Sixers Sign Amir Johnson
JULY 8, 6:57pm: Johnson’s signing is official, the Sixers announced in an email.
JULY 1, 6:25pm: The Sixers and Celtics discussed a sign-and-trade involving Jahlil Okafor for Johnson, but the deal never materialized, Wojnarowski said on ESPN’s televised coverage of free agency.
5:09pm: Amir Johnson will join the Sixers on a one-year, $11MM deal contract, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com.
The 11-year veteran started 77 games for the Celtics this season, averaging 6.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per night. He made $12MM this year in the final season of a two-year contract.
There had been rumors that the Celtics were interested in a sign-and-trade with the Sixers involving Johnson, but this appears to be a straight free-agent signing.
The Bulls, Raptors and Rockets also expressed interest in Johnson, and all three teams had meetings with him scheduled for today.
J.J. Redick Signs One-Year Deal With Sixers
JULY 8, 6:55pm: Redick’s signing is official, according to an email from the Sixers.
JULY 1, 3:11pm: The Sixers and veteran sharpshooter J.J. Redick have reached an agreement on a one-year deal, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. While the contract will be a short one, Redick will do well on the annual salary — the deal will be worth $23MM, per Wojnarowski. The Timberwolves and Nets were also reportedly contenders for Redick, and he had expressed interest in joining former Clippers teammate Chris Paul with the Rockets.
Philly was the first team that Redick met with once free agency was underway last night. During ESPN’s live television coverage, Wojnarowski noted that the Sixers wanted to convince Redick to accept a short-term contract, “a one-year deal at a very big number, $20 million-plus, potentially.” It appears the team accomplished its goal, landing one of the best long-range gunners in the league without sacrificing future cap flexibility. Redick’s agent, Greg Lawrence of Wasserman Media Group, and Sixers President of Basketball Operations Bryan Colangelo completed talks on the deal this afternoon, league sources told Woj.
Redick certainly had no shortage of suitors early on, with the Timberwolves one of the more aggressive teams that the guard had interest in joining, per Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press (Twitter link). The unrestricted free agent was willing to consider a multi-year offer from Minnesota for less than the one-year pact he agreed to with Philly, but that notion didn’t gain traction with the Wolves, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets.
It’s worth noting that this agreement was locked down just after Andre Iguodala canceled his meeting with the Sixers. There is certainly a possibility that Philadelphia upped its offer to Redick after being spurned by Iggy, so that the franchise could secure at least one of its top veteran targets this summer. The team still has approximately $27MM in available cap space to pursue other free agents, notes Zach Lowe of ESPN (Twitter link).
The 33-year-old was originally selected with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft by the Magic. His career numbers are 11.9 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists through 690 regular season contests. His shooting numbers are a stellar .447/.415/.888. Last season he appeared in 78 contests for the Clippers, averaging 15.0 points and connecting on 44.5% of his shots from beyond the arc.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Sixers Sign Markelle Fultz
Markelle Fultz, the top pick in this year’s draft, has signed his rookie deal with the Sixers, the team announced in a press release.
As the No. 1 selection, Fultz is eligible to make a little more than $7MM in his first season and more than $37.4MM over the four-year contract, as our rookie-scale contract chart shows. Like all rookie contracts, it will have two guaranteed seasons, followed by two team options.
A 6’4″ point guard, Fultz was almost unanimously considered to be the best player in the draft. The Sixers valued him enough to trade their No. 3 choice along with a future first-rounder to get the top pick from Boston.
“Markelle Fultz possesses elite basketball skills, instincts and talent which prompted us to move up to No. 1 and add him to our talented young core of players,” Sixers president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo said. “At only 19 years of age, the sky is the limit for Markelle and we could not be happier to have him join our Sixers family.”
Fultz is expected to challenge for a starting job as a rookie and share primary ball-handling duties with Ben Simmons. As a freshman, Fultz averaged 23.2 points, 5.9 assists and 5.7 rebounds at Washington.
Cameron Oliver Signs With Rockets
JULY 8, 5:38pm: The signing is official, tweets Mark Berman of Fox 26.
JUNE 22, 11:45pm: Undrafted rookie free agent Cameron Oliver has found an NBA home, according to Chris Haynes of ESPN.com, who tweets that Oliver has agreed to a free agent contract with the Rockets. Oliver will get a multiyear deal from Houston later in the offseason, per Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link).
Oliver, a sophomore in 2016/17, declared for the draft after a productive season in which he averaged 16.0 PPG, 8.7 RPG, and an impressive 2.6 BPG. The 6’8″ forward ranked as the 55th-best prospect on DraftExpress’ big board, but wasn’t selected on Thursday night.
Once his deal becomes official, Oliver figures to head to training camp with the Rockets as a member of the 20-man roster. It remains to be seen whether he’ll have a legit chance to earn a spot on the team’s regular season roster.
