2023 October | Hoops Rumors

Bulls Pick Up 2024/25 Option On Dalen Terry

October 31st, 2023 at 11:55am CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have exercised their team option on Dalen Terry for the 2024/25 season, the team confirmed today (Twitter link via K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago).

The 18th overall pick in the 2022 draft out of Arizona, Terry appeared in just 38 games as a rookie, averaging 2.2 points and 1.0 rebounds in 5.6 minutes per night.

The 6’7″ wing has expressed, on multiple occasions, a desire to earn a more regular role for Chicago in his second NBA season, but that hasn’t materialized in the early going — he has logged just five minutes in two appearances so far and was assigned to the Windy City Bulls in the G League for training camp.

Terry will earn approximately $3.35MM this season and now has his $3.51MM salary for 2024/25 guaranteed as well. The Bulls will have to decide by October 31, 2024 whether or not to pick up his fourth-year option for ’25/26, which is worth just shy of $5.4MM.

Rookie scale options decisions for ’24/25 are due by the end of the day on Tuesday. You can view all those decisions right here.

Harden Trade Notes: TPE, Hard Cap, Sixers’ Next Targets, More

October 31st, 2023 at 11:15am CST by Luke Adams

The size of the traded player exception the Sixers create in their James Harden deal with the Clippers will depend on whether or not they’re comfortable being hard-capped at the first tax apron ($172.3MM), notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Philadelphia could complete the trade using either the more lenient salary-matching rules for teams below both tax aprons or using the more restrictive matching rules for apron teams, which prohibit clubs from taking back more than 110% of their outgoing salary (plus $250K).

Going the latter route would result in a smaller trade exception ($6.8MM), but would avoid creating a hard cap; the former route would mean a bigger TPE ($11MM) but would leave Philadelphia just $2.8MM below a hard cap. I’d expect the 76ers – who want to make another trade or two before February’s deadline – to settle for the smaller TPE to avoid limiting their cap flexibility, but that’s just my speculation.

Here’s more on the Harden blockbuster:

Which players might the Sixers target in pre-deadline trades using the draft assets they’re acquiring for Harden? According to Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link), the “early chatter” on names to watch includes Bulls guard Zach LaVine and Raptors forward OG Anunoby. Based on Mannix’s wording, it sounds like that may just be speculation from rival executives rather than anything concrete from Sixers sources.
Zach Harper of The Athletic gives the Clippers a B-minus grade and the Sixers a C-minus grade for the trade, expressing surprise that Philadelphia didn’t get Terance Mann or Norman Powell as part of the return for Harden. In a separate Athletic story, Harper shares five reasons why he doesn’t love the deal for either side, including the fact that Russell Westbrook has played well since being traded to the Clippers and will now have his role adjusted.
While Harden and Westbrook will once again have to figure out how to coexist in a backcourt after stints together in Oklahoma City and Houston, there’s no conflict between the two guards, who have long “maintained a line of communication,” a league source tells Law Murray of The Athletic.
Filip Petrusev isn’t expected to be a contributor for the Clippers, a team source tells Murray. If Los Angeles were to waive the rookie big man, the team would open up a second spot on its 15-man roster and would only be on the hook for his partial guarantee ($559,782) rather than his full $1,119,563 salary, assuming that guarantee isn’t being increased as part of the trade.
In his story on the trade, Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times writes that the Clippers weren’t in “Harden-or-bust” mode. In fact, some people with the team believe L.A. came “extremely close” to winning the bidding for Jrue Holiday a few weeks ago, Greif writes. If the Clippers had landed Holiday, it’s unclear how the Harden saga would’ve been resolved.

Kendrick Nunn Signs With Panathinaikos

October 31st, 2023 at 10:56am CST by Luke Adams

10:56am: Panathinaikos has made it official, announcing in a press release that Nunn has signed with the team through the end of the 2023/24 season.

9:46am: Free agent guard Kendrick Nunn has reportedly agreed to sign with the Greek team Panathinaikos.

