DeMarcus Cousins Accused Of Threatening Ex-Girlfriend
3:15pm: The NBA is investigating the allegations against Cousins, NBA spokesman Mike Bass confirmed in a statement (Twitter link via Youngmisuk).
1:45pm: DeMarcus Cousins‘ offseason is going from bad to worse, as the injured Lakers center is being accused of threatening his ex-girlfriend after she didn’t allow their seven-year-old son to attend Cousins’ wedding, according to a TMZ report.
TMZ obtained court documents and a police report filed by Cousins’ ex, Christy West, claiming that he threatened to “put a bullet through [her] f—ing head.” TMZ’s report also includes an audio recording of the alleged threat, which reportedly occurred last Friday — West is “adamant” that the voice on the phone call is Cousins’.
According to TMZ, West has filed court documents in Alabama seeking a restraining order against Cousins, claiming that he has choked her before as well. A police spokesperson in Mobile, Alabama tells TMZ that they’ve opened an investigation into her allegations.
The latest news on Cousins comes less than two weeks after word broke that he has suffered a torn ACL that will sideline him for most or all of the 2019/20 season. The four-time All-Star has faced questions about his temperament and demeanor throughout his NBA career, and has increasingly had to battle health issues within the last two years. This offseason’s developments won’t help alleviate those concerns on either front.
If the NBA investigates the allegations against Cousins and determines that they’re credible, the league could take action against the big man, fining and/or suspending him. Should Cousins be suspended, he’d have to serve that ban after being medically cleared to return from his ACL tear.
The Lakers have issued the following statement of their own, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com (Twitter link):
“We are aware of the allegation involving DeMarcus Cousins and, of course, take this claim seriously. We are in the process of gathering information and will reserve further comment at this time.”
NBA Teams Facing Deadline To Stretch 2019/20 Salaries
NBA teams can use the stretch provision all season long, but August 31 represents a key deadline related to the rule. Players who are waived by August 31 can have their current-year salaries stretched, immediately reducing their 2019/20 cap charge. If a player is released after August 31, his current cap hit will remain unchanged, and only the subsequent years of his contract can be stretched.
As we detail in our glossary entry on the subject, the stretch provision is a rule ensuring that any player waived with at least $250K in guaranteed salary remaining on his contract will have the payment schedule of that money spread across multiple years. Teams also have the option of spreading his cap charges across the same number of years.
That schedule is determined as follows:
- If a player is waived between July 1 and August 31, his remaining salary is paid over twice the number of years remaining on his contract, plus one.
- If a player is waived between September 1 and June 30, his current-year salary is paid on its normal schedule, with any subsequent years spread over twice the number of remaining years, plus one.
- Note: If a player in the final year of his contract is waived between September 1 and June 30, the stretch provision does not apply.
For most teams around the NBA, this weekend’s August 31 deadline will come and go with little fanfare. Clubs generally use the stretch provision when they want to create a little cap room or get below the luxury tax line — there aren’t many teams fitting that bill at this point.
The Hawks are the only team with any cap space available, and they could substantially increase that space by waiving and stretching, say, Chandler Parsons‘ $25MM+ salary. However, that would add annual cap hits of $8MM+ to the team’s books for 2020/21 and 2021/22, compromising Atlanta’s cap flexibility in future offseasons. Plus, it’s not as if there are any free agents still on the market requiring significant cap room. The Hawks seem very unlikely to make such a move.
Using the stretch provision by August 31 may be a more viable option for teams hovering right around the tax line. The Thunder, for instance, are currently in the tax by about $921K. If they have doubts about Andre Roberson‘s ability to get healthy and contribute this season, waiving and stretching his $10.74MM salary and replacing him with a minimum-salary player would be an easy way to slip below that threshold.
By all accounts though, Oklahoma City expects Roberson to return to action this season and wouldn’t give up on him at this point. If they don’t release a player by August 31, the Thunder will likely try to find a trade later in the 2019/20 league year that would allow them to avoid the tax.
Hawks Sign Armoni Brooks
11:51am: Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution confirms (via Twitter) that Brooks received an Exhibit 10 contract.
11:13am: The Hawks have officially signed undrafted rookie guard Armoni Brooks to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. Details of the deal weren’t disclosed, but it figures to be a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contract.
