Southeast Notes: Schlenk, Wizards, Collins, Bogdanovic
In a revealing media conversation on Wednesday, Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk suggested that he does not intend to add any more players to Atlanta’s roster ahead of training camp, according to Sarah K. Spencer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The team currently has 17 players on its roster, including its two-way players.
Although Schlenk does not anticipating trading the club’s new depth yet, he does think that the Hawks have enough players to package in a deal if needed.
“One of the things I really like about where we are is with the veteran guys, with the young guys we have, we have a lot of guys on our roster that other teams value,” Schlenk said of the Hawks’ new-look squad. “So we always try to keep ourselves in a position, if there is a star player that becomes available, we’re in a position to try to go acquire those.”
There’s more out of the league’s Southeast Division:
- Fred Katz of The Athletic recaps an interesting offseason for the Wizards, including the re-signing of $80MM man Davis Bertans, the addition of backup center Robin Lopez, and the drafting of forward Deni Avdija and his positional fit on the roster. Additionally, Katz reports that forward Anthony Gill, another new addition, received “significant offers” to return to the EuroLeague for the 2020/21 season. The 28-year-old sharpshooter connected on 44 percent of his long-range looks for Khimki in Russia during the 2019/20 season.
- Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk indicated that Atlanta would like to work out a contract extension with power forward John Collins, Mark Medina of USA Today tweets. Though the club added forward Danilo Gallinari to the tune of a lucrative three-year, $60MM contract in free agency this offseason, Collins is expected to remain the starting four.
- New Hawks shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic is among the top offseason additions who seem primed to push the Hawks into the playoff mix, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic opines.
California Notes: Bogdanovic, Clippers, Gasol, McNair
The Kings may have been savvy to let shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic walk in restricted free agency, Jason Jones of The Athletic posits. The addition of promising rookie shooting guard Tyrese Haliburton via the 2020 draft made Bogdanovic superfluous to Sacramento’s long-term team-building plans.
The replacement of former Kings GM Vlade Divac with Monte McNair this summer also yielded a different assessment of Bogdanovic’s value with the still-developing club, Jones writes. Bogdanovic’s four-year, $72MM contract extension also would have put Sacramento, a team that has not made the NBA playoffs since 2006, well above the salary cap.
There’s more out of California:
- Jovan Buha of The Athletic assesses the current roster depth of the Clippers and speculates about how Los Angeles could still upgrade its club, most likely through trading point guards Lou Williams or Patrick Beverley for a ball-handler upgrade.
- New Lakers center Marc Gasol discussed his fit with his new club, especially with regard to how he intends to contribute on the defensive end of the floor, according to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times. “I know we’re going to have great communication,” Gasol said. He also discussed his expected on-court meshing with Finals MVP LeBron James. “I’m a first pass kinda guy. But somebody — he’s gonna score too at his will whenever he decides to score, he’s gonna be able to score.”
- Jason Jones of The Athletic takes stock of Kings GM Monte McNair‘s patient approach to his first offseason in Sacramento. Jones suggests that McNair’s reticence to make a big splash on the free agent or trade market indicates a confidence in the development of the club’s young core.
Bucks Sign Justin Patton To Training Camp Contract
DECEMBER 2: Patton’s deal with the Bucks is now official, according to RealGM’s transactions log.
NOVEMBER 26: Free agent center Justin Patton is set to receive a training camp invitation from the Bucks, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic (via Twitter).
Since being drafted with the No. 16 pick in 2017, the 23-year-old big man has logged time with the Timberwolves, Sixers and Thunder. After being signed by the Pistons earlier in the summer,
Patton was traded to — and subsequently released by — the Clippers earlier this offseason. The Creighton alum, who will clear waivers on Friday, has appeared in nine NBA games across his three-season career.
Last season, the 6’11”, 241-pound big man logged seven games with Milwaukee’s G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, and 23 for the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue. Across his 30 G League games during the 2019/20 season, Patton averaged 12.1 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 3.2 BPG, and 2.9 APG.
Kings Sign Frank Kaminsky
NOVEMBER 30: The deal is official, according to a press release issued by the Kings.
NOVEMBER 26: The Kings have agreed to sign free agent forward/center Frank Kaminsky to a one-year contract, his agent Kevin Bradbury tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Kaminsky’s one-year deal with Sacramento is non-guaranteed, per Jason Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Kaminsky, 27, averaged 9.7 PPG and 4.5 RPG on .450/.331/.678 shooting in 39 games (19.9 MPG) for Phoenix in 2019/20. A patella stress fracture shortened his season, however, and he played a very limited role during the Suns’ 8-0 run in the bubble at Walt Disney World. The team declined his $5MM option for 2020/21 last week.
