ISE Agency Fires Dan Fegan, Hires Kevin Johnson
Independent Sports & Entertainment, an agency that represents a number of NBA players, has terminated the contract of veteran NBA agent Dan Fegan, according to a press release (Twitter link via Sam Amick of USA Today). Fegan, who had been the president of ISE basketball, will be replaced in the interim by chief marketing officer Chris Grancio.
In addition to letting go of Fegan, the agency has also hired former NBA player and Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, who will serve as a vice chairman for the company. While Johnson’s history in politics and in the NBA should make him a good fit for such a role, it’s a somewhat surprising hire, given his history — Johnson has been accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, and has been linked to political scandal.
As ISE’s website shows, the agency represents many well-paid NBA veterans, including DeMarcus Cousins, Chandler Parsons, and Ricky Rubio. Several younger players who will be in line for bigger paydays in the coming years, including Jusuf Nurkic, Rodney Hood, and Cameron Payne, are also represented by the agency.
Many of those players are Fegan clients, so it will be interesting to see whether they stick with ISE, or follow Fegan elsewhere. The veteran agent has been fired by John Wall, DeAndre Jordan, and Dwight Howard in recent years, and according to ESPN’s Darren Rovell (via Twitter), ISE says it has cause for Fegan’s termination. So it’s possible his clients will simply stay with the agency and work with someone else in the company.
This will be a situation worth keeping an eye on as those ISE clients approach free agency — Cousins’ situation, in particular, should be an interesting one. The Pelicans big man is eligible to hit the open market in 2018.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 3/10/17
Here are Friday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- Having signed him to a 10-day contract, the Mavericks have now recalled Manny Harris from their D-League affiliate, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. Harris, assigned to the Texas Legends for one more game after signing with the Mavs on Thursday, put up 31 points last month in a loss to Northern Arizona.
- The Pistons have sent Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije back to their D-League affiliate for the weekend, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. The Grand Rapids Drive will play games in Erie tonight and tomorrow.
- Rookie guard Malik Beasley is headed to the Sioux Falls Skyforce on an assignment, the Nuggets announced today in a press release. Denver doesn’t have its own D-League squad yet, so this is Beasley’s fifth assignment to Miami’s affiliate.
- The Lakers have assigned Ivica Zubac to the D-League for tonight’s game against Reno, per Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News (Twitter link). Zubac has had a more regular role for the Lakers over the last month, and will get a chance to suit up for the D-Fenders today with the NBA club not in action until Sunday.
- The Knicks have assigned Maurice Ndour to Westchester, the team announced today (via Twitter). The rookie forward has averaged 14.3 PPG and 6.7 RPG in 12 D-League games this season.
- The Grizzlies have assigned Deyonta Davis to the Iowa Energy, the team announced in a press release. The No. 31 overall pick in the 2016 draft, Davis has been used sparingly in David Fizdale’s rotation; accumulating four DNP’s over Memphis’ last seven games. Davis has averaged 8.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks over five games with the Energy in 2016/17.
Omri Casspi Drawing Interest From Playoff Teams
After being traded from Sacramento to New Orleans as part of last month’s DeMarcus Cousins blockbuster, Omri Casspi endured some bad luck, breaking his thumb in his first game with his new team. However, having been waived by the Pelicans, Casspi is now drawing interest from playoff teams and could make an impact down the stretch, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links).
League sources tell Stein that Casspi, who was initially ruled out for four to six weeks, is ahead of schedule in his recovery from his thumb injury, and may only be about a week from receiving medical clearance. Although Stein doesn’t specify which teams might be eyeing Casspi, he notes that “multiple” clubs are in pursuit.
Casspi wasn’t just a throw-in for New Orleans in the Cousins trade — if he had stayed healthy, he could have provided the Pelicans with some much-needed outside shooting. The club was somewhat short-handed in the backcourt after acquiring Cousins though, and needed to free up Casspi’s roster spot to create room for a healthy player.
Although his role in Sacramento had been dialed back significantly this season after he posted a career-high 11.8 PPG in 2015/16, Casspi continued to be an effective shooter for the Kings this season. After making more than 40% of his three-point attempts in each of the last two years, Casspi has a 39.4% success rate from three-point range this season.
No teams currently in playoff position have open roster spots, but the Cavaliers will soon free one up by waiving Andrew Bogut, and the Rockets’ 15th player – Troy Williams – is on a 10-day contract. Any other current playoff team would have to cut someone in order to add Casspi, who will be postseason-eligible.
Markelle Fultz To Enter 2017 NBA Draft
Washington Huskies star Markelle Fultz announced today that he will forgo his remaining college eligibility and will enter the 2017 NBA draft. Fultz confirmed his decision in a video posted to his Twitter account.
