2021 July | Hoops Rumors

James Ennis Eyeing Free Agency After Impressive Stint With Magic

July 31st, 2021 at 10:29am CST by JD Shaw

One of many players impacted by the NBA’s shortened offseason last fall, James Ennis entered the 2020/21 campaign with one goal in mind: putting forth the best season of his seven-year career.

Ennis, who went on to average 8.4 points and 4.0 rebounds in 24 minutes per contest, managed to succeed in his mission during the games he played. He made 41 appearances — missing some due to calf, hamstring, and groin injuries — and shot 47.3% from the floor, including a scorching 43.3% from deep.

With teams and players able to negotiate free-agent deals beginning on Monday at 6:00pm ET, the 31-year-old will enter the new league year as a coveted three-and-D wing.

“I’ve been in the league for a while,” Ennis told Hoops Rumors in a phone interview this week. “I’m in the league for a reason, obviously. Good vet, a good locker room guy, good teammate all-around. I just want to win. That’s my biggest thing.”

Ennis is one of a number of intriguing role-playing forwards set to reach the open market, along with teammate Otto Porter, P.J. Tucker, Nicolas Batum, Rudy Gay, Doug McDermott, Trevor Ariza, and Kent Bazemore, among others.

At 6’6” and 215 pounds, Ennis plays a position of need in the modern game and can make an impact on both ends of the floor. He’s expected to receive interest from multiple playoff contenders, with the Hornets, Jazz, Lakers, Bucks, Mavericks, and Sixers among the potential fits.

“I can guard one-through-four. I can switch, I’m versatile and I can spread the court with my shooting ability,” he explained.

Ennis’ injury woes were a blemish on an otherwise impressive campaign, but he has several healthy seasons on his résumé. Ennis appeared in 69 games during the compressed 2019/20 season and played a key role in the Sixers’ rotation the year before that, averaging 15.8 minutes per game for the team that took Kawhi Leonard’s Raptors to seven games in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

“There were a lot of injuries for Orlando this year,” he said. “I feel like that really made the front office go toward rebuilding. They had that same team there for what, four years?

“For me, I had an okay season. If I didn’t get injured so much due to the short offseason — it was a quick turnaround. I felt like that’s what caused my injuries. There were a lot of injuries, in general, this year. I only averaged 8.4 (points per game), but if I was healthy and played more games, I probably would’ve been at 10-to-13 (PPG) this past year.”

Following the Magic’s first-round playoff exit last August, Ennis began his shortened offseason by immediately getting to work on his jump shot for the coming year. He would work out during the daytime — including basketball or weight-lifting training, depending on the day — and make 500 threes each night.

He concentrated on the small – but important – details: holding his follow-through, keeping his balance, and practicing on a daily basis. The shooting repetitions paid off, as his 43.3% rate on three-pointers was the second-best mark of his career and his best since 2015/16.

Ennis’ future remains unclear as the Magic continue their rebuilding phase – they went 21-51 this season and traded Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier before the deadline – but he would welcome a return if the right dominoes fell, he said.

The veteran forward will enter free agency armed with a respectable 41-game sample that should make him an appealing under-the-radar target for teams in need of a wing.

“I like Orlando a lot. When I first got here, I got an opportunity — and that’s all you can ask from a coach,” said Ennis, who was dealt from the Sixers to the Magic at the 2020 deadline. “I’ve definitely enjoyed the city and I’ve made a lot of good memories with my daughter.”

Nico Mannion, Saben Lee, Others Receive Qualifying Offers

July 31st, 2021 at 10:25am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors have issued a qualifying offer to two-way player Nico Mannion, making him a restricted free agent, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. Because Mannion, the 48th overall pick in the 2020 draft, was on a two-way contract during his rookie season, his qualifying offer will be the equivalent of another two-way deal, with a partial guarantee worth $50K. The QO will give Golden State matching rights in the event that another team signs Mannion to an offer sheet next week.

Here are more updates on players on two-way contracts receiving qualifying offers:

Saben Lee, a 2020 second-round pick who spent his rookie season on a two-way deal, has received a qualifying offer from the Pistons, making him a restricted free agent, tweets Smith. As expected, Detroit also officially renounced the draft rights to Jaylen Hands, Smith notes.
The Bulls issued a qualifying offer to two-way player Devon Dotson, making him a restricted free agent, tweets Smith. Chicago also gave a QO to Lauri Markkanen on Friday.
Nuggets guard Markus Howard, another two-way player, received a qualifying offer that makes him a restricted free agent, tweets Smith. Howard appeared in 37 games for Denver last season as an undrafted rookie out of Marquette.
The Spurs extended a qualifying offer to forward Keita Bates-Diop to make him an RFA, tweets Smith. Like the other players listed above, Bates-Diop has fewer than four years of NBA experience and is therefore eligible to sign another two-way contract after spending the 2020/21 season on a two-way deal.
The Cavaliers gave a qualifying offer to two-way shooting guard Brodric Thomas, tweets Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link). Thomas appeared in a total of 32 games for Houston and Cleveland as a rookie in 2020/21.
The Grizzlies announced they’ve issued a qualifying offer to big man Killian Tillie, making him a restricted free agent. Tillie appeared in 18 games for Memphis as a rookie on his two-way deal.

