Pistons Claim Jordan McRae Off Waivers
4:15pm: The waiver process is complete and McRae belongs to the Pistons, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
3:07pm: The Pistons intend to claim guard Jordan McRae off waivers this afternoon, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).
After reaching a buyout agreement with Denver on Sunday, McRae was officially released and appeared to be headed to Phoenix, with the Suns planning to place a waiver claim of their own. However, with Derrick Rose on the shelf due to an ankle injury, the Pistons were said to be eyeing McRae for backcourt depth.
Because the waiver priority order is determined by the NBA’s reverse standings, Detroit (20-42) will be awarded McRae over Phoenix (24-38) if both teams submit claims. Technically, one of the five teams with a worse record than the Pistons could swoop in and steal McRae, but there has been no indication that will happen.
A fourth-year shooting guard, McRae was putting up the best numbers of his career in D.C. this season, recording 12.8 PPG, 3.6 RPG, and 2.8 APG on .420/.377/.371 shooting for the Wizards, though injuries limited him to just 29 games. He was sent to Denver in a deadline deal for Shabazz Napier and averaged just 8.0 MPG in four games for the Nuggets, who have an overcrowded rotation.
The two sides reached a deal on Sunday that allowed McRae to get a new opportunity, with the Nuggets opening up a roster spot and saving some money. Although the 28-year-old agreed to surrender $390,424 of his minimum salary, that agreement will be negated by the Pistons’ waiver claim. Detroit will simply take on McRae’s $1,645,357 expiring contract, which will come off Denver’s books. The Pistons will be on the hook for paying the prorated salary remaining on the deal, while the Nuggets’ financial obligation will be extinguished.
By claiming McRae off waivers, the Pistons will get his Early Bird rights, which will give them added flexibility to re-sign him this summer. No corresponding roster move will be necessary for Detroit, since the team has an open spot after letting Derrick Walton‘s 10-day contract expire earlier this week.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Central Notes: Bulls, Presti, Wood, Sexton
As the Bulls consider changes to their front office, Sam Presti‘s name is one that has now surfaced multiple times. Discussing the situation last week, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times cited the Thunder‘s head of basketball operations as an example of a big-name candidate Chicago could pursue. This week, David Kaplan said during an appearance on ESPN 1000 that Presti is the Bulls’ top target (Twitter link via Daniel Greenberg).
Kaplan’s comments signal that Cowley’s mention of Presti last week probably didn’t come out of nowhere, so I don’t doubt that the Bulls have interest in the Thunder executive. Still, I’m skeptical that Presti would leave a favorable situation in Oklahoma City – where the team has accumulated more first-round picks than it knows what to do with – for a position in which he’d rank below John Paxson in the Bulls’ organizational hierarchy.
While it’s worth keeping the Bulls’ reported interest in Presti in mind, we may not get a more concrete sense of which candidates are realistically in play for the team until after the season.
Here’s more from out of the Central:
- James L. Edwards III of The Athletic explores whether Christian Wood‘s breakout season with the Pistons is a result of genuine improvement or simply getting a real opportunity. Edwards believes that both are factors, arguing that Wood – a free agent this summer – deserves to be in the Most Improved Player conversation.
- Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com takes a look at the impact that the Cavaliers‘ trade of Jordan Clarkson has had on Collin Sexton, who says he challenged himself to “step up a little bit more” in the wake of that deal. The second-year guard has averaged 22.6 PPG on .478/.452/.855 shooting in the 32 games since Clarkson’s departure.
- We passed along several more items from around the Central earlier today, including stories on Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s role in 2019 free agent recruiting, Lauri Markkanen‘s return, and the Cavaliers filling an open roster spot.
Cavs Sign Sir’Dominic Pointer To 10-Day Deal
3:55pm: The Cavaliers have officially signed Pointer to a 10-day contract, the club confirmed today in a press release.
12:56pm: The Cavaliers are signing G League swingman Sir’Dominic Pointer to a 10-day contract, league sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link). Cleveland has been carrying a pair of open roster spots since shortly after the All-Star break and needed to fill at least one of them by this weekend.
Pointer, the 53rd overall pick in the 2015 draft, has spent the last several seasons playing in the G League and in international leagues in Israel, Lebanon, and Hungary. The Cavs held his draft rights up until last fall, when he signed his required tender and was immediately waived by the club.
Although Cleveland no longer held Pointer’s NBA rights after that point, he has spent the 2019/20 season playing for the Cavaliers’ G League affiliate, averaging 12.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 1.9 BPG, and 1.8 SPG in 40 contests (25.7 MPG) for the Charge.
