Salary Guarantees To Watch This Weekend
Earlier today, the Pacers announced that they’d parted ways with Shayne Whittington, placing the big man on waivers. The timing of the move seemed odd at first glance, but it made sense when considering the language in Whittington’s contract — his full salary for the 2016/17 season would have become guaranteed if he’d remained on Indiana’s roster beyond August 1.
As our list of upcoming salary guarantee deadlines shows, Whittington isn’t the only player who will either make some money or lose his roster spot within the next few days. Six other players will have some or all of their ’16/17 salary guaranteed if they remain on their respective teams’ rosters beyond August 1.
Here’s a closer look:
- Jonathon Simmons (Spurs): Full $874,636 salary to become guaranteed
- Simmons’ guarantee date is actually on Saturday, rather than Monday, but it shouldn’t make much of a difference. After averaging about 15 minutes per game in 55 regular-season contests for the Spurs in his rookie season, Simmons may be in line for a bigger role in 2016/17, as we heard earlier this month.
- Michael Beasley (Rockets): Full $1,403,611 salary to become guaranteed
- Beasley, who played the role of mentor for the Rockets during Summer League action, will be kept beyond his guarantee date, according to a Houston Chronicle report from early July.
- Dahntay Jones (Cavaliers): Full $1,551,659 salary to become guaranteed
- Jones appeared in 15 playoff games for the NBA champions in the spring, but his most memorable moment may have involved earning a one-game suspension for hitting Bismack Biyombo in the groin. There has been no indication yet whether the Cavs, who will likely be back in tax territory in 2016/17, intend to keep Jones — he’s a candidate to be cut.
- Rodney McGruder (Heat): $150,000 of $543,471 salary to become guaranteed
- The Heat just signed McGruder about three weeks ago, so it seems unlikely they’d waive him already, especially since only a small portion of his 2016/17 salary will become guaranteed on Monday.
- Josh Richardson (Heat): Full $874,636 salary to become guaranteed
- In the wake of Dwyane Wade‘s departure, the Heat will be going younger this season, and Richardson figures to be a big part of that youth movement. He’s not going anywhere.
- Glenn Robinson III (Pacers): Full $1,050,500 salary to become guaranteed
- When the Pacers announced Whittington’s release without cutting Robinson as well, it was a sign that the former Wolverine should be safe. Assuming that’s the case, he’s a good bet to earn a regular-season roster spot for Indiana.
And-Ones: Butler, White, McRoberts
Bulls swingman Jimmy Butler told reporters that he had no influence on the roster moves the team made this offseason, ESPN.com relays. “That has nothing to do with me. I don’t move guys,” Butler said. “It’s like I always say: People are going to think what they want to think. That doesn’t bother me. I know where I stand. I know who I am.”
Butler also noted that he’s happy for former teammates Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah, telling reporters, “I’m happy for (Rose). He’s happy for me,” Butler said. “I’m glad we get to go against each other whatever day that may be when the season rolls around. I talked to Jo. We texted a few messages. Nothing too serious, but we’re always going to have love for each other because we’re always going to be teammates. We were in those trenches together.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- Aaron White, a 2015 second round pick of the Wizards, signed a two-year deal to play in Russia with Zenit St. Petersburg, J. Michael of CSNMid-Atlantic.com reports. The second year is a team option and the pact includes an NBA-out clause, Michael adds. White recently played for Washington’s squad in the Las Vegas summer league where he averaged 7.2 points and shot 29.4% from three-point range.
- The Warriors have hired former NBA player Willie Green as an assistant on coach Steve Kerr‘s staff, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (via Twitter).
- The Heat‘s roster currently stands at 18 players, which is three over the regular season maximum. One player the team would like to move is Josh McRoberts, but thus far have found no takers this offseason despite trying to “give him away,” Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel noted in his recent “Ask Ira” column. Miami may consider waiving the forward, but his player option worth $6,021,175 for 2017/18 complicates matters because the team would be on the hook for that amount if it cut him, Winderman notes.
Salary Cap Snapshot: Chicago Bulls
With the free agent signing period winding down and teams looking ahead to the preseason, we at Hoops Rumors will be tracking the Salary Cap figures for each team around the league. These posts will be maintained throughout the season once financial data is reported. These posts will be located on the sidebar throughout the year, once all the teams’ cap figures have been relayed. You can always check RosterResource.com for up-to-date rosters for each franchise, with the Bulls’ team page accessible here.
