that scenario, Gentile would still want to come stateside. “My dream is that I want to play in Houston with Mike D’Antoni,” Gentile said. “If that’s not possible, my goal is to still play in the NBA next year.”
Here’s more from out of the Southwest:
- The Rockets don’t have a first-round draft pick this year, but general manager Daryl Morey thinks they should be able to get back into the first round if they want to. “I think it will be pretty easy to trade (our) picks into the first this year,” Morey tells Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com. “There are four teams that have almost half the draft in the first round, and none of them wants to use their pick to trade. Trading in will be easy.” On Monday, we looked at the five teams that control 14 of this year’s 30 first-round picks.
- The deadline for Alonzo Gee to make his decision on his player option for 2016/17 had previously been reported as June 21st, but Brett Dawson of The Advocate tweets that the Pelicans forward will actually have until June 27th to pick up or decline that option.
- The Pelicans haven’t been shy about dealing first-round picks for veteran players in the past, and general manager Dell Demps hasn’t ruled out the possibility of doing it again with the No. 6 overall selection this year. ESPN’s Justin Verrier examines the pros and cons of trading the pick for New Orleans.
- In the wake of a report indicating that the Warriors may attempt to court Dirk Nowitzki in free agency, Mavericks guard Devin Harris tells Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News, “I don’t think the big German is going anywhere.” Nowitzki has opted out of his contract, but is still considered likely to re-sign with Dallas.
- Matt Bonner is eligible for free agency this summer, but the 36-year-old veteran hopes to play another year with the Spurs, as Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News details.
Dirk Nowitzki Won’t Exercise Player Option
Longtime Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki has decided to turn down his player option for 2016/17, which will make him a free agent on July 1st, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein (via Twitter). The option had been worth approximately $8.692MM.
While the Warriors are reportedly eyeing Nowitzki as a potential free agent target this offseason, it would be a major upset if the German big man signed with any team besides the Mavericks. His decision to opt out of his contract is likely about getting a multiyear deal in Dallas, rather than jumping ship for another team.
“It’s probably going to look like (I’ll opt out),” Nowitzki said earlier this month. “Since I felt great and played sort of decent, I might opt out and maybe sign a two- or three-year deal (with the Mavericks). We’ll see how it goes, but that’s probably the plan for now.”
At around the same time that Nowitzki made those comments, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said, “Dirk gets to do whatever he wants to do. Period.” If that involves heading to Golden State or another team in an attempt to get one last ring before he retires, the Mavs would presumably let him go and wish him luck, but for now it sounds like the 38-year-old would rather try to win that ring in Dallas.
With Chandler Parsons and Deron Williams expected to opt out of their contracts as well, the Mavericks currently only have about $29MM in guaranteed salary on their books for 2016/17. That gives the team room to pursue top-tier free agents, though if Parsons, Williams, and Nowitzki all re-sign, that cap room could get chewed up quickly.
Offseason Outlook: Minnesota Timberwolves
Hoops Rumors is looking ahead to offseason moves for all 30 teams. We’ll examine free agency, the draft, trades and other key storylines for each franchise heading into the summer.
State Of The Franchise
At the start of last season, the Timberwolves were in a state of mourning. The sudden death of ex-coach and team executive Flip Saunders cast a pall over the franchise and it was difficult for everyone in the organization to overcome their grief.
As the season moved along, it was clear that Saunders’ blueprint for turning the franchise around was working. His decision to select Karl-Anthony Towns ahead of D’Angelo Russell and Jahlil Okafor with the No. 1 overall pick in last June’s draft accelerated the process toward making the Timberwolves a playoff contender again. Towns quickly established himself as a franchise player, averaging 18.3 points and 10.5 rebounds to earn the Rookie of the Year award.
Several other young players — Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, Shabazz Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng — showed significant development even though Minnesota finished with a 29-53 record.
