Kings Waive Caron Butler, Duje Dukan
The Kings have waived small forward Caron Butler and power forward Duje Dukan, sources told Shams Charania of The Vertical.
That frees up more roster space, though Butler had already exercised his player option worth $1,551,659 for next season. Deleting Dukan from the roster gives them a little more cap room, since Dukan’s $874,636 contract was not guaranteed.
Butler might have trouble finding a new team if he doesn’t retire, though Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical believes the Heat might have some interest. The Kings obviously would have moved his contract if they could have found a taker. The 36-year-old barely saw the floor during the 2015/16 season, playing a total of 176 minutes in 17 games for the Kings. Most of his absences were primarily the result of DNP-CDs.
Dukan signed with the Kings after going undrafted last June. The University of Wisconsin product spent most of the season with the Kings’ D-League affiliate, the Reno Bighorns, before appearing in one April game with Sacramento. Dukan can still play on the Kings’ summer team even though he’s been waived, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee notes.
Free Agent Rumors: Hornets, Blazers, Pachulia
Having tried to move Spencer Hawes‘ contract in a trade prior to the draft, the Hornets continue to explore a possible deal involving Hawes, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter links). According to Wojnarowski, Charlotte would like to create the cap room to add a center in free agency. Roy Hibbert and Zaza Pachulia are at the top of the Hornets’ wish list, with Festus Ezeli and Jordan Hill among the other players the team is eyeing, says Wojnarowski.
Here are several more free agent rumors and updates from around the NBA:
- The Trail Blazers kicked the tires on Ezeli and Nene, but won’t pursue those players, instead focusing their attention on Pachulia, reports Jason Quick of CSNNW.com (Twitter links). According to Quick, the Blazers were concerned they’d have to renounce one or two of their restricted free agents to go after Ezeli, and they aren’t willing to do that for Allen Crabbe, Meyers Leonard, or Maurice Harkless at this point.
- Quick also has an update on veteran free agent Gerald Henderson, tweeting that the Trail Blazers are one of “seven to eight teams” to show interest in Henderson so far.
- A reunion between Lance Stephenson and the Pacers isn’t out of the question, according to Nate Taylor of The Indianapolis Star, who reports that Stephenson has discussed the possibility of agreeing to a multiyear contract with Indiana. The veteran free agent is considering a few teams, but a source tells Taylor that Stephenson “absolutely loves the town and the [Pacers] organization.”
- Before Cole Aldrich agreed to sign with the Timberwolves, he was receiving interest from the Magic and the Suns, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (via Twitter). Orlando struck a deal with Bismack Biyombo, but Phoenix could still be in the market for a free agent big man.
- Portland reportedly offered Pau Gasol a higher salary than he ultimately accepted from the Spurs, and it sounds like the Timberwolves did too. Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reports (via Twitter) that Minnesota’s first offer was $36MM for two years, and the team may have increased that offer within the last day or so.
Knicks Sign Brandon Jennings
FRIDAY, 1:07pm: The Knicks have officially signed Jennings, the team announced today (via Twitter).
MONDAY, 3:28pm: It’ll be a one-year, $5MM deal for Jennings and the Knicks, according to Goodwill (Twitter link). That could be a nice value pickup for New York if the former 10th overall pick can stay on the court in 2016/17.
3:19pm: Veteran guard Brandon Jennings has become the latest notable free agent to strike a deal with the Knicks, according to Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago, who reports (via Twitter) that the two sides have agreed to terms. ESPN’s Marc Stein first reported (via Twitter) that the Knicks were on the verge of reaching an agreement with Jennings.
It has been a busy offseason so far for the Knicks, who kicked things off in June by acquiring Derrick Rose in a five-year player trade with the Bulls. The team has since reached agreements with Joakim Noah and Courtney Lee on four-year deals that will pay them $72MM and $48MM, respectively.
Based on those deals, the Knicks weren’t expected to have a whole lot of money left to go shopping for a backup point guard, so landing Jennings could be a coup for the team, assuming there are no other moving pieces in play. We’ll have to wait for the full terms of the deal to surface before we can evaluate it, but if he’s healthy, Jennings is capable of backing up Rose and scoring points off the bench.
Jennings, 26, has been plagued by injuries over the last two years, having missed about half the season in both 2014/15 and 2015/16. He also saw his minutes and his production take a huge hit last season in both Detroit and Orlando. He averaged just 6.9 PPG for the season, after never having scored less than 15.4 PPG in any of his six previous seasons.
As is the case with Rose and Noah, the Knicks are presumably counting on Jennings to return to health and to look a little more like his old self going forward.