Here’s a breakdown of where the Bulls currently stand financially:
Guaranteed Salary
- Dwyane Wade — $23,200,000
- Jimmy Butler — $17,552,209 (Contract includes 5% Trade Kicker)
- Rajon Rondo — $14,000,000
- Robin Lopez — $13,219,250
- Nikola Mirotic — $5,782,450 (Contract includes 15% Trade Kicker)
- Anthony Morrow —$3,488,000
- Michael Carter-Williams —$3,183,526
- Cameron Payne —$2,112,480
- Denzel Valentine — $2,092,200
- Joffrey Lauvergne —$1,709,719
- Jerian Grant — $1,643,040
- Bobby Portis — $1,453,680
- Isaiah Canaan — $1,015,696
- Cristiano Felicio — $874,636
- Paul Zipser — $750,000
- R.J. Hunter — $425,000 [Waived by team]
- Thomas Walkup — $69,500 [Waived by team]
Total Guaranteed Salary= $92,551,106
Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Cash Received Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Payroll Exceptions Available
- Trade Exception — $5,462,000 (Taj Gibson trade) — Expires on 7/12/17
- Room Exception — $2,898,000
Total Projected Payroll: $92,551,106
Salary Cap: $94,143,000
Estimated Available Cap Space: $1,591,894
(Note: team would have to renounce trade exception to use cap space)
Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000
Amount Below Luxury Tax: $20,735,894
Last Update: 2/24/17
The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.
Mark Cuban On: Barnes, Parsons, Curry
Outspoken Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban joined The Afternoon Show with Cowlishaw and Mosley on ESPN Radio 103.3 KESN-FM (h/t to The Dallas Morning News) to discuss the team’s offseason and a number of other topics. The entire interview is worth a look, but here are some of the highlights:
On the Mavs switching to Plan B this offseason after missing out on a number of their top targets:
“We got lucky. There’s not other way to say it. We knew we were long shots with both Hassan Whiteside and with Mike Conley. We knew Mike Conley wasn’t going to turn down the largest contract in NBA history. But we also know that it’s not just about the short-term, it’s the long-term. We wanted to introduce the Mavericks, our style and our organization to both of them because you never know when they’re going to be available in a trade. You never know next free agency. So many things can happen over a period of time in an NBA.
Look what happened with D-Will (Deron Williams). I think our presentation to him from coach and Donnie [Nelson] in particular really set the groundwork for him understanding who we are. On one hand, we didn’t expect to get them to come to the Mavs, but we still think it served a function. From there Harrison Barnes reached out to me at 12:01 like, ‘Dude I want to come there. You’re my first pick, my only pick.’ I went back-and-forth with him like, ‘Yeah, we’d love you too but you’re a restricted free agent. Here’s our course of action. Here’s what we’re going to do.’ I laid it all out for him. He was like, ‘Okay, we’ll see what happens but you guys are my team.’ Fortunately it turned out the way it did.”
On essentially choosing Barnes of Chandler Parsons this summer:
“Can’t go into any details, but I’ll just say it wasn’t a basketball issue. Chandler obviously is a very, very skilled player. There’s a lot of great things to his game. But he’s, in essence, a different player from Harrison. Harrison is longer, more athletic, younger. Just like Chandler really didn’t get a chance to have his game blossom when he was with the Rockets. He just showed glimpses of it because of Dwight Howard and James Harden being there. I think Harrison was kind of in the same role. I think we’re going to give Harrison the opportunity and I know he’s excited about the opportunity to really shine and be a featured guy for us.”
On if Dallas is a better team now than in 2015/16:
“You never know until you know. That’s why we play the games. If you look at last year you look at New Orleans, you look at Houston, you just don’t know. I would have told you last year, and I think I did tell you guys, that we’re about eight sprained ankles away from being a top contender. Now we’re probably only three, maybe four. You just don’t know. Look at Portland and what happened there. You just don’t know.
But I do think we’re a better team. I know we’re far better defensively. I know we’re far more athletic. I think we’ve got more athletic depth. We will miss at some point the Ray Felton’s. There will be game situations where having that veteran presence would have been nice to have. But I really think between Juan Barea, Devin Harris and D-Will (Williams) we’ll make up for a lot of that. I think the explosiveness and the scoring punch of Jonathan Gibson and Seth Curry will more than make up for it.”