Owner Glen Taylor decided to shake up the front office and find a high-profile coach to nurture the talented core into reaching its full potential. Interim coach Sam Mitchell was replaced by ex-Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, who was also given the title of president of basketball operations. Former Spurs assistant GM and longtime Jazz executive Scott Layden was hired as Minnesota’s new GM.
Blockbuster Trade Brewing?
Thibodeau seems intent on getting an established, All-Star-caliber player to pair up with Towns. That was made clear when a report surfaced that the Timberwolves were willing to deal the No. 5 pick as part of a package to acquire Bulls star shooting guard Jimmy Butler.
It’s uncertain whether Chicago would consider moving Butler and go into full rebuild mode. Certainly, the Timberwolves would have to sweeten the pot by giving up one or more of their young assets.
Towns is obviously an untouchable but it’s not out of the question that the Timberwolves would consider moving Wiggins if Thibodeau doesn’t view him as the No. 2 scoring option on a contending team. Wiggins averaged 20.7 points in his second season but he’s not a three-point threat and his defensive box rating of minus 2.5 last season needs to improve dramatically for a defense-oriented coach like Thibodeau.
The club would almost certainly rather part with LaVine and other assets, but that might not be enough to acquire an All-Star entering his prime.
Free Agent Targets
It’s no surprise that unrestricted free agent Joakim Noah has been linked to his former coach.
Noah was unhappy with his playing time last season under first-year Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg before a shoulder injury short-circuited his season. A mobile shot-blocker like Noah would seem to be an ideal fit for a club that finished 28th in defensive field-goal percentage. Though Kevin Garnett is still on the roster, Noah would give the club another veteran leader who would play significant minutes.
The Timberwolves will have anywhere from $26-$29MM to sign other free agents with an eye toward versatile defenders and three-point shooters. The Wolves were 25th in three-point percentage last season and the addition of floor spacers will make Towns an even tougher cover in the post.
Potential Trades
Even if the plan to acquire Butler falls through, the Timberwolves figure to be active in the trade market as Thibodeau tries to reshape his roster.
A couple of Minnesota’s rotation players could be on the move. Point guard Ricky Rubio, who has three years and $42.MM remaining on his contract, would be expendable if Thibodeau isn’t sold on him as his long-term floor leader. LaVine could step into that role, or the Timberwolves could draft a point guard if they keep their pick.
Meanwhile, center Nikola Pekovic‘s career has been sidetracked by injuries and he only appeared in 12 games last season while recovering from Achilles tendon surgery. Pekovic has two years and $23.7MM remaining on his deal, but he’s a proven low-post scorer for a team lacking inside punch.
Another big man, Nemanja Bjelica, was a disappointment in his first season with the club, but was highly sought after during last summer before he signed with the Timberwolves. His remaining contract — two years, $7.75MM — makes him a movable piece.
Draft Outlook
- First-round pick: No. 5
The Timberwolves could go in a lot of different directions if they don’t deal their pick.
They could opt for a wing shooter like Buddy Hield to improve their perimeter game. They could secure one of the top point guards, either Kris Dunn or Jamal Murray, if they’re intent on dealing Rubio. Or they could hone in on a big man such as Marquese Chriss or Dragan Bender to pair up with Towns.
Other Decisions
Muhammad and Dieng are eligible for rookie-scale extensions before next season and it will interesting to see how much the new regime values that duo.
While Muhammad provides instant offense off the bench, he’s a subpar three-point shooter. Dieng is a solid defender — he sports a 2.4 defensive box rating in each of the past two seasons — and Thibodeau can’t get enough of those kinds of players.
Coaching Outlook
In stark contrast to the uncertainty surrounding Mitchell’s future last season, the Timberwolves now have an established playoff coach on a long-term contract. Thibodeau signed a five-year, $40MM deal and his front-office title makes him the unquestioned leader of the franchise.