The Knicks figure to have renounce the rights to one or two of the free agents they’d wanted to re-sign in order to make room for Jennings. Derrick Williams, Langston Galloway, and Lance Thomas are candidates to be let go, with Williams likely heading that list.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Spurs Working To Trade Boris Diaw
With Pau Gasol headed to San Antonio on a deal that averages $15MM annually, the Spurs will need to create a little cap flexibility to accommodate him, and the most likely route is a trade of Boris Diaw. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter links), the Spurs are working on a possible trade involving Diaw.
[RELATED: Tim Duncan strongly leaning toward retiring]
The Spurs could have waived Diaw last week and saved $4MM in cap room, since his $7MM salary was only guaranteed for $3MM at that point. However, the team opted to keep him, and that was probably the right call. In this market, a versatile forward like Diaw is a solid value on a one-year, $7MM deal. He also has a very affordable – and non-guaranteed – $7.5MM salary for the 2017/18 season.
While specific suitors for Diaw aren’t yet known, Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News tweets that the French forward has about five teams that he’d like to end up with. The Spurs will have to move the 34-year-old without taking any salary back, so his suitors figure to be limited to teams with a trade exception or cap room significant enough to accommodate his $7MM salary.
Heat Offer Dwyane Wade Two-Year, $40MM Deal
With Kevin Durant no longer in play, the Heat have shifted their focus back to their own veteran star. According to Dan Le Batard (Twitter link), Miami has put a two-year, $40MM offer on the table for Dwyane Wade. The proposal, which has been confirmed by multiple outlets, includes a player option for year two.
Wade has been shopping around for other offers so far this month, unhappy with how initial talks with the Heat had played out. However, Miami has remained the favorite to sign Wade, and now the team appears to be getting a little more serious in negotiations, with Hassan Whiteside locked up and Durant headed to Golden State.
The Bucks, one of Wade’s rival suitors, have a meeting in New York lined up with the veteran guard for Wednesday, according to Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link). The Nuggets are also reportedly in the hunt for Wade, but the Heat would probably like to ensure that the former Finals MVP doesn’t take any meetings.
As cap expert Albert Nahmad notes (via Twitter), based on their current projected space, the Heat could offer Wade a deal worth $39MM+ and still match Tyler Johnson‘s offer sheet. If Wade wants more than that, and Miami is willing to oblige, the team would have to renounce, trade, or waive at least one other player. The Heat could also improve their offer to Wade by adding a third year.
Bulls Sign Rajon Rondo
JULY 7, 1:44pm: The Bulls have issued a press release announcing their signing of Rondo.
JULY 3, 7:03pm: Rondo and the Bulls have a “mutual option” on year two of the deal, says Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago (Twitter link). That means either side can opt out next offseason, which presumably suggests a player option on a non-guaranteed salary.
6:17pm: The second year of Rondo’s deal is only partially guaranteed, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com.
5:57pm: Point guard Rajon Rondo has agreed to a two-year, $28MM contract with the Bulls, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. The entire contract is guaranteed and neither side has an option, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today, who reports the deal at $30MM over two seasons.
Either way, it’s a significant raise for Rondo, who signed a one-year $9.5MM contract with the Kings last summer. He led the league in assists with 11.7 per game during his single season in Sacramento, while scoring 11.9 points a night.
“I’m excited,” Rondo said. “Great organization with pieces around me that I’m excited about.” (Twitter link).
The move brings the Bulls up to the salary floor, tweets K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune, who says the team offered one- and two-year deals of all of its targets. It also raises the possibility that Jose Calderon, who was acquired in a trade with the Knicks last week, may be waived.
Hornets Sign Ramon Sessions
THURSDAY, 11:23am: The Hornets have officially signed Sessions, the team announced today in a press release.
MONDAY, 1:36pm: The Hornets have landed a backup point guard, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, who reports (via Twitter) that the team has agreed to sign Ramon Sessions. The two-year pact will be worth $12.5MM, a league source tells Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link) pegs the exact value at $12.3MM.
Sessions, 30, has bounced around the NBA since entering the league in 2007, playing for six teams over the course of his career. Most recently, the former second-round pick appeared in all 82 games for the Wizards last season, backing up John Wall at point guard. It was a solid year for Sessions, who contributed 9.9 PPG, 2.9 APG, and a.473 FG% during his first full season in Washington.
In Sessions, Charlotte lands a backup at the point for Kemba Walker, and one that will come much cheaper than Jeremy Lin, who agreed to a three-year deal worth $12MM annually with the Nets. Sessions will earn about half that with the Hornets, on a shorter term, and his agreement will still leave Charlotte with a little leftover cap space to go shopping for a big man.
Since free agency opened, the Hornets have also reached deals to bring back Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Warriors To Rescind Harrison Barnes’ QO
The Warriors are set to renounce restricted free agent forward Harrison Barnes, now that Kevin Durant is headed to the Bay Area, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter link). Withdrawing their qualifying offer to Barnes would remove his $9,683,495 cap hold from the Warriors’ books, and would make Barnes an unrestricted free agent. We heard earlier today that Golden State will do the same for Festus Ezeli, making him a UFA as well.
