Pacific Notes: Gay, Durant, Stoudemire, Suns
Rudy Gay made some comments earlier this week that made NBA observers raise an eyebrow, as he complained about the lack of stability and consistency in Sacramento and admitted that he hadn’t even been following the Kings‘ offseason moves. Gay has since followed up on those comments, so let’s dive into a Friday morning round-up of Pacific notes for the latest on Gay and a couple other players…
- According to Sean Cunningham of ABC10, Gay said that he spoke to Kings GM Vlade Divac this week. And while Gay acknowledged that things haven’t necessarily changed since Monday, he expressed some optimism about his situation going forward, whether that’s in Sacramento or somewhere else. “At this point in my career I just want to be happy,” Gay said. “I talked to Vlade and we’re trying to make that happen.”
- Refuting a report that surfaced recently, Kevin Durant tells Shams Charania of The Vertical that he never promised Oklahoma City teammates Russell Westbrook and Nick Collison that he’d return to the Thunder before he signed with the Warriors. “I didn’t say that – words about me telling Russell or Nick that I would stay or leave never came out of my mouth,” Durant said. “We met as teammates, but no promises came out of it. … I never told Russell or Nick [Collison], ‘All right, guys, I’m coming back to the Thunder’ – and then a week later, I decide not to. Never happened. I don’t operate like that.”
- Speaking to Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic, Amar’e Stoudemire confirmed a Tuesday report, admitting that he had interest in rejoining the Suns during the past couple offseasons, but that there wasn’t mutual interest in that scenario. “The last two years, we made phone calls to Phoenix but I wasn’t getting any positive response,” Stoudemire said. “That would’ve been the perfect way to go out. I didn’t want to beg Phoenix. My heart was in two places – Phoenix and New York. I just went where I was wanted.” Stoudemire ultimately signed a ceremonial contract this week to retire as a Knick, rather than as a Sun.
And-Ones: NBPA, Monroe, Murray
On Wednesday, the NBPA announced in an unprecedented move, that it will now fund health insurance for all retired players who accrued three or more years of service time in the NBA (h/t RealGM). This program will be the first of its kind among North American professional sports, the release noted. “The game has never been more popular, and all the players in our league today recognize that we’re only in this position because of the hard work and dedication of the men who came before us,” said Chris Paul. “It’s important that we take care of our entire extended NBA family, and I’m proud of my fellow players for taking this unprecedented step to ensure the health and well-being of our predecessors.”
Here’s more from around the league:
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The Bucks are still looking to find a taker for Greg Monroe and it sounds like they’ve spoken to the Pelicans about him this offseason. “I think [the Bucks] got closer than maybe has been reported with New Orleans during either the draft or free agency,” ESPN’s Zach Lowe said during today’s episode of The Lowe Post podcast (54:25 mark for the relevant portion). “Monroe’s a New Orleans native,” ESPN’s Marc Stein added. “I think that’s where he wants to end up.” Neither Lowe nor Stein suggested that a deal between the Pelicans and Bucks is currently in the works, but Stein expects the big man to eventually be moved, and those two clubs also discussed Monroe prior to this year’s trade deadline.
- Richard Jefferson‘s contract with the Cavaliers is for three years, not for two as was previously reported, notes Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). The veteran will earn $2.5MM in each of the first two seasons, with the final season worth a non-guaranteed $2.6MM, Pincus adds.
- Add former NBA player Flip Murray to the list of veterans considering making a return to the league, as he told Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. “I would definitely bring a lot of veteran leadership because I know the game of basketball,” Murray said. “The way the game is now, I feel like I could fit perfectly in. I could be someone who comes off the bench and produces for the team. I’d also like to mentor the young guys and pass on some of the experiences and lessons I learned from playing against some of the guys I matched up against during my time. If I come in right now, I could bring a lot of veteran leadership and still be able to produce on the court.” The 36-year-old last appeared in the NBA during the regular season in 2009/10.
