Warriors Sign Chasson Randle To 10-Day Deal
MARCH 3: The Warriors have officially signed Randle to a 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. Golden State now has a full 15-man roster, though three of its players are on 10-day deals and Bender’s will expire tonight.
MARCH 1: Chasson Randle will sign with the Warriors, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Randle’s agent, Darrell Comer of YouFirst Sports, confirmed the deal.
Randle made two prior attempts to join the NBA on 10-day contracts, but they were both blocked by Tianjin, his current team in the Chinese Basketball Association. Comer said Randle has reached a settlement with the club and will receive a FIBA letter of clearance as soon as his request can be processed.
The CBA has suspended play because of the coronavirus outbreak in China, affecting the status of roughly 40 American players, including familiar names such as Jeremy Lin, Lance Stephenson and Tyler Hansbrough. Givony adds that if the league does resume, it won’t happen until April, leaving all those players uncertain about their contracts.
Randle last played in the NBA during the 2018/19 season when he averaged 5.5 PPG in 49 games with the Wizards. The 27-year-old guard also had brief stops with the Sixers and Knicks.
Golden State has a roster opening, so no move will be necessary before Randle can be added. The Warriors already have two players on 10-day contracts, Dragan Bender, whose deal runs through Tuesday, and Mychal Mulder, who is signed through Saturday. It’s unclear if Randle will receive a 10-day deal or a rest-of-season commitment now that he’s no longer controlled by Tianjin.
Kyrie Irving Undergoes Surgery On Shoulder, Officially Out For Season
Nets guard Kyrie Irving underwent arthroscopic surgery in New York today to relieve the impingement in his right shoulder, the team announced in a press release. Irving, who is expected to make a full recovery, will miss the rest of the season, the Nets confirmed.
A report nearly two weeks ago had indicated that Irving would undergo a procedure on his shoulder and be sidelined for the remainder of the 2019/20 campaign, so today’s update was expected.
It has been a lost first season in Brooklyn for Irving, who was limited to just 20 games due to health issues. The star guard, who turns 28 later this month, put up some of the best numbers of his career when he was on the court, averaging 27.4 PPG, 6.4 APG, and 5.2 RPG with a .478/.394/.922 shooting line.
Even without Irving and Kevin Durant, Brooklyn is in position to earn a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Despite their current four-game losing streak, the Nets remain four games ahead of the ninth-seeded Wizards. The team likely won’t last long in the postseason, but will head into the 2020/21 season with higher expectations, as both Irving and Durant are on track to return to action in the fall.
Derrick Rose Out At Least Two Weeks; Pistons Eyeing Jordan McRae
11:59am: The Pistons have issued a press release confirming that Rose has been diagnosed with a grade two right ankle sprain. He’ll be re-evaluated in two weeks, according to the team.
11:07am: An MRI on Derrick Rose‘s sprained right ankle came back negative, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. However, sources tell Haynes that the Pistons will be cautious with Rose’s injury and that he’ll be reassessed in “a few weeks.”
Rose, who received interest from contenders at the trade deadline, has a second year on his contract with Detroit, so the Pistons will want to make sure he’s as healthy as possible heading into the offseason — the former MVP will either play a key role on next year’s team or be a valuable trade chip this summer. Rose is expected to make a full recovery from his ankle injury, Haynes notes.
As the Pistons consider handing the reins to their young players for the rest of the season, they’re also keeping an eye on Jordan McRae, according to Haynes. Released by the Nuggets on Sunday night, McRae is expected to be claimed off waivers by the Suns on Wednesday.
However, based on Haynes’ report, it sounds like Detroit is mulling a waiver claim of its own. Because they trail Phoenix in the NBA standings, the Pistons would have the higher priority and would be awarded McRae if both teams submit a claim.
If the Pistons were to place a claim on McRae, no corresponding roster move would be necessary, since they have room on their 15-man roster.
Pistons Re-Sign Donta Hall To 10-Day Contract
The Pistons have signed big man Donta Hall to a second 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. Hall’s first 10-day deal with Detroit expired last night, so the club didn’t waste any time in locking him right back up.
[RELATED: Hoops Rumors’ 10-Day Contract Tracker]
An undrafted rookie out of Alabama, Hall spent most of his rookie season with the Grand Rapids Drive, Detroit’s G League affiliate. He has averaged 15.5 PPG, 10.6 RPG, and 1.5 BPG in 36 G League games (28.6 MPG).
Since being promoted to the NBA last month, Hall has appeared in three games for the Pistons, recording 1.7 PPG and 3.7 RPG in 13.7 minutes per contest. His new 10-day contract, which will pay him $50,752, will run through March 12, covering Detroit’s next four games.
The Pistons had been one of a small handful of NBA teams with two roster openings, so no corresponding move is necessary to make room for Hall. The team still has its 15th roster spot open in case it wants to place a waiver claim for Jordan McRae, as was rumored earlier today.
Once Hall’s second 10-day contract expires, Detroit will have to either let him go or sign him for the remainder of the season.
