Southeast Notes: Teague, Hawks, Heat, Wizards
The three-way trade that sent Jeff Teague to Indiana earlier this offseason came as a bit of a surprise, but Teague himself wasn’t totally caught off guard by the deal. As he tells Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, Teague had been informed by the Hawks that an offseason trade may be in the cards.
“Me and the Hawks talked a bit and we agreed to be open with each other and try to help each other facilitate a nice deal,” Teague said. “So I knew it was coming [eventually], but I didn’t know when. When I got the news, Coach Bud let me know that he would be trading me home. It was bittersweet, but I’m excited about a new start and a new opportunity.”
Here’s more from around the Southeast division:
- Hawks assistant general manager Michael Blackstone is leaving his role with the team after spending just one season in Atlanta, several sources tell Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Blackstone had been responsible for managing contract and trade negotiations, among other duties. As Vivlamore notes, the Hawks recently promoted former director of scouting Jeff Peterson to an assistant GM role.
- In his latest mailbag for The South Florida Sun Sentinel, Ira Winderman examines the Heat‘s backcourt logjam and speculates about whether or not Miami would be interested in Larry Sanders.
- Keely Diven of CSNMidAtlantic.com passes along some of the noteworthy comments from a recent appearance Wizards head coach Scott Brooks made on Chris Mannix’s podcast for The Vertical. Brooks discussed the similarities between John Wall and Russell Westbrook, Bradley Beal‘s health, and his plan for Washington’s young players.
Update On Unsigned 2016 Draft Picks
Over a month has passed since the 2016 NBA draft, and most of the 60 players selected in June – including first overall pick Ben Simmons – have been signed by their NBA teams, or have lined up overseas deals. Still, there are several players whose immediate futures have not yet been determined.
As our list of draft pick signings shows, there are still five first-rounders who have yet to either sign a contract with their NBA team or to strike a deal with an international club. Of those players, four were top-11 picks, so it’s likely just a matter of time until they sign their rookie-scale contracts. Only 15th overall pick Juan Hernangomez is a question mark — a recent report suggested he’d probably join the Nuggets immediately, but it’s not set in stone yet.
In the second round, eight of 30 draftees have unresolved situations, and many of those outcomes are more difficult to predict. Celtics draftee Abdel Nader, for instance, could end up signing with Boston, being joining the team’s D-League affiliate, or heading overseas as a draft-and-stash prospect.
We’ll pass along updates on 2016’s draft picks as they become available. For now, here’s the full list of players whose situation for the 2016/17 has yet to be resolved:
First Round:
- Los Angeles Lakers: Brandon Ingram, SF (Duke)
- Boston Celtics: Jaylen Brown, SF (California)
- Milwaukee Bucks: Thon Maker, PF (HS)
- Oklahoma City Thunder: Domantas Sabonis, PF/C (Gonzaga)
- Denver Nuggets: Juan Hernangomez, F (Estudiantes)
Second Round:
- Milwaukee Bucks: Malcolm Brogdon, SG (Virginia)
- Utah Jazz: Joel Bolomboy, PF (Weber State)
- Cleveland Cavaliers: Kay Felder, PG (Oakland)
- Utah Jazz: Marcus Paige, PG (North Carolina)
- Oklahoma City Thunder: Daniel Hamilton, SG (UConn)
- Boston Celtics: Abdel Nader, F (Iowa State)
- Sacramento Kings: Isaiah Cousins, SG (Oklahoma)
- Utah Jazz: Tyrone Wallace, PG (California)
Lowe’s Latest: Magic, Vucevic, Oladipo, Sixers
In Zach Lowe’s latest column for ESPN.com, he examines the Magic‘s offseason moves, attempting to make sense of some of the club’s unusual decisions. After investing huge money into Bismack Biyombo and sending a significant trade package to the Thunder for Serge Ibaka, Orlando has a roster that appears a little heavy on frontcourt talent, and one that lacks offensive playmakers.
As Lowe details, the Magic may attempt to roll out a lineup that features Biyombo at center, Ibaka at power forward, and Aaron Gordon at the three in a Paul George-type role, per new head coach Frank Vogel. That would give the team impressive length, athleticism, and rim protection in the frontcourt, but it remains to be seen whether it would be effective against NBA teams that are increasingly reliant on three-pointers and perimeter talent.
Lowe’s piece also includes a handful of interesting tidbits of information he has gleaned from league sources, so let’s round those up…
- Despite the logjam up front, the Magic are in no rush to trade Nikola Vucevic, writes Lowe. Given the team’s lack of pure scorers, but Orlando might want to keep Vucevic around to take advantage of his offensive prowess and his ability to pass in the post.
- Vucevic believes he should be the starting center, but hasn’t been promised anything yet, and acknowledges that the newly-signed Biyombo is making a few million dollars more per year than him. “Do I wish I were a free agent now?” Vucevic said, referring to new contracts signed by Biyombo and others. “Yes. But I can’t do anything about it. I’m happy guys are getting paid, and in the normal world, it’s still a lot of money. I mean, I’ll never spend all that money.”