The addition of Layden echoes what the Pistons did when hiring Stan Van Gundy with the same titles as Thibodeau. Detroit added a proven front-office executive in Jeff Bower to negotiate trades and handle most of the day-to-day front office operations. Thibodeau will work in concert with Layden, but the former Bulls coach will have the final say.
Final Take
The Timberwolves look a lot like the Thunder several years ago. They have star talents in Towns and Wiggins, a la Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, to build around. With Thibodeau in charge, they’re ready to take the next step. If they can pull off a blockbuster and pry an proven, top-tier talent away from a team looking to shake up its roster, the Wolves could find themselves in the playoffs next season.
Guaranteed Salary
- Ricky Rubio ($13,400,000)
- Nikola Pekovic ($12,100,000)
- Kevin Garnett ($8,000,000)
- Andrew Wiggins ($6,006,600)
- Karl-Anthony Towns ($5,960,160)
- Nemanja Bjelica ($3,800,000)
- Shabazz Muhammad ($3,046,299)
- Gorgui Dieng ($2,348,783)
- Zach LaVine ($2,240,880)
- Adreian Payne ($2,022,240)
- (Kevin Martin $1,380,305) — Salary remaining from release via stretch provision
- Tyus Jones ($1,339,680)
- Total: $61,644,947
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- Damjan Rudez ($1,199,000)
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Greg Smith ($1,139,123)
Restricted Free Agents (Qualifying Offers/Cap Holds)
- None
Unrestricted Free Agents (Cap Holds)
- Tayshaun Prince ($980,431)
Other Cap Holds
- No. 5 pick ($3,227,100)
- Justin Hamilton ($980,431)
- Robbie Hummel ($980,431)
- Othyus Jeffers ($980,431)
- Arinze Onuaku ($980,431)
- Total: $7,148,824
Projected Salary Cap: $92,000,000
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Central Rumors: Cavaliers, Love, Bucks, Pistons
After winning a championship, the Cavaliers may not be as inclined to retool their roster as they otherwise might have been, but the team is still expected to listen to any trade inquiries it receives on Kevin Love, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. Appearing on Zach Lowe’s podcast (hat tip to RealGM.com), Windhorst identified the Celtics as the ideal trade partner for Love, suggesting that the Cavaliers “really like” Avery Bradley and could also ask for Marcus Smart and a draft pick (not the No. 3) if Boston shows interest in making a deal.
While we wait to see if those hypothetical trade talks come to fruition, let’s round up a few more items from out of the Central division…
- While plenty of reports have suggested Thursday could be a busy trade night around the NBA, Bucks general manager John Hammond isn’t expecting much movement at the top of the board, telling reporters that “people feel good about this draft” (Twitter link).
- Hammond spoke a little more about the Bucks‘ draft and trade options, telling reporters that Milwaukee is targeting three or four players with the No. 10 pick, and hasn’t ruled out a big man at that spot (Twitter links via Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). Hammond was also asked about rumors that the Celtics may be targeting Khris Middleton, and while he declined to comment on that report, he noted that many Bucks players have “great value around the league” (Twitter links via Gardner).
- Wes Washpun (Northern Iowa), Fred VanVleet (Wichita State), Retin Obasohan (Alabama), Marcus Georges-Hunt (Georgia Tech), Cinmeon Bowers (Auburn), and Gracin Bakumanya (Democratic Republic of Congo) participated in a workout for the Bucks today, the team announced in a press release.
- The Pistons are hosting Florida State’s Malik Beasley for a workout today, according to David Mayo of MLive.com (Twitter link). Beasley is ranked 17th on Chad Ford’s ESPN big board and 23rd at DraftExpress.com, so he’s a candidate to be on the board when Detroit picks 18th overall.
- Rod Beard of The Detroit News doesn’t mention Beasley in his list of five potential targets for the Pistons at No. 18, instead naming Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame), Denzel Valentine (Michigan State), and Ivica Zubac (Croatia), among others.
