Suns Sign David Kramer
The Suns have signed free agent guard David Kramer to a one-year deal, according to RealGM’s official log of NBA transactions. Kramer posted a photo on Facebook on Wednesday showing him signing his new contract with Phoenix.
Kramer, 22, has spent the last few seasons playing for Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany and has also represented Germany in international competitions. The Suns brought him in for a look at Las Vegas Summer League this month and Kramer impressed, averaging 8.0 PPG and 2.3 RPG on 50.0% shooting in three games (14.3 MPG).
Phoenix is carrying 15 players on guaranteed contracts for 2019/20, so Kramer – like recently-signed big man Tariq Owens – is unlikely to earn a spot on the team’s regular season roster.
Kramer likely signed an Exhibit 10 contract, so he’ll be a candidate to join the Northern Arizona Suns if he decides to remain stateside.
Celtics Officially Sign Tacko Fall, Three Others
The Celtics have formally announced a series of previously-reported deals, confirming that all four signings have now been officially completed. Those deals are as follows:
- Tacko Fall, C: Exhibit 10 contract (story)
- Javonte Green, G/F: Partially guaranteed two-year contract (story)
- Max Strus, SG: Two-way contract (story)
- Tremont Waters, PG: Two-way contract (story)
Of the four, Fall will likely be the player whom Celtics fans monitor most actively during training camp in September. The 7’6″ undrafted center made a strong impression in limited Summer League minutes, making 17-of-22 shots from the field and averaging 7.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG, and 1.4 BPG in just 12.6 minutes per contest (five games).
Fall and Green figure to get the opportunity to compete for a spot on the Celtics’ 15-man regular season roster, while Strus and Waters are in position to occupy the team’s two-way contract slots to open the season.
Thunder Notes: Roberson, George, SGA, Paul
After penning an editorial in The Oklahoman to try to explain the Thunder‘s offseason to fans, head of basketball operations Sam Presti appeared in front of reporters today to discuss what has been an eventful offseason in Oklahoma City. Presti hadn’t addressed the media since draft night, so he had a lot of ground to cover in today’s session.
Besides discussing the deals that sent Paul George to the Clippers and Russell Westbrook to Houston, Presti also shared some news, telling reporters – including Maddie Lee of The Oklahoman – that injured swingman Andre Roberson is on track to be ready for the start of the 2019/20 season.
It has been a year and a half since Roberson last played in an NBA game. Since rupturing his left patellar tendon in January 2018, the veteran has experienced multiple setbacks and delays in his rehab process. However, Presti says he’s “really excited” for Roberson to return to OKC’s lineup this season.
Here are a few more of the highlights from Presti, via Lee and Royce Young of ESPN:
On new Clipper Paul George referring to his split with the Thunder as “mutual”:
“I wouldn’t necessarily agree with that because that would infer that we were wanting to trade Paul George, which I think most people would agree that that probably wasn’t on the top of our offseason priority list. But I would say that it was not adversarial at all, and I also fully respect the way that it was handled. And the fact that we were able to make it work in a way that benefited the franchise made it something that we could do.”
On whether he considered denying George’s trade request:
“I wouldn’t say that we were going to appease the request simply because it was made, but more than anything, it was because of the fact that we were able to get the return that we did, which then allowed us to accommodate what he was looking for, as well.
“… I just don’t think for us, we can take that risk, given the lengths that we had gone to to try to keep the run that we started in 2008 together, one more year without everybody being totally on board knowing that we could be faced with the exact same situation, from a business perspective, from a practical perspective, it would be irresponsible not to look at that opportunity. And it worked out.”
On acquiring Shai Gilgeous-Alexander:
“To get Shai is a big deal for us. We’re really excited about him. I think he’s not really even scratching the surface. … I think he’s got tremendous makeup, and I think that’s going to be a big accelerator for ultimately how good a player he becomes, and I think he has that. He’s got great size and great length, and he’s a sponge.”
On Chris Paul‘s future in Oklahoma City:
“I can’t give you a forecast on how many years or anything like that, especially after … some of this transition we’re going through right now. But I would say that we’re excited about having him here. He’s excited about the opportunity here. And I think he has an opportunity to really impact the team in a positive way. … I do know that I think he’s going to have a really good year for us, and I do think he’s excited about the opportunity to have an impact on the team.”
Bucks Sign Kyle Korver To One-Year Deal
JULY 25: The Bucks have officially signed Korver, the team announced today in a press release.
JULY 20: Veteran shooting guard Kyle Korver is signing with the Bucks, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports.