Roster Moves Required Soon For Cavs, Nuggets, Pistons
The NBA requires its teams to carry a minimum of 14 players, not including players on two-way contracts. Teams are permitted to dip below that number for up to two weeks at a time, but must return to at least 14 once those two weeks are up.
Entering today, four NBA teams had fewer than 14 players on standard or 10-day contracts. One of those teams, the Hornets, signed Joe Chealey this morning to get back to 14, so no further roster moves are required for Charlotte at this time.
[RELATED: 2019/20 NBA Roster Counts]
That leaves three clubs that must make at least one addition to their respective rosters sometime soon. Here are those teams:
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers last filled the final two openings on their 15-man roster by signing J.P. Macura and Malik Newman to 10-day contracts on February 9. Because 10-day deals are required to cover at least three games, those contracts actually ran through the All-Star break and didn’t expire until February 21.
Since then, however, Cleveland has only had 13 players under contract. The Cavs will have to add at least one player by this weekend.
Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets had been carrying an open roster spot for a while. They created a second opening on Sunday when they bought out Jordan McRae. It has been less than 48 hours since McRae was released, so Denver won’t be required to add a 14th man until mid-March.
Detroit Pistons
After buying out Reggie Jackson and Markieff Morris, the Pistons filled their two open roster spots by signing Derrick Walton and Donta Hall to 10-day contracts. Both of those deals expired within the last two days. Like Denver, Detroit has only just dipped down to 13 players, so they’ll still have nearly two full weeks to get back to 14.
[UPDATE: The Pistons have re-signed Hall to get back up to 14 players.]
Hornets Sign Joe Chealey To Second 10-Day Contract
The Hornets have signed guard Joe Chealey to a second 10-day contract after his initial 10-day deal with the club expired on Sunday night, the team announced today in a press release.
Chealey, 24, appeared in a pair of games during his first 10 days with the Hornets, going scoreless in 19 total minutes on 0-for-3 shooting. He did record three steals, and Charlotte apparently liked what it saw from him enough to bring him back for 10 more days.
Chealey’s new 10-day contract will cover the Hornets’ next five games, running through March 12, before the team will have to decide whether to let him go or sign him to a rest-of-season deal. He could see some minutes as soon as Tuesday night, especially if Devonte’ Graham (ankle) can’t go.
Before being promoted to the NBA by the Hornets, Chealey had been a regular for the club’s G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm. He averaged 11.1 PPG, 4.3 APG, and 3.3 RPG on .398/.346/.813 shooting in 34 NBAGL games (28.3 MPG) this season.
Chealey will earn $81,678 on his second 10-day contract with Charlotte, the same amount he earned on the first one. The Hornets won’t be required to make a roster move, since they had two openings on their 15-man roster before re-signing Chealey.
2019/20 NBA Reverse Standings Update
Throughout the 2019/20 NBA season, Hoops Rumors is maintaining a feature that allows you to keep an eye on what the 2020 draft order will look like. Our 2019/20 Reverse Standings tool, which lists the NBA’s 30 teams from worst to first, is updated daily to reflect the outcomes of the previous night’s games.
Our Reverse Standings are essentially a reflection of what 2020’s draft order would look like with no changes to lottery position. We’ve noted each club’s odds of landing the No. 1 overall pick, based on the league’s current lottery format.
[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Draft Lottery]
In instances where two non-playoff teams or two playoff teams have identical records, the order in our standings isn’t necessarily definitive — for draft purposes, the NBA breaks ties via random drawings, so those drawings would happen at the end of the year. Of course, the 14 non-playoff teams all draft before the 16 playoff teams, even if some non-playoff teams have better records than playoff teams. Our reverse standings account for that.
Traded first-round picks are included via footnotes. For example, the note next to Brooklyn’s pick says that the Nets will send their pick to the Timberwolves if it’s not in the top 14. As of today, Brooklyn has the worst record of any playoff teams, meaning that pick would be No. 15 and would change hands.
The Warriors are currently in the driver’s seat at the “top” of our reverse standings — their 13-48 record giving them a four-game cushion on the second-worst team, the 17-44 Cavaliers. It will be interesting to see whether that gap tightens when Stephen Curry returns.
Although the league’s bottom three teams will all have an equal chance at the No. 1 overall pick (14.0%) and a top-four selection (52.1%), finishing atop the reverse standings would still benefit the Warriors — the NBA’s worst team can’t fall further than the No. 5 pick, while the third-worst team could end up selecting as low as No. 7.
The Thunder‘s spot in the reverse standings is another detail worth noting. Their first-round pick will be sent to the Sixers if it’s not a top-20 selection. Based on Oklahoma City’s over the last few months (the team is 32-13 since starting the season 5-10), that pick currently projects to be No. 21.
Our Reverse Standings tracker can be found at anytime on the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features” on our desktop site, or on the “Features” page in our mobile menu. It’s a great resource not just for monitoring a team’s draft position, but also for keeping an eye on whether or not traded picks with protection will be changing hands in 2020. So be sure to check back often as the season progresses!