Brooks declared for the draft this spring as an early entrant after a junior season in which he posted 13.4 PPG and 6.3 RPG in 37 games for Houston. Of his 425 field goal attempts, 310 came from beyond the arc.
Word broke shortly after the draft that Brooks was signing with the Wizards as an undrafted free agent, but it appears that agreement was only for the Summer League. The 6’3″ guard struggled in limited minutes in Las Vegas, making just 4-of-24 shots from the floor in three games (12.7 MPG) for Washington.
The Hawks now have 18 players formally under contract, with Brooks joining Marcus Derrickson and Ray Spalding as training camp invitees without guaranteed salaries. Vince Carter has also reached a deal with the team, so Atlanta will have just one open spot left on its 20-man offseason roster once Carter officially signs.
World Cup Updates: Lithuania, Joseph, Nigeria, France
The Lithuanian national team has announced its roster for the 2019 World Cup, according to Donatas Urbonas, who tweets that the 12-man squad will include Grizzlies center Jonas Valanciunas and Pacers big man Domantas Sabonis in the frontcourt. Former Knicks forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas is also on the roster.
Lithuania is viewed as a contender to make a deep run in this year’s tournament, but it won’t have an easy path to even make it out of the first round. The Lithuanian national team is part of a group that also includes Australia, Canada, and Senegal — only two of those clubs will advance to the round of 16.
Here’s more on the 2019 World Cup, which will tip off in just four days in China:
- Speaking of Team Canada, head coach Nick Nurse said after the team’s exhibition loss to Team USA on Monday that he still expects Kings point guard Cory Joseph to join the squad in China for the World Cup itself (video link via Olgun Uluc of FOX Sports Australia). “As far as I know, he is,” Nurse said. “I exchanged a text with him a little earlier today and he said he was getting on a plane [on Tuesday]. He said he’d see me there.”
- Nigeria has set its 12-man roster for the World Cup, as Emiliano Carchia of Sportando relays. Josh Okogie (Timberwolves), Al-Farouq Aminu (Magic), Chimezie Metu (Spurs), Ekpe Udoh, and Ike Diogu are among the current and former NBA players representing Nigeria.
- Team France’s 12-man roster for the 2019 World Cup features plenty of familiar NBA names too, including Rudy Gobert (Jazz), Nicolas Batum (Hornets), Evan Fournier (Magic), and Frank Ntilikina (Knicks). New Celtics center Vincent Poirier and former NBA players like Nando De Colo and Axel Toupane made the team as well.
- Venezuela’s national team also announced its 12-man World Cup roster.
- Without a “proven bailout option” to score crucial buckets in big moments, Team USA doesn’t have a significant margin of error in this year’s World Cup, opines ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
NBA Players Who Are Headed Overseas For 2019/20
With a new group of incoming rookies arriving in the NBA this season and several players from international leagues also coming stateside, there simply aren’t enough roster spots around the league to accommodate all the players who spent time with NBA clubs last season.
As such, a number of those players have opted to sign with teams in Europe and Asia. Those players may be off the NBA radar for the next little while, but they’ll have the opportunity to carve out more significant roles on international teams, and many of them will be just as well-compensated in the EuroLeague or the Chinese Basketball Association as they would’ve been in the NBA.
We’ve been keeping tabs throughout the summer on the free agents who have decided to sign with international teams after playing in the NBA last season. The list below, using information from our Free Agent Tracker, details this offseason’s notable signings and contract agreements involving NBA free agents heading overseas.
Each of the players listed below either appeared in at least one NBA game in 2018/19 or finished the season under contract with an NBA team — or both.
Some of these contract agreements haven’t been made official yet, so we’ll update this list as necessary if any deals fall through. We’ll also add more international signings to the list, as they happen, throughout the rest of the NBA offseason.