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Have a question regarding player movement, free agent rumors, the salary cap, the NBA draft, or the top storylines of the week? You can e-mail them here: hoopsrumorsmailbag@gmail.com. Feel free to send emails throughout the week, but please be mindful that we may receive a sizable number of questions and might not get to all of them.
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Southwest Notes: Parker, Nowitzki, Dedmon
Despite the retirement of Tim Duncan this summer, point guard Tony Parker still believes the Spurs will be a factor in the championship hunt in 2016/17, Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News writes. “Obviously, we are going to miss him a lot,” Parker said of Duncan. “You can’t replace a guy like Timmy. But we will try to do our best to keep the Spurs going and to keep winning. I’m just going to try to be a good leader and welcome all the new guys and try to help them as much as I can and just show them the Spurs culture and what we do here.”
Here’s more from out of the Southwest Division:
- Former Providence point guard God Shammgod has joined the Mavericks‘ staff as an assistant coach in charge of player development, Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com tweets.
- Dirk Nowitzki‘s contract with the Mavs calls for him to earn $25MM per season, includes a no-trade clause and the second year is a team option with no guaranteed money, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (Twitter links).
- Center Dewayne Dedmon said his two best options this offseason were the Spurs and the Warriors, adding he chose San Antonio in order to have a shot a beating Golden State, Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News relays (Subscription required). The soon-to-be 27-year-old inked a two-year deal with the Spurs this offseason.
Salary Cap Snapshot: Charlotte Hornets
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 Hornets’ team page accessible here.
Here’s a breakdown of where the Hornets currently stand financially:
Guaranteed Salary
- Nicolas Batum — $20,869,566
- Michael Kidd-Gilchrist — $13,000,000
- Miles Plumlee —$12,500,000
- Marvin Williams — $12,250,000
- Kemba Walker — $12,000,000
- Jeremy Lamb — $6,511,628
- Marco Belinelli — $6,333,333
- Ramon Sessions — $6,000,000
- Cody Zeller — $5,318,313
- Frank Kaminsky — $2,730,000
- Chris Andersen — $980,431 [Waived by team; actual salary — $1,551,659]
- Brian Roberts — $980,431 [Actual salary — $1,050,961]
- Christian Wood — $874,636
- Treveon Graham — $543,471
- Aaron Harrison — $375,579 [Waived by team]
- Johnny O’Bryant — $161,483
- Briante Weber — $128,623
- Mike Tobey — $75,000 [Waived by team (Oct 22)]
- Ray McCallum — $63,440 [10-day contract (Feb 13); actual salary — $65,722; contract lasted 11 days to allow for three games]
- Ray McCallum — $57,672 [10-day contract (Feb 3); actual salary — $59,747]
- Johnny O’Bryant — $57,672 [10-day contract (Feb 24)]
- Johnny O’Bryant — $57,672 [10-day contract (Mar 6)]
- Briante Weber — $51,449 [10-day contract (Feb 27)]
- Briante Weber — $51,449 [10-day contract (Mar 9)]
- Mike Tobey — $35,166 [10-day contract (Feb 13); contract lasted 11 days to allow for three games]
- Mike Tobey — $31,969 [10-day contract (Feb 3)]
Total Guaranteed Salary= $102,038,983
Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Cash Received Via Trade: TBD. $250K was received from Memphis in the Troy Daniels trade. $750K was received from the Cavaliers in the Chris Andersen trade. An unknown amount was received from the Bucks in the Miles Plumlee trade. [Amount Remaining $2.5MM]
Payroll Exceptions Available
- Trade Exception — $1,666,470 (Troy Daniels trade) — Expires on 7/12/17
- Room Exception — $2,898,000
Total Projected Payroll: $102,038,983
Salary Cap: $94,143,000
Estimated Available Cap Space: –$7,895,983
Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000
Amount Below Luxury Tax: $11,248,017
Last Updated: 3/20/17
The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.
