Mavericks Re-Sign Courtney Lee
DECEMBER 11: The Mavs have officially signed Lee to his training camp deal, the team announced today in a press release. Dallas once again has a full 20-man camp roster.
DECEMBER 9: Veteran shooting guard Courtney Lee will return to the Mavericks as part of the club’s training camp roster, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN (via Twitter).
The 6’5″ guard was not a consistent rotation presence for the Mavericks during the 2019/20 season. He appeared in just 24 games, averaging 4.5 PPG, 1.3 RPG, and 0.8 SPG in 14.4 MPG.
The 35-year-old out of Western Kentucky was an effective three-and-D perimeter player in his prime, and prior to Dallas had stops with the Magic, Nets, Celtics, Grizzlies, Hornets, and Knicks across a 12-year NBA career.
Lee will face an uphill struggle to crack the 15-man squad after training camp. MacMahon notes that, though Lee will most likely not make the club’s opening night roster, the team thinks highly of his veteran locker room presence.
According to MacMahon (Twitter link), an injured calf caused Lee missed the 2019/20 season’s Orlando campus restart. A preseason opportunity with the Mavericks could double as a showcase for him to the rest of the league, even if he doesn’t stick with Dallas.
Wolves Sign Charlie Brown Jr. To Camp Contract
The Timberwolves have signed free agent shooting guard Charlie Brown Jr. to a training camp contract, the team announced today in a press release.
Brown, 23, signed a two-way contract with the Hawks in July 2019, shortly after going undrafted out of Saint Joseph’s. He spent his entire rookie season playing on that deal, appearing in 10 games for Atlanta and 28 for the College Park Skyhawks.
Although he logged just 40 total minutes at the NBA level, Brown had a productive year in the G League, recording 17.4 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 2.9 APG in 33.3 minutes per contest for the Skyhawks. He struggled a little with his shooting efficiency, however, making 42.2% of his total field goal attempts, including just 26.8% from beyond the arc.
Brown seems more likely to end up playing for the Iowa Wolves – Minnesota’s G League affiliate – than to earn a spot on the Timberwolves’ regular season roster.
The Wolves now have 19 players under contract, with a 20th (Jordan McLaughlin) still a restricted free agent.
Longest-Tenured NBA GMs/Presidents
As is the case in the NBA’s head coaching ranks, a number of long-tenured heads of basketball operations have been replaced over the course of 2020, a result of some offseason front office shakeups.
Since we put together last summer’s list of the league’s longest-tenured heads of basketball operations, the Bulls (John Paxson/Gar Forman) and Rockets (Daryl Morey) are among the six teams that have made major changes, installing a new decision-maker atop their respective basketball operations departments for the first time in well over a decade. As such, it’s time to update our list.
While only one person holds a team’s head coaching job, that same team could carry a variety of front office executives with titles like general manager, president of basketball operations, or executive VP of basketball operations. In some cases, it’s not always which clear which executive should be considered the club’s head of basketball operations, or which one has the ultimate final say on roster decisions. That distinction becomes even more nebulous when taking into account team ownership.
For our list of the longest-tenured GMs/presidents in the NBA, we’ve done our best to identify the top exec in each front office, but if a situation isn’t entirely clear-cut, we’ve made a note below.
Without further ado, here’s the list of the NBA’s longest-tenured heads of basketball operations, along with their respective titles and the dates they were hired or promoted:
- Gregg Popovich, Spurs (president): May 31, 1994
- Brian Wright holds the general manager title, but Popovich ultimately has final say.
- Pat Riley, Heat (president): September 2, 1995
- Danny Ainge, Celtics (president): May 9, 2003
- Donn Nelson, Mavericks (GM/president): March 19, 2005
- Owner Mark Cuban is also heavily involved in basketball decisions and ultimately has final say.
- Sam Presti, Thunder (GM/executive VP): June 7, 2007
- Bob Myers, Warriors (GM/president): April 24, 2012
- Neil Olshey, Trail Blazers (president): June 4, 2012
- Dennis Lindsey, Jazz (executive VP): August 7, 2012
- Masai Ujiri, Raptors (president): May 31, 2013
- Tim Connelly, Nuggets (president): June 17, 2013
- Sean Marks, Nets (GM): February 18, 2016
- Kevin Pritchard, Pacers (president): May 1, 2017
- Jeff Weltman, Magic (president): May 22, 2017
- Travis Schlenk, Hawks (president): May 25, 2017
- Jon Horst, Bucks (GM): June 16, 2017
- Koby Altman, Cavaliers (GM): June 19, 2017
- Lawrence Frank, Clippers (president): August 4, 2017
- Mitch Kupchak, Hornets (GM/president): April 8, 2018
- Tommy Sheppard, Wizards (GM): April 2, 2019
- Sheppard assumed the job on an interim basis on April 2, 2019. He was named the permanent GM on July 22, 2019.
- Rob Pelinka, Lakers (GM/VP): April 9, 2019
- Pelinka has been the Lakers’ GM since February 2017, but was below Magic Johnson in the front office hierarchy until Johnson resigned on April 9, 2019.