[RELATED: Kevin Durant to sign with Warriors]
The Mavericks had been expected to put a four-year, maximum-salary offer sheet for Barnes when the July moratorium comes to an end, and Dallas remains “full steam ahead” on its plans to offer Barnes that contract, according to Stein. Now that he won’t be a restricted free agent, Barnes will be free to sign with the Mavs outright, rather than waiting to see if Golden State would match an offer sheet.
There hasn’t been confirmation yet that Barnes has formally agreed to terms with the Mavericks, so it’s possible that another team – perhaps one that missed out on Durant – that appeals more to Barnes could swoop in to match Dallas’ offer. But it looks for now as if the former seventh overall pick will probably sign with the Mavs later this week.
The Mavericks have also emerged as a strong potential trade destination for Andrew Bogut, per Stein (Twitter links). Golden State will almost certainly have to move Bogut to accommodate Durant’s new deal, and the team would like to send the veteran center to a destination he likes, according to Stein, who adds that Barnes and Bogut are good friends.
One NBA team executive tells Sam Amico of Amico Hoops (Twitter link) that his club previously had interest in Bogut, but is no longer interested in making a trade. “I’m not helping [the Warriors],” the exec said. While that’s a noble stance, there figures to be at least one team willing to acquire Bogut — the trade cost figures to be cheap, and Bogut’s salary isn’t exorbitant compared to what some free agent centers will sign for this week.
Hoops Rumors 2016 Free Agent Tracker
With free agency in full swing, and news of contract agreements frequently breaking, Hoops Rumors is here to help you keep track of which players are heading to which teams this July. To this end, we present our Free Agent Tracker, a feature we’ve had each year since our inception in 2012. Using our tracker, you can quickly look up deals, sorting by team, position, free agent type, and a handful of other variables.
A few notes on the tracker:
- During the July moratorium (July 1st-6th), most of the information you’ll find in the tracker will reflect agreements, rather than finalized deals. As signings become official, we’ll continue to update and modify the data as needed.
- Similarly, contract years and dollars will be based on what’s been reported to date, so in some cases those amounts will be approximations rather than official figures. Salaries aren’t necessarily fully guaranteed either.
- A restricted free agent who signs an offer sheet will be listed under the team that extended the offer sheet, but note that those signings won’t be official unless the player’s original team declines to match within the three-day period to do so. If the original team matches, we’ll update the tracker to show that the player is back with that team.
Our 2016 Free Agent Tracker can be found anytime on the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features,” and it’s also under the “Tools” menu atop the site. It will be updated throughout the offseason, so be sure to check back for the latest info. If you have any corrections, please let us know right here.
Free Agent Rumors: Pau, Spurs, Raptors, Durant
The Spurs, Raptors, and Trail Blazers are all vying for free agent big man Pau Gasol, according to ESPN’s Chris Broussard, who reports (via Twitter) that San Antonio and Toronto are considered the frontrunners. A report late on Sunday night suggested that the Spurs would be a good bet to sign Gasol if they don’t land Kevin Durant, but that’s no lock yet. Neither the Spurs nor the Raptors has a ton of cap room at the moment, but perhaps Gasol won’t be seeking a huge payday if he has the chance to join a contender. Both teams also have movable assets if they need to create additional space.
Let’s check in on a few more updates on free agents from around the NBA….
- Durant intends to inform all the teams he has met with during the free agent period about his decision this morning, according to ESPN NFL reporter Adam Schefter (via Twitter). At some point after those teams get the news, Durant is expected to make his announcement on The Players’ Tribune. According to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link), the Celtics made one last call to Durant’s camp last night to attempt to make a strong final impression.
- One of the players on the Knicks‘ list of inexpensive guard targets is Tim Frazier, according to Ian Begley of ESPN.com. Frazier is a Pelicans restricted free agent, so New Orleans would have an opportunity to match an offer sheet. Meanwhile, New York only has about $5MM – or less – in cap room remaining, and may look to create a little more space via trade(s), per Begley.
- The Hornets have done well to retain free agents Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams, but the team only has about $10MM left in cap space, and will need to ration that money out to add a backup point guard and another big man, writes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. Within the piece, Bonnell offers a few names of players who may get a look from the Hornets.
- Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com examines the difficult spot the Mavericks find themselves in, as they try to balance their efforts to retool the roster and their desire to do right by Dirk Nowitzki, who is still a free agent.
- Lithuanian small forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas has recently worked out for the Lakers and Hawks, and will soon make a decision on whether to continue his basketball career in the NBA or overseas, reports international basketball journalist David Pick (via Twitter).