2019 NBA Offseason Salary Cap Digest: Los Angeles Clippers
After trading away Chris Paul in the summer of 2017 and Blake Griffin at the 2018 trade deadline, the Clippers moved leading scorer Tobias Harris at 2019’s deadline. Somehow, the club looked better than ever after the exodus of its stars, posting a 18-8 record down the stretch and securing a playoff spot. While Los Angeles’ playoff run was brief, the team notched a pair of impressive victories over the Warriors before being eliminated, and now heads into the offseason well positioned to land a star.
Here’s where things currently stand for the Clippers financially, as we continue our Offseason Salary Cap Digest series for 2019:
Guaranteed Salary
- Danilo Gallinari ($22,615,559)
- Lou Williams ($8,000,000)
- Montrezl Harrell ($6,000,000)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ($3,952,920)
- Jerome Robinson ($3,567,720)
- Landry Shamet ($1,995,120)
- Total: $46,131,319
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Sindarius Thornwell ($1,618,520) 1
- Tyrone Wallace ($1,588,231) 2
- Total: $3,206,751
Restricted Free Agents
- Rodney McGruder ($3,021,354 qualifying offer / $3,021,354 cap hold): Bird rights
- Ivica Zubac ($1,931,189 qualifying offer / $1,931,189 cap hold): Bird rights
- Johnathan Motley (two-way qualifying offer / $1,443,842 cap hold): Early Bird rights 3
- Total: $6,396,385
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Wilson Chandler ($19,200,843): Bird rights
- Garrett Temple ($15,200,000): Bird rights
- JaMychal Green ($14,566,667): Bird rights
- Patrick Beverley ($9,551,353): Bird rights
- Angel Delgado ($1,443,842): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $59,962,705
Projected Salary Cap: $109,000,000
Projected Tax Line: $132,000,000
Offseason Cap Outlook
- Realistic cap room projection: $56.5MM
- This projection assumes that the Clippers retain their six players on guaranteed contracts and keep Zubac’s cap hold on their books. Hanging onto any other players would reduce this figure.
- On the other hand, if the Clips were able to trade Gallinari without taking back any salary, they could keep Zubac and their other five guaranteed contracts and increase their cap projection to $78.2MM. That would be more than enough space for two maximum salary free agents.
Cap Exceptions Available
- Room exception: $4,760,000 4
Footnotes
- Thornwell’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after June 20.
- Wallace’s salary becomes partially guaranteed ($300K) after September 12.
- The salaries for two-way players don’t count against a team’s cap, but their cap holds do during the offseason.
- This is a projected value. In the unlikely event the Clippers remain over the cap, they’d instead have access to the full mid-level exception ($9,246,000), the bi-annual exception ($3,619,000), and three trade exceptions (their most valuable TPE is worth $9,800,000 and expires on 2/6/20).
Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are estimates based on salary cap projections and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders and RealGM was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Grizzlies Interview Jarron Collins For Head Coaching Vacancy
Warriors assistant Jarron Collins is the latest candidate to interview for the vacant head coaching job in Memphis, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.
He is only the second known person to interview for the position, following Jazz assistant Alex Jensen, who met with team officials last week in Memphis. The Grizzlies are also reportedly interested in Lithuania’s Sarunas Jasikevicius, currently the head coach of Zalgiris Kaunas. Memphis has been moving deliberately with its coaching search since dismissing J.B. Bickerstaff after the season ended.
Collins, 40, has been with Golden State for the past five years. He started as a player development coach in 2014/15, then was promoted to assistant coach a year later. Collins spent 10 years as a player with the Jazz, Suns, Clippers and Trail Blazers before retiring at the end of the 2010/11 season.
Keep up to date with all the latest coaching moves with our Head Coaching Search Tracker.
Draft Notes: Hampton, Elite Camp, Celtics, Simonds, Hawks
RJ Hampton has decided to graduate high school early and reclassify to the Class of 2019, he told ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. Hampton is the No. 4 player in ESPN’s top-100 class of early 2020 rankings, explaining his major decision to reclassify to Givony.