Pointer is the latest in a long line of G League call-ups for the Cavs this season. Previously, Cleveland has promoted Malik Newman, J.P. Macura, Marques Bolden, Levi Randolph, and Matt Mooney (two-way deal) from the Charge to the NBA roster.
Pointer will earn $50,752 on his 10-day deal with the Cavs.
Clippers Notes: Dunn, George, Jackson
There has been buzz throughout the 2019/20 season that the Clippers are expected to be among the teams that will show interest in Kris Dunn when he reaches free agency this summer, says K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. It’s not clear how Dunn’s season-ending knee injury will affect L.A.’s potential interest, Johnson adds.
The Clippers’ interest level may also be impacted by how the Bulls handle Dunn’s situation — he’ll be a restricted free agent if Chicago extends a qualifying offer worth $4,642,800, which seems likely and which would increase the Bulls’ leverage.
While Dunn’s offensive numbers aren’t great, he was one of the NBA’s best perimeter defenders when healthy, leading the league with 2.9 steals per 36 minutes. That would make him an intriguing fit on a Clippers roster that’s already packed with talented defenders, including Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Patrick Beverley.
Here’s more on the Clippers:
- After he enjoyed a career year in 2018/19 in Oklahoma City, Paul George is still trying to get comfortable amidst an injury-plagued first season with the Clippers, writes Royce Young of ESPN. “I’m a work in progress,” George said on Tuesday. “It’s been a tough year being injured. Being in the rotation, being out of the rotation. And then just playing in a whole new system, new players, new teammates, new coaches, new playing style. So it’s been a bit of an adjustment for me.”
- Reggie Jackson has had an impressive impact on the Clippers’ second unit since arriving from Detroit, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who notes that Jackson’s ball-handling ability has freed up Lou Williams to play off the ball more frequently.
- In case you missed it, we identified Jackson as one of 2020’s best buyout-market signings in a Community Shootaround discussion earlier today.
Injury Updates: Markkanen, Lillard, Hawks, Zion, KD
A pair of former top-10 picks are expected to return to action on Wednesday night after somewhat lengthy injury absences.
One of those players is Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen, who has been sidelined since January 22 due to a stress reaction in his pelvis. According to the team (via Twitter), Markkanen will return to Chicago’s starting lineup tonight in Minnesota, making him the third frontcourt player in the last week to get healthy for the team — Wendell Carter and Otto Porter are also back in action.
More importantly for the playoff race, Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard is being listed as probable for Wednesday’s game against Washington (Twitter link via Casey Holdahl of Blazers.com). Lillard has been out since injuring his groin on February 12. Including that game, Portland has gone just 2-5 since his injury, but the team remains in the postseason hunt, 3.5 games back of Memphis.
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- The Hawks announced today in a press release that big men Clint Capela (foot) and Skal Labissiere (knee) continue to rehab their respective injuries and will be re-evaluated in two weeks. Both players were acquired at the trade deadline, but it remains to be seen whether they’ll see much -if any – action for Atlanta this season.
- In other Hawks-related injury news, swingman DeAndre’ Bembry, who is dealing with abdominal pain, has been cleared for non-contact work, head coach Lloyd Pierce said today (Twitter link via Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Bembry, a potential restricted free agent this offseason, hasn’t played since January 20.
- Zion Williamson isn’t currently dealing with an injury, but the Pelicans have played it safe since he returned from knee surgery, opting not to play him in back-to-back sets. That’s expected to change tonight, with the No. 1 overall pick on track to play against Dallas after being active against Minnesota on Tuesday. Andrew Lopez of ESPN has the full story.
- During TNT’s Tuesday broadcast (video link), Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports cited league sources who say Nets star Kevin Durant is making good progress in his Achilles recovery and is doing some 3-on-3 work. Durant is on track to be ready for training camp in the fall.
Giannis Played Role In Recruiting Matthews, Korver
Entering the 2019 offseason, Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo hadn’t gotten involved much in free agent recruitment, preferring to leave roster moves up to the front office. However, when he found out that Milwaukee was signing-and-trading Malcolm Brogdon to Indiana last summer, he felt as if it was time for him to get involved, writes Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
“I don’t like doing that stuff,” Antetokounmpo said. “I don’t get an extra paycheck for doing (GM) Jon (Horst)’s job or Coach (Mike Budenholzer)’s job or whoever’s job it is. … If you asked me one year ago, two years ago, I’d say, ‘Coach, just take care of it.’ … (But) it comes to a point that I’m like, ‘OK. Malcolm’s about to leave.’ And at the time, Wesley Matthews and Kyle Korver were the guys I felt like could help us win.”