Team owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos announced in an Instagram story (Twitter video link) that Nunn would be joining Panathinaikos, as BasketNews.com relays. According to Alexandros Trigas of Sport24.com, Nunn will receive a rest-of-season deal that will be worth in the neighborhood of 1.5 to 2 million Euros.

Nunn, 28, has spent the last four seasons in the NBA, playing in 193 total regular season games for the Heat, Lakers, and Wizards. A knee injury during his first year in Los Angeles sidelined him for the entire 2021/22 season. While that injury derailed his career to some extent, the former undrafted free agent returned last season and appeared in 70 games for L.A. and Washington.

Nunn got off to a slow start in 2022/23, but finished strong after being traded to D.C. in the Rui Hachimura deal. In 31 games as a Wizard, he averaged 7.5 points and 1.8 assists in 14.1 minutes per night, with a shooting line of .447/.392/.900.

That solid second half wasn’t enough to earn Nunn a spot on an NBA roster this fall, however. Rumors linking him to European teams – including Olympiacos and Olimpia Milano – persisted throughout the offseason, and it appears he got more serious about pursuing an opportunity overseas once the NBA season got underway and he still didn’t have a deal in place.

Panathinaikos – which also features former NBA players like Juancho Hernangomez, Luca Vildoza, Kyle Guy, Kostas Antetokounmpo, and Jerian Grant – competes in the EuroLeague as well as the Greek Basket League. The team is off to a 2-3 start in EuroLeague games but is 4-0 in domestic competition.

Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Knicks, Mitchell, Thomas, Raptors

October 31st, 2023 at 8:29am CST by Luke Adams

The blockbuster trade sending James Harden from Philadelphia to Los Angeles is the culmination of a saga that made headlines for the last four months, but it’s only step one in the Sixers‘ latest plan for short- and long-term contention, says Sam Amick of The Athletic.

As Amick outlines, president of basketball operations Daryl Morey will attempt to use the draft assets he acquires from the Clippers to add another win-now piece to a roster that has gotten off to a pretty good start this season even without Harden in action.

In an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up on Tuesday morning (Twitter video link), Adrian Wojnarowski said that the Sixers feel as if they can now put together a trade package comparable to what Boston gave up to get Jrue Holiday earlier this month, though it remains to seen if a player of Holiday’s caliber – and fit – will become available prior to the February trade deadline.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Until he signs an extension with the Cavaliers or gets traded somewhere else, Donovan Mitchell will likely continue to be linked to the Knicks as a potential trade target, which his friend Josh Hart understands, according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. “He’s from New York. New York is never going to let that go away,” Hart said. “So you’ll never know what happens. That’s for the future, that’s for Knicks Twitter to talk about, and have rumors about, and put up stats of God knows what. But everyone knows that will be an underlying thing.”
Nets guard Cam Thomas, who recently had his 2024/25 option picked up, became the second-youngest player in NBA history to open the season with three consecutive 30-point games, per ESPN. The 22-year-old’s play has earned him praise from head coach Jacque Vaughn. “We know he has ability to score the basketball, but it has not been forced,” Vaughn said. “It’s been within the flow of the offense. And then at certain times when we need a bucket and he is capable of doing that also. So he is learning how to survey the game and when we need him to score and when he needs to facilitate.”
There was optimism entering the fall that new head coach Darko Rajakovic could help jump-start the Raptors‘ offense, which has struggled in recent years in half-court sets. But a week into the season, Toronto ranks dead last in the NBA in offensive rating (100.8). Regardless of whether it’s Pascal Siakam or Scottie Barnes leading the attack, the offense isn’t working, writes Eric Koreen of The Athletic.