Note: Mobile users are advised to turn their phones sideways when viewing the Reverse Standings in order to see team records and lottery odds.
Anthony Tolliver Signs 10-Day Contract With Grizzlies
11:02pm: The Grizzlies officially signed Tolliver and waived Bell prior to tonight’s game, according to a team press release. Tolliver logged 19 minutes and had a +25 rating, knocking down 4-of-5 three-pointers in Memphis’ blowout win over Atlanta.
4:19pm: Veteran power forward Anthony Tolliver has agreed to a 10-day contract with the Grizzlies, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. In order to open a roster spot, the team is waiving forward Jordan Bell, Charania reports in another tweet.
Tolliver was waived on Saturday after finalizing a buyout agreement with Sacramento. Tolliver gave back $144,901, the same amount as a 10-day contract, as we relayed this afternoon. Tolliver was on a veteran’s minimum contract, so Sacramento will still have a cap hit of $1.6MM.
Tolliver, 34, began the season with the Trail Blazers and appeared in 33 games, including nine starts. He was dealt to the Kings and saw action in nine games before getting waived. Tolliver is a career 37.3% 3-point shooter, though he’s struggled from the perimeter this season.
Jaren Jackson Jr., Brandon Clarke and Justise Winslow are all currently sidelined with injuries and Memphis obviously didn’t feel comfortable giving Bell expanded minutes.
Bell began the season with the Timberwolves, then was dealt to the Rockets. They quickly flipped him to Memphis for Bruno Caboclo just before the trade deadline. Bell, who has a $1.62MM contract, appeared in just two games with Memphis after coming off the bench in 27 games with Minnesota.
Lakers Notes: Waiters, Smith, Davis, James
Shooting guard Dion Waiters had an impressive showing in his workout with the Lakers on Monday, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Waiters also met with coach Frank Vogel and front office executives Rob Pelinka and Kurt Rambis.
Waiters has had a trouble-filled season which included three team-imposed suspensions with the Heat. He was traded to the Grizzlies and then waived. A report surfaced last week that the Lakers would give Waiters a look. The Lakers opened up a roster spot on Sunday by waiving guard Troy Daniels.
We have more on the Lakers:
- The team also brought in another veteran shooting guard, J.R. Smith, for a workout on Monday, Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times reports. Smith had a casual conversation with Pelinka and Vogel after his workout. The team might look at more free agents and is in no hurry to fill the roster opening, Ganguli adds. Smith hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since November 2018.
- The Anthony Davis blockbuster trade with New Orleans has turned into a a win-win situation, Andrew Lopez of ESPN notes. Davis has turned the Lakers into serious contenders for the title this season, while the Pelicans’ rebuild has been accelerated with the additions of Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, along with the multiple draft picks they acquired. Ingram will be a restricted free agent this offseason, while Ball and Hart will be eligible for extensions.
- LeBron James offered high praise for the league’s top rookies after defeating both of their squads, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register relays. James led Los Angeles to wins over Memphis and Ja Morant and a pair of victories over New Orleans and Zion Williamson. “It’s a hell of a rookie class, I’ll tell you that,” James said. “These kids are special.”
Atlantic Notes: Rose, Ntilikina, Richardson, Simmons, Nets
New Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose is asking their long-suffering fans for more patience. Rather than holding a press conference, Rose instead issued a letter to the team’s fans which was posted by the team’s PR department (Twitter links here). “Nothing about this is easy, or quick, so I ask for your continued patience,” Rose wrote in part. “What I promise you in return is that I will be honest and forthright.” Rose also pointed out the team has young talent, significant future assets and financial flexibility to make moves.
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- Knicks guard Frank Ntilikina was previously represented by Rose before switching to Bouna Ndiaye last year and has high praise for the team’s new boss, Peter Botte of the New York Post relays. “He’s a good guy. We can trust him, I think,” Ntilikina said. “We all want what’s the best for the team. Leon is an expert in his job. He knows what he’s doing. He was a great agent and I’m sure he’s going to do great things here.”
- Sixers guard Josh Richardson is in the league’s concussion protocol and won’t play against the Lakers on Tuesday, Derek Bodner of The Athletic tweets. His status for the remaining games on the team’s road trip will be updated at a later date, Bodner adds.
- Sixers guard Ben Simmons shouldn’t have played against Milwaukee when he reaggravated a back ailment, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer argues. The All-Star experienced lower-back tightness while grabbing a rebound during the team’s first practice after the All-Star break. He tried to come back that weekend against the Bucks and departed in the first quarter. He’ll miss at least two weeks.
- Coach Kenny Atkinson tried to stir up the slumping Nets with a long, difficult practice on Monday, Brian Lewis of the New York Post reports. Brooklyn has dropped into eighth place in the East. “You’ve got to get a little uncomfortable when you’re not doing well. I think that’s part of the philosophy. You’ve got to feel that,” Atkinson said. “It’s great having days like this, two days in between, allows you to really practice and get some things done.”