- Victor Oladipo, traded by Orlando to the Thunder in the Ibaka deal, is seeking a maximum-salary contract extension for now, sources tell Lowe. That asking price likely played a role in the Magic‘s decision to move him, if the club was unwilling to go that high to lock him up.
- Before signing Biyombo, the Magic were “sniffing around” the possibility of signing Joakim Noah at around the same price, according to Lowe. The two veteran bigs ultimately received similar deals, and will both count for $17MM against the cap in year one.
- As an aside in his story on the Magic, Lowe also provides an update on the Sixers, reporting that most of Sam Hinkie‘s old regime – including his “handpicked analytics crew” – is expected to be gone from Philadelphia by the end of August.
And-Ones: Stoudemire, Calathes, Quarterman
Amar’e Stoudemire, who announced his retirement earlier today, wanted to sign with the Suns and play one more season, but Phoenix had no interest, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 relays (via Twitter). The scribe also speculates this snub could be the reason the forward chose to retire as a Knick despite having his best seasons in a Suns uniform.
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Kings are attempting to lure point guard Nick Calathes back to the U.S. for next season, international journalist David Pick reports (via Twitter). Calathes, who is under contract from the Greek club Panathinaikos, last played in the NBA during the 2014/15 campaign and is an unrestricted free agent as a result of the Grizzlies withdrawing their qualifying offer to him.
- Tim Quarterman‘s two-year, minimum salary deal with the Trail Blazers includes a partial guarantee of $75K for the first year, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
- In order to create the necessary cap space to sign Alex Abrines, the Thunder renounced their Early Bird rights to former player Derek Fisher, salary cap expert Albert Nahmad tweets.
- Ben Leibowitz of The Mercury News examined some of the most team-friendly player contracts in the NBA.
Salary Cap Snapshot: Atlanta Hawks
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 and updated as new financial data is reported. These posts will be located on the sidebar 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 Hawks’ team page accessible here.
Here’s a breakdown of where the Hawks currently stand financially:
Guaranteed Salary
- Dwight Howard — $23,180,275
- Paul Millsap — $20,072,033
- Kent Bazemore — $15,730,338
- Ersan Ilyasova —$8,400,000
- Mike Dunleavy — $4,837,500
- Kris Humphries — $4,000,000
- Thabo Sefolosha — $3,850,000
- Dennis Schröder — $2,708,582
- Malcolm Delaney — $2,500,000
- Taurean Prince — $2,318,280
- Tim Hardaway Jr. — $2,281,605
- DeAndre’ Bembry — $1,499,760
- Mike Muscala — $1,015,696
- Edy Tavares — $1,000,000 [Waived by team]
- Jarrett Jack — $980,431 [Waived by team]
- Ryan Kelly — $418,228 [Waived by team]
- Ryan Kelly — $286,785
- Jose Calderon — $247,991 [Actual salary — $392,478]
- Lamar Patterson — $246,956 [Waived by team]
- Gary Neal — $57,672 [10-day contract (Jan 18); actual salary — $72,193]
- Lamar Patterson — $51,449 [10-day contract (Jan 29)]
- Lamar Patterson — $51,449 [10-day contract (Feb 8)]
- Matt Costello — $50,000 [Waived by team]
- Lamar Patterson — $25,725 [Waived by team]
Total Guaranteed Salary= $95,563,799
Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $1.15MM ($650K to Nuggets in Mo Williams trade. $500K to Suns in Mike Scott trade.) [Amount Remaining $2.35MM]
Cash Received Via Trade: $750K from Cavaliers in Kyle Korver trade [Amount Remaining $2.75MM]
Payroll Exceptions Available
- Trade Exception: $3,333,334 (Mike Scott trade) — Expires on 2/23/18
- Trade Exception: $2,194,500 (Mo Williams trade) — Expires on 1/18/18
- Room Exception: $398,000 remaining [Used $2,500,000 to sign Malcolm Delaney]
Total Projected Payroll: $95,563,799
Salary Cap: $94,143,000
Estimated Available Cap Space: -$1,420,799
Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000
Amount Below Luxury Tax: $17,723,201
Last Updated: 4/9/17
The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.
Eastern Notes: Bargnani, Micic, Sloan, Porter
Former fixture on the injury reports of both the Knicks and the Nets, Andrea Bargnani, has inked a deal to play overseas in Spain with Baskonia, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando reports (Twitter link). The agreement is for two years and contains opt outs for both sides, the report notes. Bargnani also reportedly drew interest from Turkey’s Darussafaka Dogus, who are now being coached by David Blatt. The 30-year-old made 46 appearances for Brooklyn last season and averaged 6.6 points and 2.1 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per outing.
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Sixers draft-and-stash pick Vasilije Micic has signed a one-year deal with Tofas Bursa to play overseas in Turkey, Carchia also reports (on Twitter). The 22-year-old point guard was the No. 52 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.
- Another former Nets player is headed overseas, with Donald Sloan inking a one-year deal worth approximately $2.5MM-$2.8MM with Guangdong of The Chinese Basketball Association, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets. Sloan will have the opportunity to sign with an NBA club once the Chinese season concludes in late March/early April of 2017.