Since all of these players are coming off two-way contracts and have only spent one season with their respective teams, their QOs are one-year, two-way offers with $50K guarantees.

Pacific Notes: Warriors, Lacob, Moody, Larranaga

July 31st, 2021 at 9:55am CST by Dana Gauruder

Prior to the draft, the Warriors’ top players were reportedly urging the front office to make a major deal by using assets such the No. 7 and 14 picks in the draft. Golden State ultimately didn’t make a deal, instead drafting Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody.

Majority owner Joe Lacob said it’s “unlikely” will swing a big deal this offseason, Anthony Slater of The Athletic reports. The Warriors don’t want to give up an established star for another one.

“I know this isn’t popular with a lot of people. They think we ought to go get the next star,” Lacob said. “We already have the stars. And we have a payroll that’s — and I’ve said this when I was interviewed before, but nobody listened. It’s very unlikely, I’ve said that we’re not going to trade for anybody that people are expecting. Very unlikely.”

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In the same story, Lacob said he’s ecstatic how the draft unfolded. “We’ll probably never have two lottery picks again. If we do, we’ll have a problem,” he said. “The thing that’s most amazing to me is how it worked out. I shouldn’t say where they were on our board, but it’s hard for me not to say it. I’ll just tell you they were both clearly in our top 10. We feel like we got really fortunate on Kuminga. Then with Moody, I think it’s pretty common knowledge we were seriously considering him at seven.”
Warriors stars Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson attended Moody’s draft workout, Alex Didion of NBC Sports Bay Area relays. Moody also has the same representative as Draymond Green and they had conversations leading up to the draft.
Jay Larranaga is joining Tyronn Lue’s coaching staff with the Clippers, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets. Larranaga has been Brad Stevens‘ top assistant with the Celtics over the past seven seasons.

Eastern Rumors: Ball, Rose, Tucker, Portis, Allen, Williams, Fournier, Schroder, Horton-Tucker

July 31st, 2021 at 9:15am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Bulls are looking to make to major additions to shore up their point guard position, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

The Bulls have been linked for months to Pelicans point guard Lonzo Ball and there’s thought to be mutual interest between the two sides on a four-year deal worth more than $80MM. If the Pelicans extend a $14.36MM qualifying offer to Ball, he’ll be a restricted free agent — the Bulls would have to give him an offer sheet and hope New Orleans doesn’t match it, or work out a sign-and-trade with the Pels.

The Bulls may have some competition from the Celtics, who have been recently mentioned as a potential Ball suitor after dealing away Kemba Walker. There’s increasing speculation the Celtics will not look to re-sign unrestricted free agent Evan Fournier, says Fischer. That possibility increased significantly after the Celtics agreed to acquire Josh Richardson from the Mavericks.

Chicago is also considering another Derrick Rose reunion and there’s mutual interest. It’s uncertain if the Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau can convince Rose, an unrestricted free agent, to re-sign with them if the Bulls make a hard push. However, Chicago will likely need to shed salary in order to bring in both Ball and Rose and the Knicks have plenty of cap room to outbid the Bulls for his services. While that’s a best case scenario in the Bulls’ eyes, they’re intent on adding two point guards this summer, especially with Coby White out indefinitely after undergoing left shoulder surgery, per Fischer.

Fischer offers up a number of other interesting items:

The Bucks are interested in bringing back two of their prominent free agents. They’d like to re-sign defensive specialist P.J. Tucker on a contract in the neighborhood of two years and $20MM. They are also hoping to re-sign forward Bobby Portis and the feeling is mutual. Since the Bucks only have Non-Bird rights on Portis, they’d have to use their mid-level exception to give him a starting salary higher than about $4.3MM.
The Cavaliers view the Raptors as their main threat to re-signing restricted free agent Jarrett Allen. Toronto’s interest in Allen surfaced last weekend. However, Cleveland is likely to match any offer sheet for Allen. The Raptors are also eying Kings free agent Richaun Holmes.
League sources think Lou Williams, one of the league’s top reserves, could re-sign with the Hawks on a veteran’s minimum deal, sys Fischer.
The Knicks, who need to add scoring punch, have expressed interest in Fournier. They’ve also been linked to Lakers guards Dennis Schroder and Talen Horton-Tucker. Schroder will be looking for a new home after the Lakers agreed to acquire Russell Westbrook. Previous reports have indicated the Knicks’ potential pursuit of Fournier and Schroder. Horton-Tucker is a restricted free agent after the Lakers extended a qualifying offer, though the team has the option of pulling it off the table.
According to SNY.TV’s Ian Begley, there’s support within the Knicks organization to pursue Nets free agent Spencer Dinwiddie and he’s interested in remaining in New York. Devonte’ Graham, Kendrick Nunn, and Kyle Lowry are some other potential targets at point guard. At the wing, the Knicks have some interest in the Spurs’ DeMar DeRozan and they’ve had discussions with the Magic this week regarding a potential Terrence Ross trade.

Western Rumors: Lakers, Pelicans, McDermott, Ja. Green, Holmes, More

July 31st, 2021 at 8:58am CST by Luke Adams

After agreeing to acquire Russell Westbrook from Washington, the Lakers won’t have a ton of cap flexibility to add outside free agents this offseason. Los Angeles will likely be limited to the taxpayer mid-level exception and minimum-salary contracts, since acquiring a player via sign-and-trade would create a hard cap that the team wouldn’t be able to stay under.

However, even with limited resources, that doesn’t mean the Lakers will have to wait until the second or third wave of free agency to go bargain hunting. According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, people around the NBA believe that several veterans in search of a championship ring could be willing to pass on more lucrative offers elsewhere to join the Lakers. Fischer identifies DeMar DeRozan, Rudy Gay, and Carmelo Anthony as some players who may fit that bill.

Here are a few more rumors from around the Western Conference:

The Pelicans, Suns, and Nuggets are believed to be among the teams interested in pursuing Pacers sharpshooter Doug McDermott in free agency, according to Fischer. A recent report from The Indianapolis Star suggested Indiana may lose McDermott this summer.
A return to the Nuggets is a possibility for JaMychal Green, but the power forward is also expected to draw interest from the Pelicans and Timberwolves, says Fischer.
Following up on a Marc Stein report linking Daniel Theis to the Rockets, Fischer confirms Houston is eyeing the veteran big man and suggests the team’s $8.2MM trade exception could be used to land Theis in a sign-and-trade.
According to Fischer, sources expect Richaun Holmes to remain with the Kings. That’s a bit of a surprise — Sacramento only has Holmes’ Early Bird rights and has been linked to several other centers, having agreed on Friday to acquire Tristan Thompson. But the Hornets, one of Holmes’ presumed suitors, are no longer expected to go big for a free agent center after drafting Kai Jones and agreeing to trade for Mason Plumlee, per Fischer. The Raptors, Mavericks, and Knicks may still be possibilities for Holmes, Fischer adds.
The Mavericks are viewed as the favorites to sign Sterling Brown in free agency, league sources tell Fischer.

Trade Rumors: Raptors, McCollum, SGA, Celtics, Wolves

July 31st, 2021 at 8:34am CST by Luke Adams

As long as Ben Simmons remains in Philadelphia and Kyle Lowry hasn’t reached an agreement in free agency, league sources aren’t ruling out the possibility of a deal between the Sixers and Raptors that would send Lowry to his hometown via sign-and-trade, says Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report. However, with several suitors expected to pursue Lowry aggressively in free agency, that doesn’t appear to be a likely outcome for the time being.

According to Fischer, one intriguing trade framework that the Raptors have discussed with the Trail Blazers would involve Pascal Siakam and CJ McCollum. But those talks haven’t gathered any real momentum yet, Fischer cautions.

Here are a few more trade-related rumors and notes from around the NBA:

Although Shai Gilgeous-Alexander‘s name popped up in trade rumors leading up to the draft, the Thunder never offered him to the Cavaliers in negotiations for the No. 3 pick, according to Fischer, who reports that Oklahoma City only made present and future draft assets available in those discussions. The expectation is that the Thunder and Gilgeous-Alexander will reach an agreement on a maximum-salary contract extension this offseason, Fischer adds.
Before agreeing to a deal to acquire Josh Richardson from Dallas, the Celtics also expressed trade interest in Grizzlies wing Kyle Anderson, sources tell Fischer.
The Timberwolves, who have long been in the market for a power forward, inquired on Danilo Gallinari before agreeing to send Ricky Rubio to Cleveland, says Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. The Hawks turned down Minnesota’s offer for Gallinari.