Antetokounmpo, who is represented by the same agency as Matthews (Octagon), reached out to the veteran swingman first, pitching him on the idea of competing for a championship in Milwaukee. Matthews had received interest from other teams, but the call from the reigning MVP helped convince him to join the Bucks, as Nehm details.
“It meant a lot,” Matthews said. “Not even just as an athlete, but just as anyone who is working, the admiration of your peers is what holds the most weight. Not writers, not blogs, not media and all that kind of stuff. It’s the guys you’re going to compete with and against to have the respect for you that means the world.”
Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo touched base with Korver at a training facility in Santa Barbara. The 38-year-old sharpshooter invited Giannis to work out with him at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where the Bucks’ star made another recruitment pitch.
“We start the workout and I’m like, ‘OK. Kyle, look, this is how I can get you open shots,'” Antetokounmpo said. “‘We can run this. We can do this. I know Al Horford is your best friend. I know you’d love playing with Al Horford in Philly, but look, I can (get you shots). I can find you easier.’ He loved it.”
Both Matthews and Korver ultimately signed with the Bucks and they’ve been great fits so far. Matthews has been a regular starter in Milwaukee, averaging 7.5 PPG with a .370 3PT% in 58 games (24.6 MPG), while Korver has recorded 6.4 PPG with a .407 3PT% off the bench in 47 contests (16.6 MPG). They’ve helped push the Bucks to an NBA-best 52-9 record this season and Giannis is thrilled to have them both aboard, as Nehm writes.
“I love my teammates. … I’d die for them,” Antetokounmpo said. “That’s who I am and I hope they know that and I think they know that. This is the group that I want to (win a championship) with, and hopefully, we can get it done.”
Warriors Not Re-Signing Dragan Bender For Now
Dragan Bender‘s 10-day contract with the Warriors expired after Tuesday’s game, and the former fourth overall pick won’t get a second 10-day deal with the club at this time, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic.
A second 10-day contract for Bender in the coming days or weeks isn’t out of the question, Slater adds. However, Golden State prefers to maintain some roster flexibility for now.
As Slater observes, Bender was a little shaky in his first few games with the Warriors, especially on defense, but he looked better as of late. In Golden State’s last three games, two of which were wins, the former Sun averaged 11.7 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 2.0 APG with a .452/.385/1.000 shooting line. His performance earned him praise from head coach Steve Kerr, as we detailed on Tuesday night.
“He’s got a lot of potential,” Kerr said. “Obviously, fourth pick in the draft, there’s a reason for that. He’s shown in the 10 days if you give him a little confidence, you give him a chance to play and gain some confidence, he can do a lot of good things out there. He’s helped us win two games in a season when we’ve not won a whole lot of games.”
Bender is now an unrestricted free agent, free to sign with any team, but if he thinks a return to Golden State is a strong possibility, perhaps he won’t seek out a new opportunity. For what it’s worth, Bender’s fellow 2016 Suns lottery pick Marquese Chriss was waived by the Warriors in January, then signed a new deal with the club eight days later, following rumors that there was mutual interest in a reunion. Perhaps Bender and the Dubs will follow a similar path.
For now, the Warriors are carrying 14 players, including two (Mychal Mulder and Chasson Randle) on 10-day deals, leaving one opening on their 15-man roster.
Community Shootaround: Best Second-Half FA Signing
Players available on the buyout market typically don’t become difference-makers for their new teams. Occasionally, productive players will join a playoff team late in the season and help buoy that club heading into the postseason, like Ersan Ilyasova and Marco Belinelli did for the Sixers in 2018 or Enes Kanter did for the Trail Blazers in 2019.
More often than not though, buyout-market additions don’t significantly move the needle. A year ago, the late-season signees who saw the most playing time down the stretch were Wayne Ellington (Pistons) and Wesley Matthews (Pacers), whose teams didn’t make it out of the first round of the playoffs. The eventual-champion Raptors signed a player off the buyout market, but that player – Jeremy Lin – barely saw any action during the team’s title run.
With that in mind, we don’t want to overstate the impact that this year’s post-trade-deadline acquisitions will have the rest of the way. Still, it’s possible one of those players could be this year’s Ilyasova, Belinelli, or Kanter, playing an important role for a team that wins a playoff series or two — or even makes a Finals run.
As our roundup of the 2020 buyout market shows, there are a few candidates who could potentially fit that bill. One is new Clippers guard Reggie Jackson, who was bought out by Detroit last month. While some league observers viewed the signing of Jackson as unnecessary for a team that already featured a fairly strong, versatile backcourt, the ex-Piston has looked great in his first six games in Los Angeles, averaging 9.2 PPG, 4.0 APG, and 3.5 RPG on .500/.409/1.000 shooting in a part-time role.