Jordan Bell Signs With Warriors
The Warriors have announced the signing of second-round pick Jordan Bell, tweets Anthony Slater of The San Jose Mercury News. Bell will receive a two-year minimum-salary deal, which was all Golden State could offer because of its cap situation.
A 6’9″ junior out of Oregon, Bell was taken 38th overall by the Bulls and traded to the Warriors for $3.5MM on draft night. That’s a record price for a draft pick and the most that league rules currently allow in a cash deal.
Bell averaged 2.3 blocks per game to go with 11.0 points and 8.7 rebounds for the Ducks this year.
Five Key Stories: 6/30/17 – 7/8/17
Saying it has been a wild week in the Association would certainly be an understatement. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the past week at Hoops Rumors:
Paul George was traded to Oklahoma City. In a shocking trade, the Thunder landed one of the league’s top players from the Pacers in exchange for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. Multiple teams had made trade offers for George that they deemed to be more competitive than the one Indiana ultimately accepted.
Blake Griffin will re-sign with the Clippers. Griffin agreed to re-sign with the Clippers after canceling free agent meetings with the Suns and Nuggets. The muscular power forward’s contract will be for five years and a maximum salary. This places the overall value of the deal in the vicinity of $173MM.
Gordon Hayward will sign with Boston. The rising star small forward made his announcement in a piece for The Players’ Tribune. Hayward will receive a four-year maximum salary contract from the Celtics with a player option on the final year. The Jazz were hoping to retain Hayward, while the Heat also engaged the free agent.
The Raptors have re-signed Kyle Lowry. The new deal is worth three years and $100MM and includes incentives. The veteran point guard’s contract comes in at slightly less than a maximum salary deal. Like Hayward, Lowry made his announcement to rejoin the Raptors in a piece for The Players’ Tribune.
Paul Millsap has reached a deal with the Nuggets. The agreement will be for three years and $90MM, with the third year being a team option. Prior to committing to join the Nuggets, Millsap met with the Kings and Suns. According to the star power forward, the Hawks never made him a formal offer.
Ten More Stories
- Kevin Durant agreed to re-sign with the Warriors for two years and just $53MM, so the team could re-sign key players. Stephen Curry will sign a five-year, $201MM supermax deal to remain with the team.
- Danilo Gallinari was traded to the Clippers as part of a three-way deal. In the trade, Jamal Crawford was dealt to the Hawks, then subsequently bought out.
- The 76ers and J.J. Redick have agreed to a one-year deal worth a whopping $23MM.
- The Raptors have re-signed Serge Ibaka to a three-year deal worth $65MM.
- The Warriors will re-sign Andre Iguodala to a three-year, $48MM contract.
- The Timberwolves will sign Jeff Teague to a three-year deal worth $57MM.
- The Pelicans re-signed Jrue Holiday to a massive five-year, $126MM contract.
- The Kings and George Hill have agreed to a three-year deal worth $57MM.
- The Mavericks re-signed Dirk Nowitzki for two years and $10MM.
- The Celtics finalized a trade that sent Avery Bradley and a 2019 second-round pick to the Pistons for Marcus Morris.
Rockets Sign James Harden To Designated Veteran Extension
James Harden and the Rockets have finalized a contract extension that will keep him under contract through the 2022/23 season, the team announced today in a press release. Brian Windhorst and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (link via Woj’s Twitter) first reported that Harden and the Rockets were making progress toward a new deal that will be the biggest in NBA history.
The new contract will begin in 2019/20, replacing Harden’s player option, and will add four years to the guaranteed two years on his current deal.
“Houston is home for me,” Harden said in a statement. “Mr. [Leslie] Alexander has shown he is fully committed to winning and my teammates and I are going to keep putting in the work to get better and compete for the title.”
Harden just signed an extension with the Rockets last summer, and typically wouldn’t be permitted to sign another new deal so soon. However, he and Russell Westbrook are eligible for extensions this summer, having been grandfathered in under the Designated Veteran Extension rules in the new CBA. The DVE allows players to sign for super-max deals worth 35% of the cap when they are named to the league’s All-NBA team and/or meet other criteria.
The exact terms of Harden’s extension will depend on where the NBA’s salary cap lands in 2019/20, but based on current projections, it would be worth more than $169MM over the four new years, running through 2022/23. Combined with his next two seasons, he’d be on track to earn approximately $228MM over the next six years.
Harden, who turns 28 next month, is coming off an MVP-caliber season in which he set new career highs in PPG (29.1), APG (11.2), and RPG (8.1). He’ll join forces in 2017/18 with fellow All-Star Chris Paul, who was acquired by Houston last month in a blockbuster trade with the Clippers.