Chris Paul Considered Likely To Remain With Suns

July 31st, 2021 at 8:23am CST by Dana Gauruder

Chris Paul will likely remain with the Suns on a contract for at least three years and $90MM, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report. Fischer writes that the veteran point guard “appears all but destined to return to Phoenix.”

Paul holds a $44.2MM option on his contract for next season. He could opt out and become an unrestricted free agent, then re-sign with the club for multiple years. Alternatively, he could opt in and sign an extension.

The Pelicans were eager to acquire Paul, which would have given them a top-notch veteran floor leader to pair with franchise player Zion Williamson. Newly-hired head coach Willie Green has a close relationship with Paul and the perennial All-Star lobbied Houston’s front office to hire Green as an assistant when he played there. New Orleans tried to bring in Paul via a trade last off-season before he was acquired by the Suns from Oklahoma City.

An ESPN report this week also noted the connection between Green and Paul and the likelihood of CP3 staying put. Suns GM James Jones had expressed optimism that Paul would remain with the club.

There had been talk around the league this week about Paul potentially bolting from the Western Conference champions, Fischer adds. One of those avenues was closed when the Lakers opted to trade for Russell Westbrook.

Salary-cap issues, plus a rivalry between the two franchises, essentially made a potential Suns-Lakers trade a moot point.

Eastern Notes: Mobley, Gores, Wizards, Bonner

July 30th, 2021 at 9:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Cavaliers fielded calls for over a month regarding the No. 3 pick in the draft. However the team’s brass was more excited about adding a rookie with a very high ceiling than reconstructing the roster, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. The Cavs selected USC big man Evan Mobley with the pick. “We were able to draft a transformative talent, whose versatility, athleticism and physical gifts are qualities we covet in a player. Evan Mobley checks each of those boxes,” GM Koby Altman said.

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Pistons owner Tom Gores calls top pick Cade Cunningham a natural leader and feels giddy about the team’s future, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. “I’ve never felt better,” Gores said. “I woke up this morning and felt like we won already. We haven’t won a game yet. We felt like we won. I feel excited about where we’re at, but I also know through my life experiences we’ve got to go to work. We’ve got a great foundation.”
Zach Guthrie and Mike Miller will be part of Wes Unseld Jr.‘s staff with the Wizards, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report tweets. Guthrie worked under Rick Carlisle in Dallas last season, while Miller is the former coach of the G League’s Westchester Knicks. Former Magic assistant Pat Delany had already agreed to join the Wizards.
Becky Bonner is expected to be a bench coach on Jamahl Mosley‘s Magic staff, Fischer adds in another tweet. She’s already the team’s Director of Player Development and Quality Control. Nate Tibbetts, Dale Osbourne and Kaleb Canales are expected to be on the front of Orlando’s bench assisting Mosley, according to Fischer (Twitter link).

Grizzlies Waive Jontay Porter

July 30th, 2021 at 9:23pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies have waived big man Jontay Porter, the team’s PR department tweets.

Porter came off the bench in 11 games last season but only averaged 4.9 MPG. Porter, 21, went undrafted in 2019 out of Missouri.

Porter, the brother of Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., underwent multiple knee surgeries before making his NBA debut in April. He also played for the team’s G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, at the Orlando bubble.

Porter was signed to a three-year, $6MM deal last November but the salaries in the last two years of the deal were not fully guaranteed. He would have been owed $1.95MM for next season if he had remained on the roster past August 18th.

Memphis will incur a $300K cap hit for waiving Porter, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets.

Pacers Exercise Edmond Sumner’s 2021/22 Option

July 30th, 2021 at 8:48pm CST by Luke Adams

8:48pm: It’s official, according to a team press release.

1:00pm: The Pacers will pick up their team option on Edmond Sumner‘s contract for 2021/22, according to president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard (Twitter link via Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files).

The option will pay Sumner a $2.32MM salary before he becomes eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2022.

Sumner, 25, had a career year for the Pacers in 2020/21, playing a career-high 16.2 minutes per game and earning 24 starts in 53 contests. The 6’4″ guard averaged 7.5 PPG and 1.8 RPG with an impressive shooting line of .525/.398/.819.

While there might be some extra minutes on the wing available in Indiana in 2021/22 if Doug McDermott departs in free agency, Sumner will face competition from newly-drafted swingman Chris Duarte. A number of Pacers veterans have also been mentioned in trade rumors in recent weeks, so it’s possible the team will shake up its roster a little during the free agency, but when the dust settles, Sumner should be in the mix for a regular rotation role.

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