Having lost Alex Len and Harry Giles in free agency, Sacramento has fortified its frontcourt by agreeing to a deal with Hassan Whiteside on Wednesday and now lining up a contract for Kaminsky.
The two incoming veterans will join a rotation that also features Richaun Holmes, Marvin Bagley, and Nemanja Bjelica up front.
Will Magnay Signs Two-Way Contract With Pelicans
DECEMBER 1: Magnay has formally signed his two-way deal with New Orleans, according to the NBA’s official transactions log.
NOVEMBER 26: The Pelicans have agreed to sign center Will Magnay to a two-way contract, according to Olgun Uluc of ESPN (via Twitter).
The 22-year-old most recently played in the Australian NBL. The 6’10” big man was voted that league’s Most Improved Player for the 2019/20 season, while playing for the Brisbane Bullets. For the season, Magnay tallied averages of 8.1 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and an NBL-leading 2.1 BPG. Magnay went undrafted in 2018.
The Pelicans have been active in reshaping their center rotation this offseason. They recently traded for former Thunder center Steven Adams and signed former Hornets big man Willy Hernangomez to be his primary backup. Raw second-year center Jaxson Hayes remains on the roster as well.
Magnay joins undrafted forward Naji Marshall in reportedly filling out both of New Orleans’s two-way contract slots. This year, two-way players can partake in up to 50 games for their NBA clubs.
Bulls Sign Zach Norvell To One-Year Deal
NOVEMBER 28: The Bulls have officially signed Norvell, according to RealGM’s transactions log.
NOVEMBER 26: The Bulls have reached an agreement to sign free agent shooting guard Zach Norvell to a one-year contract, his agents at Priority Sports tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). No further details on the agreement were provided, but I’d expected it to be a non-guaranteed training camp deal.
After going undrafted out of Gonzaga in 2019, Norvell signed a two-way contract with the Lakers for the start of the ’19/20 season. He was waived last December and then briefly returned to the NBA in February when he signed a 10-day contract with Golden State.
Norvell, who will turn 23 next month, only logged 41 minutes across five games at the NBA level, but appeared in 36 G League contests, recording 14.7 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and 2.9 APG on .397/.388/.814 shooting.
Once the Bulls finalize the signing of Norvell and the rest of their reported roster moves, they’ll have just one spot left on their 20-man offseason roster, tweets K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.
Community Shootaround: Which 2020 Lottery Teams Will Make 2021 Playoffs?
Free agency opened less than a week ago, which means that in a typical NBA offseason, today would be about the equivalent of July 5. But in 2020’s warp-speed offseason, the start of training camps are, incredibly, just five days away. Opening night will tip off in less than four weeks.
So even though there may be more free agent signings and trades on the way in the coming days and weeks, it’s not too early to start considering what the on-court impact of this offseason’s roster moves will be.
[RELATED: 2020 NBA Free Agent Tracker]
With that in mind, we’re looking today at which 2020 non-playoff teams have the best chance at returning to the postseason in 2021.
Let’s start in the East, where the Hawks look like perhaps the best candidate to get out of lottery territory. They finished 14th in the conference last season, but an offseason roster overhaul that saw them add Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Rajon Rondo, Kris Dunn, and Onyeka Okongwu – plus a healthy Clint Capela – suddenly makes Atlanta’s roster a whole lot more interesting.
There’s also some intrigue in Washington and Charlotte. Will John Wall‘s return be enough to help buoy the Wizards into a playoff spot? Will the arrivals of No. 3 pick LaMelo Ball and free agent splash Gordon Hayward improve the Hornets significantly?
The other four Eastern teams didn’t necessarily upgrade their rosters in a major way, but the Bulls could be intriguing after hiring Billy Donovan and drafting Patrick Williams, especially if Otto Porter is back to full health. The Pistons, Cavaliers, and Knicks are probably at least a year or two from playoff contention, but if their young talent takes bigger immediate strides than expected, maybe they could make some noise.
Over in the West, there are handful of intriguing candidates to make the move from the lottery to the postseason.
The Warriors, who will have a healthy Stephen Curry back in their lineup to go along with Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Oubre, and No. 2 pick James Wiseman, are an obvious team to watch. So are the Suns, who have added Chris Paul, Jae Crowder, Langston Galloway, and E’Twaun Moore, and No. 10 pick Jalen Smith to the mix after an 8-0 run during the NBA’s summer restart.