Westbrook (Thunder) and John Wall (Wizards) are the other stars expected to receive Designated Veteran Extension offers this offseason, if they haven’t already. Stephen Curry (Warriors) agreed to the first of those deals last weekend.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Knicks Expected To Renew Carmelo Anthony Talks
After signing Tim Hardaway Jr. to a lucrative new deal, the Knicks are expected to renew their willingness to collaborate with the Rockets on trade scenarios to unload Carmelo Anthony, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The Rockets have been persistent in their pursuit of Anthony, who remains willing to waive his no-trade clause to join Chris Paul and James Harden in Clutch City, per Wojnarowski. ESPN’s report, citing league sources, notes that the Knicks “do not imagine a scenario where Hardaway Jr. is sharing the floor with Anthony to start the season.” The Knicks now have $97.7MM in committed salary for the 2017/18 season with 10 guaranteed contracts, per Bobby Marks of ESPN, so moving Anthony would be one path to regaining a little financial flexibility.
Sam Amico of Amico Hoops provides further context as to what factors figure to be holding up an Anthony trade between the Knicks and either the Rockets or Cavaliers. Since Anthony possesses a no-trade clause, the Knicks’ options may be limited to these two teams.
Amico writes that the Knicks do not particularly want to take back Rockets forward Ryan Anderson and the Cavs aren’t eager to part with forward Kevin Love in a deal for Carmelo. The piece also states that Cleveland has floated Turkish draft-and-stash prospect Cedi Osman to entice New York, but Osman would come attached to multiple unappealing contracts. Amico suggests that the Cavs are content to play the waiting game in hopes that the Knicks cannot reach a deal with the Rockets and resort to buying Melo out.
Hawks Don’t Match Knicks’ Hardaway Offer Sheet
2:08pm: Tim Hardaway Jr. is now officially a Knick, as Hardaway’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, says that Atlanta has officially not matched, per Marc Berman of The New York Post (link via Twitter).
1:45pm: The Hawks have informed the Knicks that they will not match New York’s offer sheet on Tim Hardaway Jr., reports Shams Charania of The Vertical (link via Twitter).
11:27am: The Hawks don’t intend to match the Knicks’ four-year, $71MM offer sheet for Tim Hardaway Jr., reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. As Wojnarowski notes, the formal deadline for Atlanta to make its decision is still hours away, but Hardaway will ultimately be a Knick — again.
[RELATED: Knicks sign Tim Hardaway Jr. to offer sheet]
Hardaway, 25, enjoyed the best season of his NBA career in 2016/17, averaging 14.5 PPG, 2.8 RPG, and 2.3 APG in 79 games (30 starts) for the Hawks. He also posted a career-best FG% (.455) and had a .357 3PT%, and was even better after the All-Star break, with 17.5 PPG in 25 contests.
While Hardaway’s production was solid and he still has room to improve, the Knicks’ $71MM offer – which came at a time when most teams didn’t have much cap room available – was a surprise. The Hawks were reportedly willing to do a deal in the four-year, $48MM range for Hardaway, but decided not to match a Knicks offer that would hamper their cap flexibility more significantly. Atlanta will have room left over to pursue another RFA or accommodate another salary dump.
In addition to averaging nearly $18MM annually, the Knicks’ deal with Hardaway includes a fourth-year player option and a 15% trade bonus, according to previous reports. The agreement also calls for the shooting guard to receive 50% of his annual salary by October 1 each year.
With Hardaway in the mix, the Knicks will have little – if any – cap room available to spend on other free agents, though the club will still have its $4.3MM room exception. New York also had to renounce its rights to Derrick Rose, among other free agents, in order to clear the space necessary for Hardaway. That all but rules out the possibility of a reunion between Rose and the Knicks, since the team no longer holds his Bird rights.
Hardaway was originally drafted by New York with the No. 24 pick in the 2013 draft. The Knicks traded him to the Hawks in a 2015 draft night trade that netted them Jerian Grant. Grant was traded to the Bulls during the following offseason as part of a package that brought Rose to the Big Apple.
As Marc Berman of the New York Post wrote earlier today, the Knicks’ brain trust views Hardaway as part of a long-term ‘core four’ for the franchise, alongside Kristaps Porzingis, Willy Hernangomez, and Frank Ntilikina.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
C.J. Miles On Nets’ Radar
Veteran swingman C.J. Miles is on the Nets’ radar, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link). For now, the Nets remain in a holding pattern while they wait for the Wizards to match the offer sheet they gave to Otto Porter.
The Porter situation is somewhat tricky, as the Wizards plan to match, but they may do so only after tying up Brooklyn’s cap space for as long as possible. This means that Porter’s offer sheet could stay on the Nets’ salary cap through July 12 at the latest. Since Porter’s offer sheet is substantial at $106.5MM over four years, the Nets cannot make any significant free agent offers until the Wizards match. As such, Miles would have to be willing to wait a little longer.
After a flurry of free agent signings around the NBA, Miles is suddenly one of the top players available. The 30-year-old free agent averaged 10.7 points per his 76 games with the Pacers last season, starting 29 of them. Miles boasted a strong slash line of .434/.413/.903, making him an appealing target for teams in need of shooting help.
Another free agent the Nets will wait to have on is Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, whose rights the Pistons renounced on Friday. KCP is very likely the top unrestricted free agent available and the Nets are in the market for a wing.