Korver will get the veteran’s minimum of $2.6MM on the one-year deal but Milwaukee will only take a $1.6MM cap hit, as Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.
Korver was waived by the Suns on July 8. He temporarily wound up with rebuilding Phoenix after being traded by the Jazz and Grizzlies this offseason. The Suns will receive a $559K set-off on the $3.44MM they owe Korver after placing him on waivers, Marks notes. Korver had a $7.5MM contract for next season but only the portion the Suns owe was guaranteed.
Korver averaged 8.6 PPG on .416/.397/.822 shooting in 70 games (19.1 MPG) last season for the Cavaliers and Jazz. A June report indicated that the 38-year-old – who is a career 42.9% three-point shooter – was expected to play for at least one more year.
Korver will add depth at the shooting guard spot behind Khris Middleton and Sterling Brown in Milwaukee, reuniting with head coach Mike Budenholzer, whom he played for in Atlanta.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cavs To Sign J.P. Macura To Exhibit 10 Deal
The Cavaliers have agreed to sign free agent shooting guard J.P. Macura to a partially guaranteed contract, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (via Twitter). Joe Vardon and Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) classify the agreement as an Exhibit 10 deal.
Macura, a former Xavier standout, signed a two-way contract with the Hornets last July and spent the entire 2018/19 season with the organization. Although he only appeared in two games for Charlotte, the 24-year-old was a regular starter for the team’s G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm.
In 30 games (28 starts) for Greensboro, Macura averaged 16.4 PPG with a .460/.368/.783 shooting line in 27.9 minutes per game.
Macura’s Exhibit 10 deal with Cleveland could make him a candidate to fill the team’s open two-way contract slot if he impresses in camp. Dean Wade currently holds the Cavs’ other two-way contract.
Billy Garrett Signs With French Team
Free agent shooting guard Billy Garrett, who finished the 2018/19 season with the Knicks, has signed with French team Elan Chalon, the club announced today in a press release.
Garrett, 24, has spent most of the last two seasons playing for the Westchester Knicks after going undrafted out of DePaul in 2017. In 48 games for the G League club last season, he averaged 16.5 PPG, 3.7 APG, and 3.3 RPG in 29.8 minutes per contest, earning a late-season call-up to New York.
Garrett made his NBA debut in April for the Knicks, posting 6.5 PPG and 1.8 APG in four games (15.8 MPG) for the club down the stretch.
New York declined Garrett’s team option for 2019/20 and elected not to tender him a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent. He suited up for the Suns during Summer League play earlier this month.
And-Ones: Team USA, Harrell, Redick, Hampton
Team USA appeared to replenish its World Cup training camp roster this afternoon by announcing a group of six players who will help replace the nine who have already removed their names from consideration. However, apparently not all of those six new additions are locks to attend training camp in Vegas next month.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), Clippers center Montrezl Harrell is appreciative of the invite from USA Basketball, but is unlikely to actually participate for Team USA due to scheduling issues and a desire to prepare for the upcoming season.
Meanwhile, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports that new Pelicans sharpshooter J.J. Redick has also received an invitation to join Team USA’s roster, but is still mulling over whether to accept it. While Redick would love to represent his country, he’s wary of making a six-week commitment as he and his family make the move to New Orleans.
“I’m thrilled beyond belief to be considered but also trying to work through our family’s transition to New Orleans,” Redick told Wojnarowski.
As USA Basketball continues to put together its final training camp roster, here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Top 2020 draft prospect R.J. Hampton – who will forgo college next season to play in New Zealand – has signed a lucrative shoe deal with Chinese brand Li-Ning, writes Nick DePaula of ESPN. Li-Ning aggressively pursued Hampton, according to DePaula, who says the deal’s total value would’ve made the young guard one of the four highest-earning players in the 2019 draft. Being selected in the top 10 next year will help secure a larger payday for Hampton, but ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link) hears that the 18-year-old will still be guaranteed several million dollars even if he never appears in an NBA game.
- ESPN’s Tim Bontemps polled NBA executives, coaches, and scouts to get their thoughts on the best, worst, and most surprising moves of the offseason. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Kirk Goldsberry examined the biggest questions facing the league’s new group of championship contenders.
- What exactly does it mean when a player – or a group of players – has a workout for an NBA team? In an interesting piece for HoopsHype, Alex Kennedy spoke to players and coaches to get an idea of what individual and group workouts for NBA teams actually look like.