- The Wizards aren’t expected to ink forward Otto Porter to an extension this fall, preferring instead to see how he develops this season before committing to him for the long-term, J. Michael of CSNMid-Atlantic.com writes.
- Former NBA player Eric Maynor, who missed the entire 2015/16 campaign with a torn ACL, has signed with the Italian club Varese, international journalist David Pick relays (via Twitter). Maynor last appeared in the NBA during the 2013/14 season when he split time between the Sixers and the Wizards.
- The Celtics remain a team on the rise, with a deep roster and talented coach in Brad Stevens, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes, noting that the future is bright in Beantown in his look at the strengths of the team.
Hornets Sign Treveon Graham
The Hornets have signed unrestricted free agent Treveon Graham, the team announced. The length and terms of the arrangement were not relayed, though it is most likely a minimum salary deal with little or no guaranteed money.
“We were impressed by Treveon’s play last season in the D-League and followed him closely during his four-year career at VCU,” said GM Rich Cho. “We are excited to add someone with Treveon’s ability on both sides of the ball to our training camp roster.”
Graham appeared in 46 games for the Idaho Stampede in the NBA D-League during the 2015/16 season, averaging 15.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 30.4 minutes per contest. The swingman participated in summer league ball this offseason with the Jazz in Las Vegas and with the Magic in Orlando, earning 2016 All-Southwest Airlines Orlando Pro Summer League honors along the way.
Blazers To Re-Sign Maurice Harkless
Restricted free agent Maurice Harkless has agreed to a four-year, $40MM deal to re-sign with the Trail Blazers, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports. The pact will be fully guaranteed with no options and it could reach $42MM with incentives, Charania adds.
Several teams were reportedly interested in Harkless early in the free agent process, including the Wizards, Pistons, Lakers, Mavericks and Jazz. But instead he’ll return to Portland where he emerged as a valuable rotation player on an up-and-coming Blazers team after being acquired from the Magic via trade last summer.
Harkless appeared in 78 games for Portland last season, including 14 tip-offs as a starter. He averaged 6.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 18.7 minutes per outing, while shooting .474/.279/.622 from the field.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Amar’e Stoudemire Announces Retirement
Amar’e Stoudemire has decided to call it a career, announcing his retirement today after signing a ceremonial contract with the Knicks, the team announced in a press release (Twitter link).
“I want to thank Mr. Dolan, Phil [Jackson] and Steve [Mills] for signing me so that I can officially retire as a New York Knick,” Stoudemire said in a statement. “I came to New York in 2010 to help revitalize this franchise and we did just that. Carmelo [Anthony], Phil and Steve have continued this quest, and with this year’s acquisitions, the team looks playoff-bound once again. Although my career has taken me to other places around the country, my heart has always remained in the Big Apple. Once a Knick, Always a Knick.”
The 33-year-old was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, entering the league fresh out of high school. He appeared in 846 regular season games in his career, averaging 18.9 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 blocks per contest and shooting .537/.236/.761 from the field. Stoudemire likely expected to play more than he did with Miami in 2015/16, appearing in just 52 games and logging 5.8 points and 4.3 rebounds in 14.7 minutes per outing on the campaign.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Wizards Sign Bradley Beal To Five-Year Deal
JULY 26, 2:15pm: The Wizards have finally made it official with Beal after using up the rest of their cap room, announcing today that they’ve re-signed their standout guard.
“Bradley has proven himself as one of the top young shooting guards in the league, and we feel that he has the potential to rise to an elite level as he enters the prime of his career as one of the cornerstones of our team,” president Ernie Grunfeld said in a statement. “He is an outstanding member of the community and a great example of the type of player and person we want to represent our franchise.”
JULY 1, 9:46am: The two sides have agreed to a five-year, maximum salary contract, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com relays (on Twitter).
JUNE 30, 11:24pm: The Wizards are close to reaching the first major free agent agreement of 2016, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, who reports that Washington is nearing a five-year, maximum-salary deal for Bradley Beal (Twitter link).
While The Vertical pegs the value of the five-year contract at $128MM, the exact total won’t be known until the NBA announces the salary cap amount for 2016/17, which won’t happen until next week. Based on a $94MM salary cap, a five-year max deal for Beal would be worth about $126.5MM. Either way, it would be a huge payday for the former third overall pick.
Beal, who turned 23 on Tuesday, is a talented scorer when healthy, averaging a career-high 17.4 points per game on 44.9% shooting in 2015/16. However, he also established a new career low in games played this past season, appearing in just 55 contests. The former third overall pick has never played more than 73 games in a season, due to injuries.
Still, the Wizards’ max offer to Beal comes as no surprise, as a report earlier in the offseason indicated the team would put such an offer on the table when free agency began. Beal’s cap hold is only worth about $14MM, so Washington figures to hold off on finalizing his new contract — if the team finds other uses for its cap room, it can make those moves first, then go over the cap to lock up Beal.