Although he was technically waived in December rather than bought out in February, Rockets forward Jeff Green also signed after the trade deadline and has excelled with his new team. Serving as a de facto center in Houston’s microball lineup, Green has posted 7.7 PPG and 2.5 RPG with an impressive .593/.500/.833 shooting line in six games (17.5 MPG).
In Milwaukee, new Bucks forward Marvin Williams hasn’t put up eye-popping numbers, but he has been a steady, reliable presence on the wing, providing solid defense against opposing scoring threats. His best game so far came against the rival Raptors, when he recorded nine points, five rebounds, and a pair of steals in just 16 minutes of action while frequently guarding All-Star forward Pascal Siakam.
Rockets forward DeMarre Carroll and Lakers forward Markieff Morris are among the other recent additions who are seeing part-time minutes for their new teams. It’s even worth mentioning Anthony Tolliver, who signed a 10-day contract with the Grizzlies on Monday and promptly knocked down 4-of-5 three-pointers in a blowout win over Atlanta. If he sticks with the team beyond his 10-day deal, maybe he could help Memphis hang onto the No. 8 seed in the West.
A handful of somewhat intriguing players are still on the free agent market, including J.R. Smith, Dion Waiters, Tyler Johnson, Isaiah Thomas, and Allen Crabbe. It’s possible one or more of those players will sign with a contender soon and play a key role in the coming weeks.
What do you think? Will any of these players really make a difference for their new clubs down the stretch and in the postseason? If so, which one do you think is the best bet to make an impact?
Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
Hornets Notes: Hernangomez, MKG, Point Guard
Willy Hernangomez played just 72 total minutes in the Hornets‘ first 40 games, but he has seen fairly regular playing time off the bench for the team over the last month. As Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer writes, head coach James Borrego attributes Hernangomez’s increased role in large part to his improved effort on the defensive end.
“The video and the numbers demonstrate to me that he’s making a bigger impact at that end of the floor than he has in the past,” Borrego said. “(He’s) challenging more shots at the rim.”
Hernangomez will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and while his modest overall role may suggest he’s not in the Hornets’ future plans, he still has an opportunity to make a good final impression on the team over the last 20 games or so this season. Charlotte will also have plenty of cap flexibility moving forward if the club wants to re-sign him. For his part, the 25-year-old big man says he’s just happy to be getting the opportunity to show what he can do.
“You always want to play a lot of minutes, you always want to play in all the games, you want to help your team win,” Hernangomez said. “So in the beginning, it was a very disappointing season because we were losing and I could not help the team. But I think after the trade deadline, I got a new, fresh start.”
Here’s more on the Hornets:
- Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who spent seven-and-a-half seasons in Charlotte before being bought out last month, wrote a farewell letter to the city and Hornets fans at The Players’ Tribune. Kidd-Gilchrist, who said that “a true love affair developed between me and the city of Charlotte” after he was drafted second overall by the team in 2012, wrote that he’ll “always remember how good you all were to me” despite the Hornets’ lack of playoff success.
- Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer argues that the Hornets should seriously consider signing a veteran point guard to help ease the workload on Devonte’ Graham and Terry Rozier down the stretch. Joe Chealey, on a 10-day contract, is currently filling a backup role, but Bonnell makes the case that Charlotte could use a more experienced option — Chealey has appeared in just four career games.
- In case you missed it, Bismack Biyombo said earlier this week that he could have gotten a buyout from the Hornets after the deadline, but opted not to. Here’s our full story on that.
Zach Randolph To Play In BIG3
Longtime NBA big man Zach Randolph has reached in an agreement to play in the BIG3, Ice Cube‘s three-on-three league, for the 2020 season, league sources tell Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
According to Haynes (Twitter link), Randolph will be the new captain of the Trilogy, one of the league’s 12 teams. The BIG3 announced on Tuesday that former NBA swingman Stephen Jackson will serve as Trilogy’s head coach for the 2020 season.
Randolph, 38, played in more than 1,100 career regular season NBA games over the course of a 17-year career, appearing in another 70 postseason contests. A two-time All-Star, the former Michigan State standout averaged 16.6 PPG and 9.1 RPG over the course of his career for the Grizzlies, Trail Blazers, Knicks, Clippers, and Kings. He was a key member of Memphis’ “grit and grind” teams of the 2010s.
Randolph last played in an NBA game during the 2017/18 season for Sacramento. He technically spent most of the 2018/19 campaign on the Kings’ roster as well, but never appeared in a game before being traded to the Mavericks at the deadline. He was subsequently waived by Dallas last February and officially announced his retirement from the NBA in December.