Pacific Notes: Durant, Beal, Booker, James, Mann, Thompson, Kuminga

October 30th, 2023 at 10:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Many NBA fans are eager to see how Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Devin Booker will mesh during the regular season. However, the wait for the Suns’ big three will continue through Tuesday. Booker (ankle) is doubtful and Beal (back) is out for Phoenix’s game against San Antonio on Tuesday, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

On the same topic, Durant told Mark Medina of Sportskeeda.com that he’s not fretting over the team’s health issues now or in the long run. “I don’t look at that stuff like that,” he said. “I know people have those concerns. But I just think that is just people hoping, to be honest, that we don’t finish the season. Every team can say, ‘Shouldn’t you be worried about injuries?’ Every team can say that.”
LeBron James popped up on the Lakers’ injury report prior to their game against Orlando, Jovan Buha of The Athletic tweets. His issue was left ankle tendonitis. James was a game-time decision but was good to go.
Clippers guard Terance Mann (sprained ankle) has shed his walking boot but didn’t practice on Monday, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Mann has yet to make his season debut.
Klay Thompson (knee soreness) and Jonathan Kuminga (knee contusion) didn’t play for the Warriors against New Orleans on Monday, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets.

Wizards Exercise 2024/25 Options On Kispert, Davis, Baldwin

October 30th, 2023 at 9:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Wizards have exercised their 2024/25 options on Corey Kispert, Johnny Davis and Patrick Baldwin Jr., Ava Wallace of the Washington Post tweets.

The fourth-year option for Kispert is worth $5,705,887. It was expected he’d be retained, given that he has established himself as a steady scoring option. Kispert averaged 11.1 points last season and drained 42.4% of his 3-point attempts.

Davis had a disappointing rookie year but Washington wasn’t going to give up on a lottery pick that quickly. Davis, who made his season debut against Boston on Monday after recovering from a left elbow sprain, will make $5,291,160 in his third season.

Baldwin was a bit more of a question mark. He was included in the deal that brought Jordan Poole to Washington and sent Chris Paul to Golden State. Drafted with the No. 28 pick in 2022, Baldwin appeared in 31 regular season games with the Warriors last season and has seen spot duty thus far with Washington. He’ll receive a $2,448,840 salary in 2024/25.

The full list of rookie scale option decisions for ’24/25, which are due on Tuesday, can be found right here.

And-Ones: Media Rights, Duren, Dead Money, Tournament Courts

October 30th, 2023 at 8:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The NBA’s next media rights contracts could have long-term ramifications, Kevin Draper and Benjamin Mullin of the New York Times report.

The league is hoping to more than double the $24 billion it receives from Disney and Warner Bros. in the current nine-year rights deal. However, the ever-changing media landscape could make those expectations unrealistic. Media and technology companies are under increasing pressure to justify the huge amounts they spend on broadcast rights.

Amazon and NBC are potential new partners for the NBA, the Times reporters add.

We have more from around the basketball world:

It would have been nearly impossible for Victor Wembanyama to live up to the early hype. Indeed, the Spurs’ new big man had some rough moments in his first NBA week and was outshined by the Pistons’ second-year center Jalen Duren, John Hollinger of The Athletic notes. In Detroit’s first three games, Duren notched a league-leading 18 dunks and blocked eight shots while averaging 18.0 points and 14.5 rebounds. Duren has also shown a knack for reading the game on the move.
There are a number of players earning money without suiting up or from previous organizations and Sam Yip of HoopsHype looks at the most notable dead money cap holds in the league. That includes free agent Kevin Porter Jr., who is getting paid $15.86MM by the Thunder after the Rockets traded the troubled guard. Rockets wing Reggie Bullock and free agent Khem Birch, who are being paid $11MM and $6.985MM respectively by the Spurs after being waived, also rank high on the list.
The NBA has unveiled special courts for each team to be used during the in-season tournament, via a press release. Zach Lowe of ESPN explains how the league came up with the idea to distinguish tournament games from regular season contests with unique courts.

Clippers Exercise Bones Hyland’s Fourth-Year Option

October 30th, 2023 at 7:02pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Clippers are exercising Bones Hyland‘s 2024/25 fourth-year option, Law Murray of The Athletic tweets. The move is official, per RealGM’s transaction log.

Hyland will make $4,158,439 in ’24/25 after earning $2,306,400 this season.

The Clippers acquired Hyland from Denver for a pair of second-rounders at last year’s trade deadline. A late first-round pick in 2021, Hyland publicly pushed for a bigger role with the Nuggets and they ultimately decided to move on from him. Hyland hasn’t enjoyed an expanded role since the trade but seems more settled and happier in Los Angeles.