Arron Afflalo, Derrick Williams To Opt Out
Arron Afflalo will turn down his player option with the Knicks for the 2016/17 season, opting to explore the free agent market in July, reports Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops and The Associated Press (Twitter link). Afflalo’s decision on his player option had been due this Wednesday.
[RELATED: Player option decisions for 2016/17]
By opting out, Afflalo will forfeit an $8MM salary for the coming season, under the assumption that he’ll be able to land a bigger deal on the open market. While there’s a possibility he’ll return to New York, plenty of teams around the NBA will have cap room and could target the veteran shooting guard as a more affordable alternative to the players who will earn max deals.
Afflalo, 30, signed with the Knicks last summer as a free agent, and averaged 33.4 minutes in 71 regular season contests for the team. Most of his averages for the 2016/17 season, including 12.8 PPG, a .443 FG%, and a .382 3PT%, were very similar to his career marks.
Even before Afflalo made his decision, the Knicks had been prioritizing backcourt additions this offseason. The club had been preparing for Afflalo to test the market, with new head coach Jeff Hornacek suggesting earlier this month that he expected the former UCLA standout to “see what’s out there.”
Meanwhile, Derrick Williams, who has a $4.598MM player option for 2016/17 and whose decision was also due by tomorrow, will also opt out of his contract, per Ian Begley of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The former second overall pick had arguably his best NBA season in 2015/16, setting career highs in points per 36 minutes (18.7), field goal percentage (.450), and a few other categories, as a part-time contributor for the Knicks.
With Afflalo and Williams no longer on the books for next season, the Knicks now have $56MM+ committed to seven players, not taking into account qualifying offers or cap holds for pending free agents. The salary cap is projected to land in the $94MM range.
Draft Rumors: Sixers, Wolves, Murray, Raptors
There likely won’t be much drama with the first overall pick on draft night, now that the Sixers have reportedly informed LSU’s Ben Simmons they’ll be selecting him. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be plenty of surprises the rest of the way. According to ESPN’s Chad Ford (via Twitter), all six teams picking between Nos. 3 and 8 – the Celtics, Suns, Timberwolves, Pelicans, Nuggets, and Kings – are shopping their selections to some extent. This year’s draft class is viewed as having a consensus top eight, with a drop off after that point, so those picks could generate plenty of trade interest.
Here are a few more draft notes, rumors, and updates:
- General manager Bryan Colangelo acknowledged today that moving up into the top eight would be a cutoff for his Sixers to keep in mind if they try to land a second lottery pick (Twitter link via Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer). Colangelo added that Philadelphia is “entertaining discussions” about packaging the 24th and 26th overall picks in a deal to move up in the draft (Twitter link via Tom Moore of Calkins Media).
- Former Kentucky guard Jamal Murray figures to be one of those top eight players to come off the board, and Kentucky coach John Calipari said today in a conference call that Murray is hoping to land with the Timberwolves. “He loves Minnesota. As a matter of fact that’s where he’d like to go,” Calipari said. “I know Jamal likes that situation, the young guys” (Twitter links via Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune). Youngblood examines the Wolves’ options in the event that they keep or trade that No. 5 overall pick.
- Masai Ujiri‘s Raptors have the ninth overall pick, but the GM insists there’s a trade market for that selection, despite the perceived talent drop-off after the top eight, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN, who tweets that Ujiri seems pleased with his team’s options whether he keeps or trades the pick.
- The Hornets will likely select a wing player with the No. 22 pick in the draft, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer speculates. Florida State shooting guard Malik Beasley, Michigan State swingman Denzel Valentine, Virginia shooting guard Malcolm Brogdon, St. Joseph’s small forward DeAndre’ Bembry and Vanderbilt center Damian Jones are five players who might be on the board and fill a need for the club, according to Bonnell. Small forward Nicolas Batum and shooting guard Courtney Lee will be unrestricted free agents next month.
- The Trail Blazers intend to be aggressive on draft night even though they don’t currently hold any picks, writes Mike Richman of The Oregonian.