On what he expects to receive from Seth Curry:
“A dysfunctional team in Sacramento at the end of the year he played team ball. He struggled some to stick within kind of a dysfunctional system. But when he got the minutes and when he started he put up great numbers. But more importantly, from a catch-and-shoot perspective he’s almost automatic from three. We really didn’t have that. We didn’t have that guy where situationally you just knew if you can get him open he was going to hit that open three. We miss that 42-43% three-point shooter. We just didn’t have it. We think we have that with Seth. I think it’ll make life a little bit easier for Dirk Nowitzki. It’ll allow us to push the ball more and I think it’ll make everybody’s lives a bit easier.“
Dwyane Wade On: Butler, Riley, Chicago
Longtime face of the Miami Heat franchise, Dwyane Wade, was officially introduced today as a member of the Bulls. The veteran inked a two-year, $47MM deal with Chicago this offseason, leaving behind the only NBA team he had ever known. Wade addressed members of the media today and touched on a number of subjects. The transcription comes courtesy of ESPN.com and Ethan J. Skolnick of The Miami Herald. Here are some of the highlights from Wade’s press conference:
Discussing who the “alpha” is on the new-look Bulls:
“This is Jimmy’s team. It won’t be a tug and pull whose team it is.” Wade then recalled the 2004 offseason when Miami acquired big man Shaquille O’Neal, saying, “We had no championships at the time and I remember his press conference. I was playing in the Olympics at the time, like Jimmy is right now. And I remember Shaq said, ‘We’re not going to go through this all year. This is Dwyane Wade’s team.’ So, we’re not going to go through this all year. This is Jimmy Butler‘s team. Myself and Rajon Rondo are here to bring what we bring as athletes to this team and to this city. He’s the young Bull on this team. He’s a 26-year-old who can play 40 minutes if coach wants him to and maybe more. I ain’t trying to do all that. And we’re going to depend on him a lot.”
Discussing if he chose Chicago because of a rift with Heat president Pat Riley:
“I have no rift with Pat Riley. It’s funny the reports come out about a lot of different things. I’ve never seen nobody around me and Pat when me and him was talking. I didn’t see no one CC’d on the emails that we talk about. I have nothing but respect for what he’s done in this game. I have so much to learn. So I have no rift in that. This year, the direction and the focus for that organization in Miami — which I have nothing but love and respect for — was a little different than it has been in years past.
With that being said, my direction and my focus was a little different than it had been in year’s past. I communicated with them that ‘Hey I’ve only done this once, but I’m going to be a free agent. I’m going to go out and see what the market is saying about me.’ And, like I said, this opportunity with Chicago when first I said I was going to be a free agent, this was nothing that we all knew was going to happen. But it was things that happened along the way that made this even realer and realer. I made the decision.
I had a contract offer in Miami that I could have took. I decided not to take it. It was my decision to be selfish and to live out a dream of mine. I’ve brought a lot of excitement to Miami and it’s a home to me. It will always be. I want to bring a little bit here to Chicago when I have a little bit left. So, let’s clear up the notion that Pat Riley orchestrated me getting out of Miami because he didn’t offer me the money I wanted. This was not a money deal. If this was a money deal I wouldn’t be sitting here. I would have taken the most money. At the end of the day this is a place I wanted to be.”
Discussing Riley’s role, or lack thereof, in his recruitment this summer:
“I dealt with (team owner) Micky Arison, Nick Arison when it came to my contracts the last two years. That’s what he means when he said he wasn’t involved, meaning he didn’t sit at the table. He didn’t call or email or text or nothing like that to try to sway me or try to get me back. I guess that’s what he meant.
I dealt with two people I respect in the organization. And like I said, at the end of the day it wasn’t about Pat Riley, it wasn’t about Micky, it wasn’t about Nick. It was about me. I told that to the Arison family in our meeting. They asked me, ‘What else? Is there anything else we can do? I said, ‘This is a decision I’m going to have to make. And I made that decision.’
I wasn’t looking for Pat to reach out to me. That wasn’t the focus of mine. My focus was making the best decision for my family. He has to make the best decision for the organization, which he has done an amazing job over his tenure there. And we all benefited from it.“
Rockets Sign Pablo Prigioni
JULY 29th, 5:05pm: The signing is official, the team announced.
JULY 13th, 10:50pm: The Rockets and unrestricted free agent Pablo Prigioni have reached an agreement on a contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports (Twitter link). It will be a two-year pact for the point guard, Wojnarowski adds, but the dollar amount of the arrangement is unknown at this time.