Bulls Re-Sign Spencer Dinwiddie
The Bulls have circled back to guard Spencer Dinwiddie, with the team announcing via press release that he has been re-signed. The length and terms of the arrangement were not relayed in the release, but odds are that it is a minimum salary deal with little or no guaranteed money included. The addition of Dinwiddie gives the Bulls a roster count of 15, which is the regular season maximum.
Chicago had waived Dinwiddie back on July 7th in an effort to clear cap room for free agent pursuits. The Bulls had acquired the 23-year-old from Detroit in exchange for power forward Cameron Bairstow in June.
Dinwiddie completed the 2015/16 campaign, his second in the NBA, with averages of 4.8 points, 1.8 assists, 1.4 rebounds and 13.3 minutes over 12 contests. He was drafted by the Pistons with the No. 38 overall selection in the 2014 NBA Draft. Dinwiddie owns career averages of 4.4 points, 2.7 assists, 1.4 rebounds and 13.3 minutes through 46 regular season games in the league.
Atlantic Notes: Anthony, Nets, Bentil
Like many around the NBA, Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony was taken by surprise that Dwyane Wade left the Heat to join the Bulls this offfseason, Nick Friedell of ESPN.com writes. “I was shocked,” Anthony said. “I was shocked more from a standpoint it was just hard to see. It’s hard to see some players in different uniforms and he’s one of those guys who I never thought I would see in a different uniform other than Miami. But it happened, and I got a chance to talk to him and sit down with him and really dig deep about his feelings and what happened. He’s at peace now. And when he’s at peace, I’m at peace with it.”
Melo also took the time to express his happiness at the Knicks’ new-look roster, Friedell adds. “We love them,” Anthony said. “We love those additions. And we’re looking forward to getting the season going. And I think everybody is excited, the excitement is back. Right now there’s an adjustment on paper, but of course we have some work to do putting it all together, making it work. But we’re going to ride the wave of this excitement right now.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Celtics have a crowded roster with 18 players currently under contract, and as a result, will have some difficult decisions to make during the preseason. Logan Mullen of 93.7FM’s Green Street broke down who he thinks will make the regular season roster and who is ticketed for Boston’s D-League affiliate in Maine.
- The Nets are stressing patience as the team rebuilds, which is a marked change from how the team has operated under owner Mikhail Prokhorov in the past, notes David Aldridge of NBA.com. “This goes from ownership all the way down,” GM Sean Marks said. “When Mikhail wrote his letter 9to season ticket holders), the lessons he learned, that sort of stood out. It stood out for me, that a guy of his stature realized, we’re going to go in a different direction this time. Now it’s up to us to put a product on the floor that’s going to be sustainable, and not just for a fleeting moment. I understand there could be some trying times here for the organization. We’re not going to win 50 games next year. We get that. But if we can put a product on the floor that we can be proud of, that fans can appreciate, if fans know that we’ll compete every night, that’ll speak volumes. Especially the Brooklyn-New York fan base will appreciate that.”
- Ben Bentil‘s three-year contract with the Celtics includes a partial guarantee of $250K for the first season, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
- Unrestricted free agent Shane Larkin, who appeared in 78 games for the Nets in 2015/16, has switched agents and is now represented by Jim Tanner of Tandem Sports, Liz Mullen of The Sports Business Journal tweets.
- The Celtics have officially renounced their rights to Gigi Datome, Pincus relays (on Twitter). The 27-year-old last appeared in the league during the 2014/15 campaign.
Largest NBA Free Agent Contracts Of 2016
The NBA’s salary cap took an unprecedented leap this offseason, as the cap limit for the league’s 30 teams jumped from $70MM to $94MM+. As we saw earlier this month, that substantial cap increase predictably resulted in substantial spending in free agency. Six players landed deals worth more than $100MM+, and another 11 players signed contracts worth at least $70MM.
While Kevin Durant was the focus of the most free agency rumors, speculation, and discussion, his contract won’t even rank among the NBA’s top 20 biggest deals of 2016 in terms of total value, since he signed for just two years. The title of largest contract of the offseason – and also in NBA history – goes to Mike Conley, who inked a five-year, $152,607,578 pact with the Grizzlies.