Australia
China
- Jerryd Bayless, G: Sichuan Blue Whales
- Antonio Blakeney, G: Jiangsu Dragons
- Isaiah Canaan, PG: Shandong Heroes
- Ian Clark, SG: Xinjiang Flying Tigers
- Angel Delgado, C: Beijing Royal Fighters
- Jerian Grant, PG: Qingdao Eagles
- Jeremy Lin, PG: Beijing Ducks
- Eric Moreland, C: Shanxi Loongs
- Donatas Motiejunas, PF: Shanghai Sharks
- Chasson Randle, PG: Tianjin Pioneers
- Wayne Selden, SG: Shandong Heroes
- Lance Stephenson, G/F: Liaoning Flying Leopards
- Ekpe Udoh, C: Beijing Ducks
- Guerschon Yabusele, PF: Nanjing Monkey Kings
France
- Billy Garrett, SG: Elan Chalon
Germany
Greece
- Wade Baldwin, PG: Olympiacos
- Jimmer Fredette, SG: Panathinaikos
- Wesley Johnson, G/F: Panathinaikos
Israel
- Quincy Acy, F/C: Maccabi Tel Aviv
- Omri Casspi, F: Maccabi Tel Aviv
- Tyler Dorsey, SG: Maccabi Tel Aviv
- Malachi Richardson, SG: Hapoel Holon
- Jared Terrell, SG: Hapoel Eilat
- Johnathan Williams, F/C: Maccabi Rishon
Italy
- George King, SF: Aquila Basket Trento
- Shelvin Mack, PG: Olimpia Milano
- Milos Teodosic, PG: Virtus Bologna
Russia
- Ron Baker, G: CSKA Moscow
- Dairis Bertans, SG: Khimki
- Sam Dekker, F: Lokomotiv Kuban
- Isaiah Hicks, PF: Avtodor Saratov
- Jonas Jerebko, PF: Khimki
- Kosta Koufos, C: CSKA Moscow
- Timofey Mozgov, C: Khimki
- Isaiah Whitehead, G: BC Astana (Kazakhstan)
- Alan Williams, F/C: Lokomotiv Krasnodar
Spain
- Alex Abrines, SG: Barcelona
- Jordan Loyd, PG: Valencia
- Salah Mejri, C: Real Madrid
- Nikola Mirotic, PF: Barcelona
- Nik Stauskas, SG: Baskonia
Turkey
- Bonzie Colson, F: Darussafaka
- R.J. Hunter, SG: Turk Telekom Ankara
- Tarik Phillip, SG: Tofas Spor Kulubu
- Emanuel Terry, PF: Bandirma B.I.K.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Jeremy Lin Signs With Beijing Ducks
One of the top remaining NBA free agents will be heading to China for the 2019/20 season, as point guard Jeremy Lin confirmed today that he’s joining the Beijing Ducks of the Chinese Basketball Association (Twitter link). Emiliano Carchia of Sportando reported this morning that Lin had agreed to terms with Beijing and later tweeted that the signing was official.
Lin, who turned 31 last Friday, has spent the last nine seasons in the NBA, most notably emerging for the 2011/12 Knicks with an out-of-nowhere run dubbed as “Linsanity.”
Lin won his first championship this spring after joining the Raptors in February, though he struggled to match his usual production in a backup role in Toronto, recording 7.0 PPG and 2.2 APG in 23 regular season games (18.8 MPG) and playing sparingly in the postseason. Those averages were his worst since his rookie year and his .374 FG% would have been a career low.
His struggles with the Raptors likely limited the NBA market this summer for Lin, who expressed frustration in July about how his free agency was playing out, suggesting that he felt like “the NBA has kind of given up on me.”
Although he’ll leave the NBA for now, a strong showing in the Chinese Basketball Association could create a path for Lin’s eventual return stateside. CBA teams have been pursuing the veteran guard for much of the offseason, as his Taiwanese roots have made him a popular player overseas. We first heard earlier this month that Lin was in advanced talks with Beijing.
Former Jazz center Ekpe Udoh also signed with the Beijing Ducks this offseason.
Pistons Notes: Jackson, Rose, Frazier, Griffin
The Pistons are suddenly very deep at point guard, as Keith Langlois of the team’s website notes. Their lack of depth at that spot was exposed in recent seasons by injuries to Reggie Jackson and Ish Smith.
Though Smith signed with the Wizards this offseason, the Pistons have plenty of options beyond Jackson during the upcoming season. They signed free agents Derrick Rose and Tim Frazier and drafted Jordan Bone, who was signed to a two-way contract, in the second round. Bruce Brown and Langston Galloway can also run the offense.
It’s the best combination of players they’ve had at that spot since Chauncey Billups was a perennial All-Star and Lindsey Hunter backed him up, Langlois opines.