The 39-year-old appeared in 59 games for the Clippers this past season and averaged 2.56 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.2 assist in 13.9 minutes per outing. His slash line was .374/.295/.875.
Prigioni becomes the only other true point guard currently on Houston’s roster and will serve as a veteran backup to starter Patrick Beverley.
Free Agent Spending By Division: Southwest
Over the next week, we’ll be breaking down 2016 NBA free agent spending by division, examining which teams – and divisions – were the most active this July.
These divisional breakdowns won’t present a full picture of teams’ offseason spending. Some notable free agents, including LeBron James, remain unsigned, so there’s still money out there to be spent. Our lists also don’t include money spent on this year’s first- and second-round picks or draft-and-stash signings. There are a few free agent names missing in some instances as well, since those deals aren’t yet official or terms haven’t been reported.
Still, these closer looks at divisional spending should generally reveal how teams invested their money in free agency this summer, identifying which clubs went all-out and which ones played it safe.
With the help of our Free Agent Tracker and contract info from Basketball Insiders, we’ll kick off the series today with a look at the Southwest division. Let’s dive in…
1. Memphis Grizzlies
- Total money committed: $266,310,613
- Guaranteed money committed (including player options): $251,079,762
- Largest expenditure: Mike Conley (five years, $152,607,578)
- Other notable signings:
- Chandler Parsons (four years, $94,438,523)
- Troy Daniels (three years, $10,000,000)
- James Ennis (two years, $5,926,410)
- Notes:
- Wayne Selden‘s deal is not included in these totals, since it’s a summer contract and won’t count toward the Grizzlies’ cap unless he makes the regular-season roster.
- The fifth year of Conley’s deal is not fully guaranteed for now, but will become guaranteed if Conley plays in 55 games in the 2018/19 or 2019/20 seasons.
2. Dallas Mavericks
- Total money committed: $208,352,773
- Guaranteed money committed (including player options): $173,518,115
- Largest expenditure: Harrison Barnes (four years, $94,438,523)
- Other notable signings:
- Dirk Nowitzki (two years, $50,000,000)
- Dwight Powell (four years, $37,268,750)
- Deron Williams (one year, $9,000,000)
- Seth Curry (two years, $5,926,410)
- Notes:
- Keith Hornsby‘s contract with the Mavericks is not included in these figures, since details haven’t yet been reported.
- Nowitzki’s deal contributes significantly to the gap between the Mavs’ total money and guaranteed money committed, since his second year ($25MM) is a team option.
3. Houston Rockets
- Total money committed: $135,784,790
- Guaranteed money committed (including player options): $135,784,790
- Largest expenditure: Ryan Anderson (four years, $80,000,000)
- Other notable signings:
- Eric Gordon (Four years, $52,886,790)
- Nene (One year, $2,898,000)
- Notes:
- The Rockets are believed to have two-year, minimum-salary agreements in place with Pablo Prigioni, Kyle Wiltjer, Isaiah Taylor, and Gary Payton II. However, those deals haven’t been made official, so they’re not included in our totals.
- Bobby Brown‘s deal is not included in these totals, since it’s believed to be a summer contract which won’t count toward the Rockets’ cap unless he makes the regular-season roster.
4. New Orleans Pelicans
- Total money committed: $99,104,431
- Guaranteed money committed (including player options): $99,104,431
- Largest expenditure: Solomon Hill (four years, $48,000,000)
- Other notable signings:
- E’Twaun Moore (four years, $34,000,000)
- Langston Galloway (two years, $10,634,000)
- Tim Frazier (two years, $4,090,000)
- Notes:
- Terrence Jones will earn $1,050,961 on a minimum-salary contract, but the Pelicans will only pay $980,431 of that salary, with the NBA footing the rest of the bill.
- The Pelicans still figure to add non-guaranteed deals to fill out their preseason roster, but all their signees so far have had fully guaranteed contracts.
5. San Antonio Spurs
- Total money committed: $57,678,976
- Guaranteed money committed (including player options): $54,981,536
- Largest expenditure: Pau Gasol (two years, $31,697,500)
- Other notable signings:
- Manu Ginobili (one year, $14,000,000)
- Dewayne Dedmon (two years, $5,926,410)
- David Lee (two years, minimum salary)
- Notes:
- Lee’s contract hasn’t been formally announced, but it’s said to be a two-year, minimum-salary pact with a player option in year two. We’ve included that deal in our count, but not Patricio Garino‘s, since the official terms on that one haven’t been reported.