“I’ve decided to reclassify to the 2019 class,” Hampton told ESPN. “I am doing this because I feel that from a development standpoint, this is the right move for me at this time in order to play against the highest level of competition possible. I am eager to test myself against older and more physically developed players in order to help improve my weaknesses and prepare me for reaching the ultimate goal of playing in the NBA.”
With his decision, Hampton will enroll for college this summer and be eligible for the 2020 NBA Draft. A 6-foot-5 versatile player at 188 pounds, Hampton is one of the most promising young point guards in high school, now shifting his focus to interested schools such as Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis and Texas Tech, according to ESPN.
“This is a move we’ve been contemplating for some time and we don’t take lightly,” Hampton’s father, Rod, told ESPN. “As someone that played in college as well as professionally in Europe, I know that you can’t skip steps in a player’s development. Thankfully, because of the hard work that RJ has put in in the classroom — achieving a 3.75 GPA and a 1280 SAT — he was able to have this option. This weekend playing against the top players in high school basketball at the Nike EYBL, as well as earlier this month at USA Basketball, my wife, Markita, and I realized that RJ is ready to take the next step and challenge himself by taking the next step in level of competition.”
Here are some other draft-related notes today:
- In speaking with some agents and executives around the NBA, there appears to be some confusion over whether prospects attending the NBA G League Combine are only working out for teams in the G League, according to Givony (Twitter link). The combine is set to include officials from all 30 NBA teams.
- The Celtics brought in several players for a workout last week in preparation for the NBA Draft, as relayed by Sportando. Among the players who attended the workout were Hofstra’s Justin Wright-Foreman, Ole Miss’ Terence Davis , Auburn’s Bryce Brown, St. Bonaventure’s Courtney Stockard and Iowa’s Joe Wieskamp.
- Georgia State’s D’Marcus Simonds sprained his ankle while working out for the Hawks, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. Simonds said he should be fine, according to Vivlamore, and future workouts have already been scheduled with the Cavaliers and Spurs.
- The Hawks will hold a pre-draft workout on Monday, the team announced today. Tennessee center Kyle Alexander, St. Louis forward Javon Bess, Terence Davis, Shaw guard Amir Hinton, Xavier guard Paul Scruggs and Stanford center Josh Sharma are all set to be in attendance.
Pacific Notes: Williams, Johnson, Lue, Lakers, Clippers
The Suns made their final decision by hiring Monty Williams last week, but many new challenges await the veteran NBA coach, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic writes.
Williams, who will stay with the Sixers throughout their playoff run as an assistant, is inheriting a young roster with multiple lottery picks and a great deal of cap space to work with in free agency this summer. Among the greatest challenges with this franchise, however, remains Suns owner Robert Sarver.
In meeting with Williams and Suns general manage James Jones, Sarver promised to give Williams space and create a healthy culture within the franchise, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. However, this isn’t the first time Sarver has made this declaration.
“I’ve been blessed to coach alongside and play for some of the beast coaches in the NBA, and consider it a privilege to once again be a head coach with an excellent organization like the Suns,” Willams said as part of a larger statement about joining Phoenix. “It is a tremendous opportunity with a talented group of players and a loyal fan base. I will be very excited to get to the valley, connect with our team and get to work.”
Having an experienced roster, lack of talent in the Western Conference and the threat of Sarver interfering could cause challenges for Williams, but many around the NBA have expressed confidence in his ability to turn around the Suns.
There’s more out of the Pacific Division tonight:
- Suns guard Tyler Johnson had his 2018/19 season review published on NBA.com last week, outlining his final stats, highlights and more. Johnson was acquired by Phoenix from Miami before February’s trade deadline, being thrown into the young, hungry group more than halfway into the season.“It definitely pushed my comfort zone,” Johnson said. “It’s not something I was used to as far as being vocal. In past years, I had always been with somebody who led by example and come in and be professional and make sure I was getting my work done. Now, I’m worried about other guys and making sure they’re on top of their stuff as well. It definitely opened up by mind to a whole new set of possibilities.”