Conley’s deal isn’t yet fully guaranteed for the final season, but even if we were to remove the non-guaranteed portion of that fifth year, the veteran point guard would still rank atop the list of 2016’s largest overall free agent deals.
With the help of our 2016 Free Agent Tracker and the contract data at Basketball Insiders, here are the NBA’s top 20 biggest free agent contracts of 2016, by total value:
- Mike Conley (Grizzlies): Five years, $152,607,578
- DeMar DeRozan (Raptors): Five years, $137,500,000
- Bradley Beal (Wizards): Five years, $127,171,313
- Andre Drummond (Pistons): Five years, $127,171,313
- Nicolas Batum (Hornets): Five years, $120,000,000
- Al Horford (Celtics): Four years, $113,326,230
- Hassan Whiteside (Heat): Four years, $98,419,537
- Harrison Barnes (Mavericks): Four years, $94,438,524
- Chandler Parsons (Grizzlies): Four years, $94,438,524
- Evan Fournier (Magic): Five years, $85,000,000
- Ryan Anderson (Rockets): Four years, $80,000,000
- Allen Crabbe (Trail Blazers): Four years, $74,832,500
- Joakim Noah (Knicks): Four years, $72,590,000
- Luol Deng (Lakers): Four years, $72,000,000
- Dwight Howard (Hawks): Three years, $70,500,000
- Kent Bazemore (Hawks): Four years, $70,000,000
- Evan Turner (Trail Blazers): Four years, $70,000,000
- Bismack Biyombo (Magic): Four years, $68,000,000
- Ian Mahinmi (Wizards): Four years, $64,000,000
- Timofey Mozgov (Lakers): Four years, $64,000,000
LeBron James isn’t on that list, since he remains unsigned, but even if he had re-upped with the Cavaliers already, there’s a chance that LeBron’s deal wouldn’t be among the top 20 in terms of overall salary. Like Durant did with the Warriors, LeBron may end up signing a one- or two-year contract with the Cavs, allowing him to opt out and sign for more money a year from now.
While James and Durant are among the veterans who figure to be on big-money, short-term deals, they aren’t the only ones. Other longtime All-Stars, such as Dirk Nowitzki and Dwyane Wade, are also on shorter deals that will pay them significant annual salaries. So after examining the league’s top 20 free agent signings by total value, it’s worth taking a look at the top 20 by annual average value — that list looks a little different, though Conley still ranks first.
Here are the NBA’s top 20 free agent contracts of 2016 in terms of annual average salary:
- Mike Conley (Grizzlies): $30,521,516
- Al Horford (Celtics): $28,331,558
- DeMar DeRozan (Raptors): $27,500,000
- Kevin Durant (Warriors): $27,137,253
- Bradley Beal (Wizards): $25,434,263
- Andre Drummond (Pistons): $25,434,263
- Dirk Nowitzki (Mavericks): $25,000,000
- Hassan Whiteside (Heat): $24,604,884
- Nicolas Batum (Hornets): $24,000,000
- Harrison Barnes (Mavericks): $23,609,631
- Chandler Parsons (Grizzlies): $23,609,631
- Dwight Howard (Hawks): $23,500,000
- Dwyane Wade (Bulls): $23,500,000
- Ryan Anderson (Rockets): $20,000,000
- Allen Crabbe (Trail Blazers): $18,708,125
- Joakim Noah (Knicks): $18,147,500
- Luol Deng (Lakers): $18,000,000
- Kent Bazemore (Hawks): $17,500,000
- Evan Turner (Trail Blazers): $17,500,000
- (tie) Evan Fournier (Magic) / Bismack Biyombo (Magic): $17,000,000
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Doc Rivers Talks Durant, CP3, Griffin, Roster
Clippers president and head coach Doc Rivers made an appearance this week on Adrian Wojnarowski’s podcast at The Vertical, and Rivers made several interesting comments about his team’s offseason and its future.