“After sitting down with my mom and the coaching staff, I’ve made the decision to enter the NBA draft,” Fultz said. “Although the season hasn’t gone as planned, it’s really truly been a blessing to be here… I learned plenty of life lessons on and off the court, especially from Coach [Lorenzo Romar] and his coaching staff.”
The Huskies’ season came to an end on Wednesday following a loss to USC in the PAC-12 tournament. Although Washington finished the year with a record of 9-22, Fultz emerged as the odds-on favorite to be selected first overall in this June’s draft, making his announcement today unsurprising.
In 25 games for Washington this season, Fultz led the team in scoring with 23.2 PPG. He also filled up the stat sheet in several other categories, averaging 5.9 APG, 5.7 RPG, 1.6 SPG, 1.2 BPG, and 2.1 3PT.
“There isn’t much that he can’t do well from passing to shot blocking,” Romar told Evan Daniels of Scout. “His love and passion for the game I believe sets him apart. [He’s a] great teammate and very unselfish.”
And-Ones: Cook, Ferrell, Fines, Tanking
Quinn Cook has rejoined the D-League’s Canton Charge after his 10-day contract in Dallas expired, but it may just be a matter of time before he’s back with an NBA team, writes Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net. “He proved he can play in this league,” one source told Amico. “Now he just needs to find the right opportunity.”
Cook could find inspiration from Yogi Ferrell, who was briefly Cook’s teammate in Dallas. The undrafted point guard turned a 10-day contract into a multiyear contract with the Mavericks after being cut by the Nets. As Ferrell explains, via Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News, things didn’t work out for him in Brooklyn, but it only takes one team “to fall in love with you” (Twitter links). “Brooklyn didn’t like me, so they got rid of me,” Ferrell said. “I came to Dallas and they love me. So I’m glad it worked out here.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the league:
- The NBA announced on Thursday that Suns forward Jared Dudley and Wizards guard Brandon Jennings were fined $35K apiece for their actions during an altercation that took place in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s game between the two teams.
- ESPN’s Chad Ford (Insider link) provides a top-10 list of sorts, assigning teams a “Tank Rank” that looks a little different in some cases than their current spots in the 2016/17 Reverse Standings. For instance, even though the Suns currently have the league’s third-worst record, it’s the Sixers that Ford places third in the tanking rankings, suggesting that Phoenix is playing well and could pass Philadelphia in the standings in the coming weeks.
- Deron Williams (Cavaliers), Matt Barnes (Warriors), Brandon Jennings (Wizards) are among the recently-signed veteran free agents who could end up making an impact in the postseason, writes James Blancarte of Basketball Insiders.
Rockets Sign Troy Williams To 10-Day Contract
MARCH 10: Houston has made it official with Williams, as GM Daryl Morey tweeted out a welcome today to the newest Rocket. Morey added in a follow-up tweet that Williams has been sent to the D-League to play for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers tonight.
MARCH 9: The Rockets intend to fill their open 15th roster spot by signing D-League swingman Troy Williams to a 10-day contract, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Houston’s next game is on Friday in Chicago, so the Rockets may wait until tomorrow to make things official with Williams.
An undrafted free agent out of Indiana, Williams caught on with the Grizzlies last summer and actually earned a regular season roster spot with the club. The 22-year-old appeared in 24 games for Memphis earlier this season, starting 13 of them and averaging 5.3 PPG. However, he was cut by the Grizzlies at the end of January in order to make room for Toney Douglas.
In 22 D-League games for the Iowa Energy this season, Williams has averaged 13.1 PPG and 4.1 RPG, with a .459/.330/.696 shooting line.
The Rockets opened up two spots on their roster by trading K.J. McDaniels and waiving Marcelo Huertas last month. The team filled one of those openings by signing Isaiah Taylor to a multiyear contract, and will now have a full roster again once Williams’ deal is finalized.
Rudy Gay Undecided On 2017/18 Player Option
Way back in September, Rudy Gay informed the Kings that he intended to opt out of his contract in the summer of 2017, and it sounded at the time like Gay would likely be leaving Sacramento. However, having gone down with an Achilles injury in January, Gay is now uncertain about whether or not he’ll turn down his 2017/18 player option as planned, writes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.
According to Jones, Gay acknowledged that his plans could change due to the Achilles injury. The veteran forward expects to be healthy in time to start the 2017/18 season, but he’ll rely on his agent’s assessment of the market and an evaluation of his health before he makes a decision on his player option, which is worth about $14.26MM.
“I’m looking at where I feel most comfortable, where I can showcase my talents and win,” Gay said, adding that he expects to return better and stronger than before. “Wherever I think I can do that at, that’s the best place for me.”
As I noted earlier today, Gay’s decision on his 2017/18 option will come well before most other veterans with player options on their contracts have to make their decisions. Gay will reportedly have to make a call on his option within five days of the Kings’ last game of the season.
Throughout the season, there have been reports suggesting that Kings management remains optimistic about retaining Gay, despite his plans to opt out. However, that was back when the team was still talking about locking up DeMarcus Cousins for the long term. It’s not clear now whether the Kings still view Gay as a key part of their future plans.