- The Lakers would theoretically give LeBron James the keys by hiring Tyronn Lue as head coach, Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times writes. James won his third NBA championship playing under Lue with the Cavaliers in 2016, coming back from a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Warriors. The two share a close relationship and have great admiration for one another, a big reason why the Lakers could look to finalize a deal with Lue as early as this week.
- This summer’s free agency period will largely determine the futures of the Clippers and Lakers for years to come, Mark Heisler of the Orange County Register writes. Both franchises could pursue the top players available on the open market, including Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard and Kyrie Irving.
Eastern Notes: Russell, Carter, Magic, Oladipo
Nets All-Star D’Angelo Russell was cited last week after it was discovered he was hiding marijuana while trying to board at a New York airport, but this distraction won’t prevent him and Brooklyn from coming together on a new deal this summer, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes.
“It’s not an issue,” one league source told Lewis. “I’ve had a cell phone ticket that was more [costly].”
Russell, who’s coming off a career season with the Nets, is scheduled to become a restricted free agent on July 1. Brooklyn will likely offer him a lucrative multi-year deal, especially if the team strikes out on recruiting some of the top free-agent players.
Russell won’t be suspended by the NBA for his first-time action, as stated in the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. He’s heading into free agency as one of the most talented backcourt players, coming off a season that saw him average a career-high 21.1 points, seven assists and 1.2 steals in 81 games.
“We got a little lucky: We got him in the right time frame and the point in his maturity,” Nets coach Kenny Atkinson said of Russell on a Bleacher Report podcast last week. “He never expected anything. When we had our first conversation with him, I was authentic with him and honest that you’re going to have to earn it. And I think that was a continuing conversation. I think our communication helped.
“There was nary a text, never a ‘Hey coach, can I talk to you? I’m not happy.’ There was zero of that. I think he knew he had to earn it, take stock of how he was playing, and was honest with himself. … He tells me that all the time: ‘I really learned how to be a pro here.’ ”
There’s more out of the Eastern Conference today:
- Matt John of Basketball Insiders examines potential landing spots for veteran guard Vince Carter, who becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Carter has played for three different teams in the past three seasons, good for eight different teams in his 21-year career. John speculates that Carter could be a good fit on many different clubs, including a potential return in Toronto.
- Sean Deveney of Sporting News outlines the offseason focus for the Magic, including free agency, the draft and more. Orlando has a major decision to make on whether they want to retain All-Star center Nikola Vucevic on a new deal, with the 28-year-old also set to reach free agency in July.
- The Pacers need Victor Oladipo to pace himself in order for them to maximize their potential next season, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star writes. Oladipo suffered a season-ending torn right quad tendon in January and is pushing to get himself ready for next year, though it’s imperative that he doesn’t rush the process and risk suffering a setback. Indiana finished with the fifth-best record in the Eastern Conference at 48-34 this season despite Oladipo only appearing in 36 of those games.
Marcus Smart Upgraded To Questionable For Game 4
Celtics guard Marcus Smart has been upgraded to questionable for Game 4 against Milwaukee this Monday, the team announced on its Twitter feed today.
Smart, who has missed all of Boston’s seven playoff games to date, has been rehabbing from a left oblique tear since early April. He told reporters that he’s hopeful to make his return in Game 4 and responded well to 3-on-3 contact on Saturday, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN.
“Feeling good today,” Smart said after Boston’s practice. “Today was a good day. I was able to participate with the team. … The boxes are being checked.
“We’re taking it one day at a time, but we’re definitely in the right position, right time, progressive phase to where I’m getting really close to coming back here.”
The Celtics have missed Smart’s defensive intensity and energy, going down 2-1 in the series and losing home court advantage after Friday’s defeat. Should Smart not play on Monday, he could still return when the Celtics travel to Milwaukee for Game 5 on Wednesday night.
Smart became a permanent starter in November and was a key cog for the Celtics during the regular season, averaging 8.9 points, four assists and a career-best 1.8 steals per game. He appeared in 80 contests on the year before suffering the injury, which was also a career-high.