The only major moves the Pelicans and Grizzlies made in free agency involved re-signing their own players, and New Orleans traded away Jrue Holiday. But both teams were knocking on the door of the playoffs in 2020, and young cornerstones like Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Ja Morant, and Jaren Jackson should only get better.
[RELATED: 2020 NBA Offseason Trades]
That leaves the Timberwolves, Spurs, and Kings. Minnesota has a long way to go after finishing last season with a 19-45 record, but adding No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards and having a full season with Karl-Anthony Towns, D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, and Juan Hernangomez shouldn’t hurt.
As for San Antonio and Sacramento, neither team was too far removed from the postseason in 2020. Continued improvements from young players like Derrick White, Dejounte Murray, De’Aaron Fox, and Marvin Bagley should help keep them within striking distance, and both teams got nice draft-lottery additions in Devin Vassell and Tyrese Haliburton.
It’s also worth noting that any team that finishes in the top 10 of a conference has a chance to make the postseason this year as a result of the NBA’s new play-in tournament. The No. 9 and No. 10 seeds will play each other at season’s end, and the winner will face the loser of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 game for the final playoff spot. As a result, more teams than ever could remain in the playoff hunt until late in the season.
What do you think? Which teams do you like to make it back the playoffs this year after missing out in 2020? And which of last season’s playoff teams do you expect to fall into the lottery to make room for those newcomers?
Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
Kings Re-Sign DaQuan Jeffries
NOVEMBER 28: The signing is official, per team press release.
NOVEMBER 26: The Kings have agreed to re-sign guard/forward DaQuan Jeffries to a two-year, $3MM contract, his agents inform Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
It sounds like it’s a minimum-salary deal, which would be worth about $3.15MM over two years. Jeffries’ first year will be guaranteed, with a team option on year two, according to James Ham of NBC Sports California (Twitter link).
Jeffries, a former Tulsa standout, signed an Exhibit 10 contract with Orlando in 2019 after going undrafted. He was released by the Magic before the regular season began, but was claimed off waivers by the Kings, who converted him to a two-way contract.
The 23-year-old played out the full season on that deal, averaging 3.8 PPG and 1.4 RPG in 13 games (10.8 MPG) for Sacramento. He saw more action for the club’s G League affiliate, recording 16.5 PPG and 6.9 RPG on .460/.342/.705 shooting for the Stockton Kings in 27 games (31.0 MPG).
Jeffries received a qualifying offer from Sacramento last week, which made him a restricted free agent. He wouldn’t have been able to sign outright with another team without the Kings getting a chance to match the offer.
Lakers Re-Sign Kostas Antetokounmpo To Two-Way Contract
The Lakers have brought back forward Kostas Antetokounmpo on a new two-way contract, the team announced today.
Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s younger brother spent the 2019/20 season with the Lakers on a two-way deal. Although he logged just 20 total minutes in five games at the NBA level, Kostas was a full-time starter for the South Bay Lakers in the G League, averaging 14.1 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 1.3 BPG on 62.3% shooting in 38 games (25.5 MPG).
The Lakers didn’t issue Antetokounmpo a qualifying offer before last week’s deadline, so he would’ve been free to join any team in unrestricted free agency. But he’ll return to the club instead, alongside fellow two-way player Devontae Cacok.
[RELATED: 2020/21 NBA Two-Way Contract Tracker]
In bringing back Antetokounmpo and Cacok, the Lakers are one of two teams not turning over either of their two-way slots. The Celtics (Tacko Fall and Tremont Waters) are the other.
Rockets Officially Announce Four Signings
The Rockets have issued a press release officially confirming that they’ve completed four recently-reported free agent contracts. Those deals are for the following players:
- Bruno Caboclo, F/C (full story)
- Jae’Sean Tate, F (full story)
- Sterling Brown, G (full story)
- Mason Jones, G — two-way deal (full story)
Caboclo, Tate, and Brown will all be part of Houston’s 15-man roster in 2020/21, while Jones will occupy one of the team’s two-way slots, alongside Kenny Wooten. Brown reportedly received a one-year contract, with Caboclo getting one year plus a second-year team option. Tate reportedly signed a three-year deal worth a little above the minimum.
Once the Rockets officially sign DeMarcus Cousins and Kenyon Martin Jr., as is expected, they’ll have one open spot remaining on their projected 15-man squad for the regular season.
The team previously made a formal announcement to confirm the acquisition of its top free agency addition, Christian Wood.