Early Decision Dates For 2017/18 Player Options
By default, NBA players who hold player options for the following season generally don’t have to make an official decision on those options until June 29, just two days before the new league year gets underway. However, that date can be altered on a contract-by-contract basis, which is why many of the 25 players who have player options or early termination options for 2017/18 will be making their decisions prior to June 29 this year.
Several of those player option decisions are due either on a specific date or a certain number of days following a team’s final regular season game. For instance, Rudy Gay‘s player option calls for him to make a decision either on June 10, or five days after the Kings’ last game — whichever comes later. Kyle Lowry, meanwhile, has to make a decision on his player option by June 19, or within seven days of the Raptors’ last game — whichever comes earlier.
Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders has done an excellent job keeping tabs on these early player option decision dates, so we’ll use his data to break down the schedule of upcoming decision dates. If a player who holds a 2017/18 player option isn’t listed here, that means his decision is due on June 29, or his decision date hasn’t been reported.
Here’s the list of early decision dates for 2017/18 player options:
Potentially dependent on when team’s season ends:
- June 10 (or five days after team’s last game): Rudy Gay (Kings)
- June 19 (or seven days after team’s last game): Kyle Lowry (Raptors)
- June 20 (or two days after team’s last game): Aron Baynes (Pistons), C.J. Miles (Pacers)
The rest:
- June 21: Dante Cunningham (Pelicans), Nick Young (Lakers)
- June 22: Greg Monroe (Bucks)
- June 23: Paul Millsap (Hawks)
- June 24: Langston Galloway (Kings)
- June 26: Spencer Hawes (Bucks)
- June 28: Blake Griffin (Clippers) (early termination option)
For details on how much these player options are worth, check out our list of 2017 free agents by position or by team.
Following Specific Players On Hoops Rumors
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Every player we’ve written about has his own rumors page. You can find any player by using our search box (located in the right sidebar); by clicking his tag at the bottom of a post in which he’s discussed; or, by simply typing his name in your address bar after hoopsrumors.com, substituting dashes for spaces. For example, Kevin Durant’s page is hoopsrumors.com/kevin-durant.
You can also set up an RSS feed for any of our player pages by adding /feed to the end of the page URL, like this: hoopsrumors.com/jimmy-butler/feed. Entering that URL into the reader of your choice will enable you to get updates whenever we write about Jimmy Butler. It works for teams, too. If you’re a Bulls fan, you can enter hoopsrumors.com/chicago-bulls/feed into your reader and stay on top of all the latest from Chicago.
In addition to players and teams, there are a number of other subjects you can track by clicking on the tags that we use at the bottom of posts. For example, you can keep tabs on our 2017 draft stories right here. Items about the NBA D-League can be found on this page. You can simply scan our top stories here. Again, you can set up a feed with any of these pages by adding /feed to the end of the URL.
Sixers Notes: Okafor, Splitter, Brown, Silver
Despite a lingering knee injury, Jahlil Okafor hasn’t considered shutting down his season, Jessica Camerato of CSN reports (Twitter link). Okafor’s been experiencing soreness ever since a March 2016 surgery, but the former No. 3 overall pick will be relied upon in Nerlens Noel‘s and Joel Embiid‘s absence.
“We just rest and do treatment whenever we think is necessary, and just go from there.” Okafor told Keith Pompey of Philly.com.
More from Philadelphia…
- Tiago Splitter could spend part of his rehabilitation process with the Delaware 87ers, as Keith Pompey relayed in the article linked above. Splitter, who has been sidelined with a calf injury all season, was acquired in exchange for Ersan Ilyasova at the trade deadline. “We are discussing his return to play. Some of it could look like involvement with D-League stuff, practicing, maybe playing,” coach Brett Brown said. “It’s a vehicle to return to play. He hasn’t played basketball for a year. I think the path to return to play can take different looks. That’s one of them that I just suggested.”
- Commissioner Adam Silver told Brian Seltzer of NBA.com that he is excited about the Sixers’ progress this season. “It’s fun coming to games here. Just as I was walking through the tunnel pre-game, I ran into Allen Iverson and Julius Erving. [It’s] nice to see that they’re back, they’re believers, and I am, too,” Silver said. “This is a great sports town. Understandably, the fans are very demanding here. They expect to see a great product on the floor. I know the ownership is committed to that. It takes time to build a great franchise.”
- The Sixers have shifted their focus toward acquiring a top lottery draft pick, Keith Pompey of Philly.com writes. After shipping out Ilyasova and Noel at the deadline, they’ve recently given playing opportunities to Justin Harper and Shawn Long. “The realities of our roster are very clear to everybody. There’s no mystery to what our roster is right now,” coach Brown said. “It’s going to take some extra effort and extra luck in finding ways to compete.”