Notably, Rivers indicated that the Clippers were “in the top three at the very end” in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, a statement which seems to be odds with reports that surfaced at the time. A Los Angeles Times story published two days before Durant announced his decision suggested that the Clippers had been informed they were out of the running. Based on Rivers’ comments, it’s possible the Clips found out they weren’t one of Durant’s top two choices and decided to move on and lock up other free agents rather than waiting for his final decision.
Rivers spoke more extensively about his club’s pursuit of Durant and touched on several other noteworthy topics, so let’s round up a few of the highlights, courtesy of RealGM.com:
On how the Clippers’ cap limitations affected their pursuit of Durant:
“We had to actually ask each guy to take a hit financially. We needed Kevin to take a hit this year to fit and next year we would have needed Blake [Griffin] and Chris [Paul] to take a hit financially. He didn’t have to do that if he stayed in Oklahoma. He didn’t have to do that if he went to Golden State. Plus they had room to build around that. I think at the end of the day, they looked at is as far as roster-wise, well, ‘The Clippers look great, we love who they are, but financially they are going to be so strapped, it’s going to be so hard to work, I think we’re going to go the safer place,’ and that was Golden State.”
On whether the Clippers will be able to lock up Griffin and Paul beyond 2017:
“It would be interesting if Steve Ballmer wasn’t the owner, I don’t know how confident I would be. With Steve, I’m extremely confident that we can keep both. You know, listen, winning is the key. The better we play on the floor, the better chance we have of not only keeping those guys but actually adding to our basketball team. That’s always the key factor in this. Quality of life is important, being comfortable, players getting along with the staff and each other. All that goes into it. But I think we’re in a good place there. I know both of them have said they want to play here. They want to play for us forever.”
On the Griffin trade rumors:
“It’s funny, you don’t want to go out and send out a press release every time there’s a rumor about Blake. We’re hoping Blake ends his career playing for the Clippers. Period. So when teams call, we say we have no interest.
“No team is calling right now because teams know we don’t have any interest.”
On the Clippers’ hole at small forward:
“We have a good core. The problem team-building with our core is we have three max players. I don’t think people understand that. I think since I’ve taken the job, even before then, we need a three, we need a three, we need a three. Yeah, we all know that but we also only have the minimum to try to go out and get a three. I think it’s been actually miraculous what we’ve done with just having minimum contracts.”
On the pros and cons of minimum-salary contracts:
“One thing I’ve learned with teams like ours, if you have a good team, you can convince guys to take the minimum. The problem is you’re going to keep losing guys. Every year we do it. Every single season we sign guys to the minimum and then we lose them to higher contracts. Cole Aldrich is the example from this year.”
Cavs Re-Sign Richard Jefferson
JULY 28, 12:46pm: The Cavaliers have officially re-signed Jefferson, the team announced today in a press release.
“RJ’s versatility on the court and leadership off it were core parts of our identity and success last year,” GM David Griffin said in a statement. “In many respects, his impact was greater as the stakes got higher. His NBA Finals performance is a testament to his dedicated, steady approach and his presence in our locker room throughout the year and postseason cannot be overstated. We’re very thankful he decided to continue his career and we know that his teammates appreciate what he brings to this team at a very deep level.”
JULY 6, 10:12pm: The contract will be worth $5MM over two seasons, Chris Mannix of The Vertical tweets.
9:59pm: The Cavaliers and veteran Richard Jefferson have agreed to a deal that will see the player remain in Cleveland, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). It will be a two-year arrangement, according to the scribe, but the dollar amount is not yet known.
This certainly comes as a reversal for Jefferson, who told reporters that his career was done after the Cavs won the NBA Finals, adding that it was a “hell of a way to go out.” A few days later, the veteran forward admitted that his decision to retire was hardly set in stone, adding that his Cavaliers teammates were trying to talk him out of it, and that it was “still up for debate.”
Jefferson appeared in 74 games for Cleveland in 2015/16, averaging 5.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 17.9 minutes per contest. The small forward shot .458/.382/.667 from the field on the campaign.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.