- Ryan Arcidiacono and Bryn Forbes are the only Spurs free agent signings without fully guaranteed deals so far.
Spurs Sign Patricio Garino
1:34pm: The Spurs have issued a press release officially announcing the signing.
12:55pm: The Spurs have reached an agreement on a partially-guaranteed deal for Argentinian forward Patricio Garino, a source tells Orazio Cauchi of Sportando. Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter links) confirms that San Antonio is signing Garino, noting that the George Washington product is playing in the Olympics this summer alongside Spurs veteran Manu Ginobili.
Garino, 23, spent four years at George Washington, increasing his production in each season. In 2015/16, the 6’7″ forward averaged 14.1 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 1.4 SPG, and 0.8 BPG while shooting 43.0% on three-point attempts.
[RELATED: Spurs’ 2016 free agent signings via our Free Agent Tracker]
The Spurs hold the NBA draft rights to many international players, and signed a couple of them already this month, locking up Livio Jean-Charles and Davis Bertans. However, Garino was an undrafted free agent, who was free to sign with any team. According to Cauchi, the newest Spur received interest from teams in Spain, Germany, and Italy as well.
Terms of Garino’s new deal aren’t known, but based on San Antonio’s cap limitations, a two-year, minimum-salary contract seems likely.
Pacers Waive Shayne Whittington
The Pacers have waived big man Shayne Whittington, the team announced today in a press release. The move allows the team to avoid paying Whittington’s $980,431 salary for the 2016/17 season, which would have become fully guaranteed if he remained on the roster beyond August 1.
[RELATED: Upcoming deadlines for non-guaranteed contracts]
Whittington, 25, has spent parts of the last two seasons with the Pacers, going back forth between Indiana and Fort Wayne, where the team’s D-League affiliate plays. During that time, the Western Michigan alum has appeared in 27 total NBA games, averaging a modest 2.5 PPG and 1.5 RPG in 5.5 minutes per contest.
With Whittington no longer in the mix, the Pacers have reduced their roster to 15 players, the regular-season limit. Of those 15 players, 14 have guaranteed salaries, while Glenn Robinson III also has an August 1 guarantee deadline. Assuming Robinson sticks around past Monday, he and his 14 teammates look like they’ll make up Indiana’s opening-night roster, though teams can carry up to 20 players in the offseason, so the Pacers figure to add a few more players for training camp in the coming weeks.
As for Whittington, he still has a chance to earn his full salary on his current contract if he’s claimed off waivers. However, it’s more likely that he’ll hit the open market. A non-guaranteed or partially-guaranteed contract with an NBA team – perhaps even Indiana – is one option, though he could also decide to explore overseas opportunities.
Community Shootaround: NBA’s Worst Team
Much of the offseason discussion over the last month has centered on the Warriors’ chances to make history now that they’ve added Kevin Durant to a team coming off a 73-win season. While most of us expect Golden State to be the NBA’s No. 1 team in 2016/17, it’s also worth taking a look at the clubs on the other end of the spectrum.
Very few NBA franchises head into training camp without playoff aspirations, but there are a handful of teams that will be facing a challenging uphill battle if they attempt to earn a trip to the postseason this season.
The Sixers, despite adding some veteran talent to go along with incoming rookies Ben Simmons and Dario Saric, are still in rebuilding mode, and the Nets are right there with them. The Suns and Lakers signed some veterans in free agency too, but it’s not clear whether either club has enough talent to even aim for a .500 record.
When ESPN released its Eastern and Western Conference forecasts for the 2016/17 season this week, those four clubs were the only ones projected to win less than 30 games. ESPN has the Suns down for 26 victories, with the Lakers (25), Sixers (20), and Nets (20) right behind them. Meanwhile, the Heat, Magic, Pelicans, Nuggets, and Kings are considered likely to compile win totals in the low-to-mid-30s, per ESPN.
What do you think? Which team will be the NBA’s worst in 2016/17? Will the Sixers earn that title for the second straight year, or will another club slip below them? Does ESPN’s projection model have it generally right, or is there a club heading for disaster that’s being overlooked?
Take to the comments section below to share your opinions on which team will be the worst in the NBA in 2016/17. We look forward to hearing your thoughts.