We have more from the Central Division:
- Jackson seriously considered retirement due to knee and ankle injuries prior to last season, when he played in every game, Rod Beard of the Detroit News reports. “I was just getting injured too much and I had hit basketball depression and it was a point in time that I really didn’t want to deal with the game anymore,” Jackson told Beard. “It was more the injuries that started to have that (retirement) thought creep in my head.” Arnie Kander, the team’s former strength and conditioning coach who was hired as a consultant prior to last season, devised a plan that helped Jackson overcome his issues.
- Jackson has no doubt that he can mesh his skills with Rose when they play together, Beard writes in the same story. “I’ll have more of a chance to play with Derrick on the ball and off. I’m better at catch-and-shoot,” Jackson said. “The layout of the team is complementary to each other. All the pieces work really well and it’s ideal for my game, how we mesh.”
- The additions of Frazier and power forward Markieff Morris give coach Dwane Casey a greater opportunity to rest Blake Griffin and Rose, Langlois writes in a separate story. Griffin only sat out three games for rest purposes last season as the Pistons relied heavily on the All-Star to make the playoffs. But with 13 back-to-backs this year, the Pistons will likely limit both Griffin and the oft-injured Rose to fewer than 70 games apiece, Langlois adds.
Jaylen Brown’s Stock On The Rise
Recent developments have boosted the stock of Celtics swingman Jaylen Brown, as Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston points out.
An already watered down free agent class for next summer took another hit when the Nets signed Caris LeVert to an extension on Monday. Brown will be a restricted free agent if, as anticipated, the Celtics extend a $8,573,696 qualifying offer after the upcoming season.
They can try to reach a rookie scale extension agreement with Brown prior to 2019/20’s opening night, though the price tag would likely be significantly higher than the three-year, $52.5MM offer that LeVert accepted. As Forsberg notes, Brown is two years younger and doesn’t have an injury history, unlike LeVert.
Brown has also excelled with Team USA during exhibitions prior to the FIBA World Cup. He’s averaging nearly 12 points a game while shooting 71.4% from the field. He’s third on the team in scoring behind Kemba Walker and Donovan Mitchell.
Brown had already shown a knack for increasing his production when the stakes are high. In the NBA playoffs the past two seasons, Brown averaged 18.0 PPG and 4.8 RPG in 2017/18 and 13.9 PPG and 5.8 RPG in 2018/19.
If Brown has a solid season in 2019/20, he might get a giant offer sheet from a team that views him as a major piece to their puzzle. The Celtics would then have to decide whether to match it, having already invested heavily in Walker and knowing Jayson Tatum‘s potential free agency is just around the corner.
Since the price tag on Brown is probably already high, there isn’t much risk for the Celtics to allow Brown to test restricted free agency, Forsberg adds.
Dwight Howard Signs With Lakers
6:23pm: The Lakers have issued a press release to announce the signing, Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times tweets. The club also confirmed that Aric Holman has been waived.
4:46pm: After clearing waivers, Dwight Howard is officially signing his contract with the Lakers, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.
It’s a $2,564,753 veteran’s minimum deal, but Howard’s contract doesn’t have any salary protection, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). He’ll earn $14,490 for every day he’s on the roster, with the clock starting on October 21.
An Exhibit 9 clause will likely be inserted into Howard’s summer contract, in which the team would only be on the hook for $6K if Howard is injured and waived before the regular season, Marks adds (Twitter link).
The Grizzlies waived Howard after reaching a buyout agreement with the veteran center last week. Howard pledged to sign with the Lakers prior to the buyout.
Howard had several meetings with the Lakers, who noted that he had lost weight. Howard also demonstrated that his back was healthy after he only played nine games with the Wizards last season.
The Lakers will have to make a corresponding move, since they already have a full 20-man training camp roster.
Lakers Waive Forward Aric Holman
The Lakers are waiving forward Aric Holman to open up a roster spot for Dwight Howard, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets.
The Lakers had a full 20-man training camp roster prior to the addition of Howard and needed to make a corresponding move.
Holman was signed to an Exhibit 10 deal last month. He went undrafted and spent his college days at Mississippi State. The power forward blocked at least two shots in 61 of his 124 collegiate games. He averaged 9.5 PPG, 6.2 RPG and 1.6 BPG with a .473/.429/.701 shooting line in his senior year.
He averaged 4.5 PPG and 3.8 RPG in 15.8 MPG in four appearances with the Lakers in the Las Vegas summer league.