Northwest Notes: Donovan, Rosas, Murray
Despite the fact that he’s already spent five seasons at the helm of the Thunder and that his All-Star dynamic duo was just dispatched in five games by the Trail Blazers, head coach Billy Donovan is expected to return to his post in 2019/20.
That patience in an era of scapegoating and quick fixes, Brett Dawson of The Athletic writes, could be attributed to general manager Sam Presti‘s tendency to take a long view on things.
Dawson writes about Donovan’s impact in Oklahoma City over the past few seasons, suggesting that he’s earned the faith of the organization and this is one organization in particular that isn’t afraid to see things through.
There’s more from the Northwest Division:
- Timberwolves CEO Ethan Casson has nothing but high praise for recent franchise hire Gersson Rosas, Chris Hine of the Minnesota Star Tribune writes. Rosas impressed the organization with a detailed vision not only for a generic basketball franchise but for the Timberwolves in particular. Beyond the team’s current roster, Rosas had a deep understanding of the team’s history and marketplace.
- Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic logged a record-breaking 65 minutes played in Denver’s four-overtime loss to the Trail Blazers Friday night. Nuggets head coach Michael Malone told the media afterward that he apologized for giving his center such a heavy work load. Jokic averaged 31.3 minutes per game for Denver this season.
- Despite struggles from the field in his first playoff experience, Nuggets guard Jamal Murray is figuring out the difference between regular and playoff basketball, Sean Keeler of The Denver Post writes.
2019 NBA Offseason Salary Cap Digest: Detroit Pistons
The Pistons‘ first full season with Blake Griffin on the roster and Dwane Casey on the sidelines was a relative success, as the team fought its way back into the postseason after a two-year absence. Of course, a No. 8 seed and a first-round sweep at the hands of the Bucks showed that Detroit still has a ways to go to join the upper echelon of the East, and the club will have limited resources to upgrade its roster this summer.
Here’s where things currently stand for the Pistons financially, as we continue our Offseason Salary Cap Digest series for 2019:
Guaranteed Salary
- Blake Griffin ($34,449,964)
- Andre Drummond ($27,093,019)
- Reggie Jackson ($18,086,956)
- Jon Leuer ($9,508,043)
- Langston Galloway ($7,333,333)
- Josh Smith ($5,331,729) — Waived via stretch provision
- Luke Kennard ($3,827,160)
- Thon Maker ($3,569,643)
- Bruce Brown ($1,416,852)
- Khyri Thomas ($1,416,852)
- Total: $112,033,551
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- Glenn Robinson III ($4,278,750)
- Total: $4,278,750
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk ($1,416,852) 1
- Total: $1,416,852
Restricted Free Agents
- None
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Ish Smith ($11,400,000): Bird rights
- No. 15 overall pick ($3,280,920)
- Wayne Ellington ($2,859,691): Non-Bird rights
- Jose Calderon ($1,618,486): Non-Bird rights
- Jameer Nelson ($1,618,486): Non-Bird rights 2
- Zaza Pachulia ($1,618,486): Non-Bird rights
- Kalin Lucas ($1,443,842): Non-Bird rights
- Isaiah Whitehead ($1,443,842): Non-Bird rights
- Total: $25,283,753
Projected Salary Cap: $109,000,000
Projected Tax Line: $132,000,000
Offseason Cap Outlook
- Realistic cap room projection: $0
- The Pistons would have to make major cost-cutting moves to create cap room, which is unlikely. The good news is that, taking into account nine players on guaranteed salaries and the cap hold for their first-round pick, they’re still about $16.7MM away from the projected tax line, so using the full mid-level exception is viable.
Cap Exceptions Available
- Trade exception: $2,500,000 (expires 2/6/20)
- Trade exception: $1,140,682 (expires 2/7/20)
- Mid-level exception: $9,246,000 3
- Bi-annual exception: $3,619,000 3
Footnotes
- Mykhailiuk’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after July 5.
- Nelson’s cap hold remains on the Pistons’ books because he hasn’t been renounced after going unsigned in 2018/19. He can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
- These are projected values. If the Pistons are at risk of going into tax territory, they may forfeit the bi-annual exception and have to use the taxpayer mid-level exception ($5,711,000) rather than the full mid-level exception.
Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are estimates based on salary cap projections and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders and RealGM was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Bucks Notes: Brogdon, Hill, Horst
Malcolm Brogdon won’t be available for tomorrow’s Game 4, but he continues to make progress and could return soon, tweets Malika Andrews of ESPN. Brogdon hasn’t played since March 15 because of plantar fasciitis in his right foot, but coach Mike Budenholzer said today that his condition is improving.
“I think he’s getting close,” Budenholzer said, adding that Brogdon has been able to participate in five-on-five games three times. The former Rookie of the Year was an important contributor for Milwaukee this season, putting up a 50/40/90 shooting line before the injury.
There’s more Bucks news to pass along:
- Brogdon’s history of foot issues could impact his value as a restricted free agent this summer, writes Gery Woelfel of Woelfel’sPressBox. He slipped down some teams’ draft boards in 2016 after having surgery on his left foot at Virginia, enabling the Bucks to grab him with the 36th pick. Brogdon played just 48 games last season and 64 this year, leaving many rival front offices eager to see how he would perform in the postseason. “I’ll be honest with you; we’re still concerned about his foot problem like we did when he came out in the draft,’’ an unidentified NBA executive told Woelfel. “I want to see how he does in the playoffs. I think he needs to play in the playoffs to show teams he’s fine. That’s going to tell what kind of deal he gets this summer.’’ He estimated that Brogdon could get an offer starting between $14MM and $16MM per season if teams believe he can stay healthy.
- George Hill is providing a veteran presence in his first playoffs with the Bucks, observes Matt Velazquez of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The Bucks had a financial incentive when they made a deal with Cleveland in December to acquire Hill, who has just a $1MM guarantee for next season. But they also welcomed the postseason experience that he brought to the backcourt. “He’s been a vet in this league,” said teammate Eric Bledsoe. “He knows what it takes. He’s been to the championship; he’s been to the Eastern Conference Finals. It’s no surprise what he’s doing.”
- GM Jon Horst set the groundwork for turning the Bucks into a contender after being hired as the youngest general manager in the league in 2017, writes Lori Nickel of The Journal Sentinel.
Weekly Mailbag: 4/28/19 – 5/5/19
We have an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap or the NBA draft? Drop us a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com.
If the Lakers hire Tyronn Lue as head coach, is it the right hire or just not putting in the effort and going with the easy hire? Or maybe both? — NoSpoilersPlease, via Twitter
It’s not easy for a coach to build a rapport with LeBron James, and Lue will have that from the minute he takes over the team. They had a very successful partnership in Cleveland that resulted in a championship and three trips to the NBA Finals. Lue also has a history in L.A., spending his first three years as a player with the Lakers. He may not be the right long-term coach for the franchise, but as long as LeBron is there — at least for the next two or three years — it’s best to have someone running the team that he trusts.
If the Knicks don’t get the first pick, what could they get for pick 2, 3, 4 or 5? – Howie2104
Whether the Knicks want to trade their pick — and what they’ll ask in return — will depend on their luck in free agency, and that won’t be known until early July. If they can’t hit the jackpot with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving or some other combination of stars, it make more sense to hold onto the pick and continue building for the future. While Zion Williamson is obviously the biggest prize in the draft, Ja Morant could solve New York’s long-running point guard problem, and R.J. Barrett would provide another scoring wing player to pair with Kevin Knox. If the Knicks do get lucky in free agency, their need for youth goes away and they’ll start looking for a combination of veterans who fit well with their new stars.
What are the chances that the Sixers replace Brett Brown if they don’t reach the conference finals? –R.B., via Twitter
Brown received an extension after last season ended and is under contract through 2021/22, so he shouldn’t be in any immediate danger. He suffered through a lot of lean years in Philadelphia as the Sixers tanked tanked away seasons to accumulate assets and he has done a much better job than his 178-314 record indicates. Management wanted to give Brown a chance to show what he could do with a real team, and that chance is just starting. Brown has built up a lot of trust in his six years behind the Sixers’ bench. He should be safe no matter how long their playoff run lasts.