- James Jones, Suns (GM): April 11, 2019
- Jones began serving as the Suns’ co-interim GM alongside Trevor Bukstein in October 2018, but was named the lone, permanent head of basketball operations on April 11, 2019.
- Zach Kleiman, Grizzlies (executive VP): April 11, 2019
- David Griffin, Pelicans (executive VP): April 17, 2019
- Gersson Rosas, Timberwolves (president): May 3, 2019
- Leon Rose, Knicks (president): March 2, 2020
- Arturas Karnisovas, Bulls (executive VP): April 13, 2020
- Troy Weaver, Pistons (GM): June 18, 2020
- Monte McNair, Kings (GM): September 17, 2020
- Rafael Stone, Rockets (GM): October 15, 2020
- Daryl Morey, Sixers (president): November 2, 2020
Information from Basketball-Reference was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Pacific Notes: Green, Wiseman, Mulder, AD, LeBron, Clippers
The Warriors shared some positive news on Draymond Green and James Wiseman on Thursday, as Green was able to lift weights and sit in on the team’s film session, while Wiseman completed his first individual workout. Both players had been unable to participate in training camp so far, possibly due to positive coronavirus tests.
However, as Drew Shiller of NBC Sports Bay Area writes, head coach Steve Kerr confirmed that both players will miss Saturday’s preseason opener and added that it’s “very unlikely” that either Green or Wiseman will play at all during the preseason. The Warriors’ final two preseason games – both against Sacramento – will take place next Tuesday and Thursday.
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
- Kerr said this week that guard Mychal Mulder, who is on a non-guaranteed contract, has a “good chance” to make the Warriors‘ regular season roster, as Tommy Call III of Warriors Wire writes. “He’s a shooter. He’s a smart player at both ends,” Kerr said of Mulder. “We were really pleased with his play a year ago. We’re a team that’s not heavy on shooting as we know, especially with Klay (Thompson) going out. Mike just has to be himself and play hard and compete.”
- Lakers stars Anthony Davis and LeBron James won’t play in the team’s preseason opener on Friday, head coach Frank Vogel confirmed (Twitter link via Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group).
- Paul George‘s $176MM contract extension with the Clippers is a precursor to the real referendum on the franchise, according to Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times, who says that Kawhi Leonard‘s willingness to re-up with the team in 2021 will determine whether or not these are still the same “Clippers of old.”
Northwest Notes: Harrison, Beasley, Maledon, Nuggets
The contract signed by new Jazz guard Shaquille Harrison is non-guaranteed, per John Hollinger of the Athletic. Jazz head coach Quin Snyder also told reporters today that Harrison is currently recovering from a broken hand, Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. The newest member of the team is engaging in individual workouts with a single coach at present.
Snyder lauded Harrison’s potential as a defender for the Jazz. “When you watch him play, it jumps out at you that he can defend,” he said.
There’s more out of the Northwest Division:
- Newly re-signed Timberwolves shooting guard Malik Beasley is stressing connection and communication in training camp, per Chris Hine of the Star Tribune. “Every day I ask [D’Angelo Russell] and Ricky [Rubio] what I can do to be a better playmaker,” Beasley said. He also noted that he and Minnesota star center Karl-Anthony Towns are similarly communicative. “We’ve built a relationship to be able to talk to each other and hold each other accountable. So I think this year is going to be a great year for KAT and the whole unit.”
- Thunder second-round rookie selection Théo Maledon has signed a four-year, $7.8MM contract, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Maledon will earn a $2MM guaranteed salary in each of the first two years of his new deal, according to Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Smith goes on to note that each of the final two seasons of Maledon’s deal – which comes out of OKC’s mid-level exception – are non-guaranteed, and that the Thunder will have a team option for the fourth year.
- Nuggets head coach Michael Malone has deemed wing Will Barton “doubtful” for Saturday’s first preseason bout against the Warriors, Chris Dempsey of Altitude Sports tweets. Malone also hailed guard PJ Dozier as the “MVP” of Denver’s training camp thus far.
Atlantic Notes: Rivers, Green, Grousbeck, Powell
New Knicks point guard Austin Rivers was held out of practice on Wednesday with a groin injury, according to Steve Popper of Newsday.
“I think it puts you behind, but you also want to be smart about it,” Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said about his approach with the injury going forward.
Marc Berman of the New York Post tweets that, given the way Thibodeau has discussed the injury, Rivers’s preseason availability could be up in the air. The Knicks’ new guard has not taken any contact in practices to this point.
There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- New Sixers swingman Danny Green will be bringing a championship pedigree and veteran leadership to his new club, as Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer details. Green has started for three title teams, including the two most recent champions. New Sixers head coach Doc Rivers applauded Green’s “unbelievable” shooting during his first practice for Philadelphia.
- In a conversation with Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe, Celtics majority owner Wyc Grousbeck discussed the departure of forward Gordon Hayward, the knee troubles of starting point guard Kemba Walker, and his excitement about Boston rookies Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard. “[Team president] Danny (Ainge’s) excitement about Aaron Nesmith is about the shooting and skill and size on both sides of the ball,” Grousbeck said. “I’m not saying Payton Pritchard is (Rajon) Rondo, but Danny had that level of excitement about seeing this kid on the team.”