Bucks Shopping Greg Monroe
TUESDAY, 11:48am: While the public stance from the Bucks brass is that they’re satisfied with Monroe, league sources tell Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times that the team is “eager to move on” from him. According to Woelfel, because teams around the NBA know the Bucks want to move Monroe, he doesn’t have a ton of trade value. “They’re not going to get a lottery pick for him,” one GM said. “Not even a late lottery pick.”
Still, despite the fact that Monroe is not a major trade asset, some NBA officials believe he could land the Bucks a mid- or late-first-round pick. One agent tells Woelfel that he’d be “shocked” if Monroe remains on Milwaukee’s roster through the offseason.
MONDAY, 10:57am: Less than a year after signing him as a free agent, the Bucks are shopping Greg Monroe “hard,” reports Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops and The Associated Press (via Twitter).
Monroe, who turned 26 earlier this month, was his usual effective self during his first season in Milwaukee, averaging 18.8 points and 10.8 rebounds per 36 minutes to along with a .522 FG%. However, while Monroe was a productive low-post scorer and rebounder for the Bucks, his defense was lacking and he didn’t provide much rim protection.
In our Bucks offseason preview, Dana Gauruder observed that Monroe’s defensive shortcomings could prompt the team to explore the trade market for him, as was reportedly the case at last season’s trade deadline. Although Milwaukee ultimately told Monroe he wouldn’t be moved at that time, at least one report suggested that he would have been obtainable if a trade partner had been willing to give up a “decent” first-round pick.
It remains to be seen what sort of package the Bucks will seek if they move Monroe this offseason, but he’ll enter the 2016/17 season on an expiring contract of sorts. The ex-Piston is Milwaukee’s highest-paid player, with a $17.146MM cap hit for the coming year. He also has a $17.884MM player option for 2017/18, though there’s a good chance he’ll turn down that option and return to the open market a year from now, with the salary cap on the rise.
In addition to figuring out whether or not Monroe fits into their plans next season, the Bucks will also have to determine what to do with Michael Carter-Williams, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract. Carter-Williams will be extension-eligible, but he was the subject of a few trade rumors earlier this year, and may not have a long-term future in Milwaukee.
Sixers Inform Ben Simmons He’ll Be No. 1 Pick
The 76ers informed Ben Simmons‘ camp this morning that the LSU forward will be the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NBA draft, league sources tell Chris Haynes of Cleveland.com (Twitter link). Simmons worked out for Philadelphia today, his first workout for any team, and an earlier report from ESPN’s Marc Stein suggested that agent Rich Paul probably wouldn’t have allowed such a workout without a promise from the Sixers.
Simmons, widely considered the top prospect available – or at least one of the top two along with Duke’s Brandon Ingram – has long been viewed as the favorite to come off the board first overall. The Sixers have reportedly discussed Ingram and Providence point guard Kris Dunn at that spot, but keep coming back to Simmons, who likely has the highest upside of any player in this year’s class.
In addition to working out Simmons today, the Sixers are also privy to his medical records, and are believed to be the only team with access to those records, according to Keith Pompey of Philly.com (Twitter link).
Once the Sixers officially select Simmons, he’ll be the latest forward added to an increasingly crowded frontcourt in Philadelphia. With Joel Embiid aiming to return from injuries, Dario Saric potentially arriving from overseas this year, and Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel also in the mix, the team figures to explore trade options in order to clear its glut of bigs and acquire backcourt help.
As Pompey tweeted today, general manager Bryan Colangelo confirmed that the Sixers have had talks with virtually every NBA team, adding that they probably have “active discussions” with five to seven clubs. While Colangelo didn’t go into specific details, one of those teams is likely the Celtics — a report this week suggested that trade discussions between Boston and Philadelphia may be heating up, since the Sixers are very fond of Dunn and would like to acquire the No. 3 overall pick from the C’s.