Team USA Updates: Millsap, Plumlee, Harrell, Select Team
USA Basketball has issued a press release announcing a series of updates relating to the team it’s putting together for the 2019 World Cup in China, as well as the training camp that will take place in August before that event. Here are the highlights of that announcement:
More withdrawals:
Nuggets big man Paul Millsap has joined the ever-growing list of players from Team USA’s initial 20-man roster who have decided not to participate in this year’s World Cup. As expected, Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love has also withdrawn from Team USA’s 2019 roster.
Millsap and Love join Bradley Beal, Anthony Davis, Eric Gordon, James Harden, Tobias Harris, Damian Lillard, and CJ McCollum among the original invitees who have removed their names from World Cup consideration.
New invitees:
Team USA confirmed that Thaddeus Young, Marcus Smart, Julius Randle, and Jaylen Brown will join the training camp roster for next month, as previous reports indicated.
In addition to those four players, two big men will join the roster as well, with Clippers center Montrezl Harrell and Nuggets center Mason Plumlee have received invitations from USA Basketball. Assuming the remaining 11 players from the original 20-man roster remain committed, that would bring the roster back up to 17.
[UPDATE: Harrell may turn down his invitation]
Those 11 other players are Harrison Barnes, Andre Drummond, Kyle Kuzma, Brook Lopez, Kyle Lowry, Khris Middleton, Donovan Mitchell, Jayson Tatum, P.J. Tucker, Myles Turner, and Kemba Walker.
Select Team:
For the first time, USA Basketball confirmed the players who will make up the Select Team at next month’s training camp in Las Vegas. The members of the 13-man Select Team will practice and scrimmage with Team USA’s training camp invitees, and will be coached by Jeff Van Gundy.
It’s possible that a player could be elevated from the Select Team to the primary roster and eventually find his way onto the 12-man squad that will play in China, but that’s probably a long shot.
The 13 players who will play for the Select Team are as follows:
- Jarrett Allen (Nets)
- Marvin Bagley III (Kings)
- Mikal Bridges (Suns)
- Jalen Brunson (Mavericks)
- John Collins (Hawks)
- Pat Connaughton (Bucks)
- De’Aaron Fox (Kings)
- Joe Harris (Nets)
- Jonathan Isaac (Magic)
- Mitchell Robinson (Knicks)
- Landry Shamet (Clippers)
- Derrick White (Spurs)
- Trae Young (Hawks)
Team USA’s training camp will take place during the week of August 5, while the World Cup itself is scheduled to run from August 31 to September 15.
Wizards’ C.J. Miles Undergoing Foot Surgery
Wizards swingman C.J. Miles will undergo surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left foot, the team announced today in a press release. The procedure will be performed later today in New York.
“Our medical team has done a fantastic job of proactively diagnosing C.J.’s condition and establishing a treatment protocol,” new Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard said in a statement. “He will continue to be a positive influence on our team as he works through his rehab and we’re looking forward to getting him back on the court when he is healthy.”
It’s not clear if Miles is at risk of missing training camp or the start of the regular season. The Wizards indicated that they’ll issue another update on his condition in six weeks.
Miles, who is in the final year of the three-year contract he signed with the Raptors in 2017, was sent from Toronto to Memphis at last season’s deadline in the Marc Gasol trade. The Grizzlies flipped him to Washington this summer in exchange for Dwight Howard.
Miles’ 2018/19 season came to an early end when he was diagnosed with a stress reaction in his left foot in March. Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington tweets that Miles didn’t believe there were any red flags with that injury when he took a physical upon being acquired by the Wizards. However, as Sheppard’s statement suggests, it appears Washington’s medical team discovered a stress fracture that needs to be addressed via surgery.
Mavs Sign Antonius Cleveland To Two-Way Deal
JULY 25: The signing of Cleveland is now official, the Mavs announced today in a press release.
JULY 24: After recently waiving two-way player Kostas Antetokounmpo, the Mavericks have signed shooting guard Antonius Cleveland to fill the vacant two-way spot left behind by Antetokounmpo’s departure, per Tim Cato of The Athletic. This will be Cleveland’s second stint with Dallas as a two-way player.
Cleveland last played in the NBA during the 2017/18 season with both the Mavs (two-way) and Hawks (15-man roster). He was waived by Atlanta last summer as a cap casualty when the Hawks needed the cap space to take on the contract of Carmelo Anthony. He was claimed by the Bulls but waived before the 2018/19 season began.
Last season, Cleveland played for the G League’s Santa Cruz Warriors, where he averaged 11.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 26.5 minutes per contest.
Cleveland, 25, will join guard Daryl Macon as the Mavericks’ two-way players for the 2019/20 season. One of the spots was originally thought to be earmarked for rookie Josh Reaves, but he ended up agreeing to sign an Exhibit 10 contract instead.