- Raptors reserve guard Norman Powell will lead a new-look bench unit for Toronto, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports. “This year the team looks a little different,” Powell said. “I think that’s the biggest challenge for me this year, is how do I get the new guys coming in to have that [same] chemistry [we had last season] so we can make an impact and sustain that high level of play and competitiveness, and keep playing Raptors basketball.” Second unit mainstays Serge Ibaka and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson both departed in free agency,
Southwest Notes: Melton, Cousins, Forman, Aldridge
Third-year Grizzlies reserve point guard De’Anthony Melton bought cars for his mother and sister after inking a new four-year, $35MM extension with Memphis, according to Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal.
“It’s not a surprise anymore because they already know. But yeah, that’s definitely the first thing, they got cars,” Melton said.
The guard averaged 7.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, and 2.9 APG for the 2019/20 season. His modest output last season, however, belies his defensive impact for the club.
There’s more out of the Southwest Division:
- New Rockets center DeMarcus Cousins is enjoying training camp with his new team, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Cousins signed a non-guaranteed, one-year veteran’s minimum deal with Houston after missing all of his 2019/20 season for the eventual champion Lakers with a torn ACL.
- The Pelicans have added former Bulls GM Gar Forman to their scouting team as a special advisor, as K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago details. Johnson notes that Forman has had a long relationship with New Orleans team president David Griffin.
- Per the wishes of Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, center/power forward LaMarcus Aldridge has been working on his three-point shot during team practices this season, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. Though he is a career 31.2% three-point shooter, Aldridge connected on a solid 38.9% of a career-high 3.0 long-range attempts during the 2019/20 season.
Central Notes: G League, Valentine, K. Porter, Markkanen
The G League affiliate of the Cavaliers – the Canton Charge – and the G League affiliate of the Pacers – the Fort Wayne Mad Ants – are among the teams that plan on participating in the NBA’s G League proposed “bubble” this season, per JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link).
As we previously reported, the G League affiliates of the Celtics, Heat, Lakers, and Pistons are leaning toward opting out of the NBAGL bubble season, expected to take place in Atlanta.
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- Bulls reserve shooting guard Denzel Valentine will miss Chicago’s first two preseason games with a tweaked hamstring, according to Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago. Injuries have limited Valentine to appearing in just 170 of 393 possible regular season contests during his first four seasons with Chicago. “I’ve been working with the medical and training staff right now. It’s pretty much day by day,” Valentine said.
- Cavaliers wing Kevin Porter Jr. rejoined the club for his first practice with Cleveland this season, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. A source told Fedor that the Cavaliers “probably won’t rush” Porter into the Cavaliers’ first preseason contest on Saturday, against the Pacers.
- In a new mailbag, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago expressed optimism that the Bulls will be able to work out a rookie scale contract extension with eligible power forward Lauri Markkanen before the December 21 deadline. Johnson anticipates that new coach Billy Donovan will emphasize Markkanen moving without the ball this season.
Nuggets Exercise Fourth-Year Option For MPJ
The Nuggets announced (Twitter link) that they have picked up their fourth-year team option on forward Michael Porter Jr., who enjoyed a promising 2019/20 season for the club. The option will pay Porter $5,258,735 in ’21/22.
As we outlined earlier, players entering the second or third year of their rookie scale deals are already under contract for this year. December 29 is the deadline for clubs to make determinations on those players for next season, 2021/22.
Porter missed his entire first season as a pro due to a back injury, so 2019/20 was technically his rookie year. In just 16.4 minutes per contest, the 6’10” forward out of Missouri averaged 9.3 PPG and 4.7 RPG across 55 games. He showcased an impressive slash line, shooting .509/.422/.833.
With the departure of starting small forward Jerami Grant to the Pistons this offseason, Porter figures to see a bigger role on the floor for Denver. He will be eligible for a rookie scale extension during the 2021 offseason.
Gary Trent Plans To Play Out Season Without Extension
Trail Blazers wing Gary Trent Jr. intends to play out the 2020/21 season and reach restricted free agency rather than signing an early contract extension, as Jason Quick of The Athletic tweets.
Trent had a strong showing during the NBA’s restart in Orlando, averaging 16.9 PPG on .516/.507/.778 in eight seeding games (34.1 MPG) as the Blazers clinched a playoff spot. He had recorded 7.7 PPG on .426/.388/.833 shooting in 53 games (20.0 MPG) prior to the hiatus before emerging as one of the team’s top rotation players in the summer.
A former second-round pick, Trent is on a minimum-salary contract, but would be eligible to sign an extension that starts at 120% of the league’s estimated average salary. That would give Portland the flexibility to offer him up to $53.76MM over four years, though there’s no guarantee the team would go that high. He’d be eligible for a larger starting salary as a free agent.
Trent, who will turn 22 in January, recently signed with Klutch Sports — at the time, I noted that Klutch clients often opt for free agency over agreeing to early extensions. Choosing to go the free agency route is a signal that Trent is willing to bet on himself as he enters a contract year.
The Blazers would have the ability to match any offer sheet Trent signs as a restricted free agent next offseason.