Hyland appeared in 111 regular season games with the Nuggets and 14 more with the Clippers last season. He’s off to a solid start on Los Angeles’ second unit this season, averaging 15.7 points and 1.7 assists in 21.7 minutes per game.

Central Notes: DeRozan, Allen, Garland, Mitchell, Okoro, Terry

October 30th, 2023 at 6:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

DeMar DeRozan is playing on an expiring contract but the Bulls’ wing says he’s not concerned about the lack of an extension to this point.

“I honestly don’t think about it at all. I never have,” DeRozan told K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. “It doesn’t worry me or stress me out. Again, I control what I can control. And in due time, let it speak for itself.”

DeRozan also doesn’t envision trying to force a trade.

“I feel like I wouldn’t be able to lay down comfortably if I went somewhere and said, ‘(Expletive) trade me. I’m tired of this.’ That’s just not me,” he said. “I’m going to compete, be the best version I can be and let it go from there.”

We have more from the Central Division:

Jarrett Allen (ankle bone bruise) and Darius Garland (hamstring strain) will remain out of the Cavaliers’ lineup against the Knicks on Tuesday and Donovan Mitchell (hamstring) is listed as questionable, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets. However, Allen and Mitchell did practice on Monday, Steve Popper of Newsday tweets. Garland went through an individual shooting workout to test his hamstring, Fedor adds (Twitter link).
The Cavaliers will be playing the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season. Isaac Okoro admits that disappointment was tough to shake, he told Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. “I know [losing to the Knicks] stuck with me for a pretty long time,” Okoro said. “It took me a minute to get over it.”
The Bulls have assigned forward Dalen Terry to their NBA G League franchise, the Windy City Bulls, the NBA team tweets. With Tuesday’s deadline looming, the Bulls have yet to exercise their $3,5MM third-year option on Terry. The 2022 first-rounder has only played five minutes this season. “It’s great he’s with us at times. But I don’t know if we want to keep him with us if he’s not going to be in the rotation,’ “coach Billy Donovan told Johnson.

Rockets Exercise 2024/25 Options On Green, Sengun, Smith, Eason

October 30th, 2023 at 5:50pm CST by Rory Maher

OCTOBER 30: The Rockets have officially exercised their options on all four players, the team tweets.

OCTOBER 12: While the decisions won’t be formally announced until the end of the month, the Rockets plan to exercise their 2024/25 team options on Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith and Tari Eason, a person with knowledge of the situation tells Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required).

The news was expected, as all four players are considered core pieces for the Rockets. The decisions don’t impact any of the players this season, but will guarantee their contracts for ’24/25.

The No. 2 overall pick of the 2021 draft, Green will earn $12,483,048 in 2024/25. Sengun, who was the No. 16 pick of the same draft, will have a $5,424,654 salary in the fourth and final year of his rookie deal. Both players will now be eligible for rookie scale extensions in 2024.

Smith was the No. 2 pick of last year’s draft. He will earn $9,770,880 in ’24/25, his third season, while Eason, the No. 17 pick in 2022, will make $3,695,160. Next October, the Rockets will have to decide whether or not to pick up Smith and Eason’s fourth-year options, though that also seems like a formality.

A 6’4″ guard, Green averaged 22.1 PPG, 3.7 RPG and 3.7 APG on .416/.338/.786 shooting last season. Sengun, a 6’9″ Turkish center, averaged 14.8 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 3.8 APG, 0.9 SPG and 0.9 BPG on .553/.333/.715 shooting in ’21/22. Both players are starters, as is Smith. Eason is one of Houston’s main bench players.

Smith, a 6’10” forward, averaged 12.8 PPG, 7.2 RPG and 0.9 BPG on .408/.307/.786 shooting as rookie in ’21/22. Eason, another forward, averaged 9.3 PPG, 6.0 RPG and 1.2 SPG on .448/.343/.752 shooting last season.

The full list of decisions on 2024/25 rookie scale team options can be found right here.

Month: May 2024