Southeast Notes: Hardaway, Hawks, Heat
After helping lead Michigan to the Final Four in April and being drafted by the Knicks in June, Tim Hardaway Jr. is making more headlines than his father this year, but Tim Hardaway Sr. remains involved in the NBA, and is hoping to eventually land a larger role, as he tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida. Currently a scout for the Heat, Hardaway says he'd like to become the team's general manager down the road.
"That's my goal," Hardaway said. "That's why I'm here every day…. Everything is realistic. You just got to believe and make connections."
Let's round up a few more items from out of the Southeast division….
- The Hawks' waiver claim of Gustavo Ayon makes it likely that first-round pick Lucas Nogueira will spend the 2013/14 season in Spain, writes Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Second-round pick Mike Muscala will probably play overseas as well, according to Vivlamore.
- In order to create the space necessary to claim Ayon, the Hawks renounced their rights to Ivan Johnson, tweets Jason Walker of Peachtree Hoops. The team can still re-sign Johnson, but no longer holds any form of Bird rights.
- In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes that it may make sense for the Heat to hang onto their mini mid-level exception through the summer and into the season.
Hawks Claim Gustavo Ayon
MONDAY, 9:10am: The Hawks have confirmed the move in a press release.
SUNDAY, 7:02pm: The Hawks have claimed Gustavo Ayon off of waivers, a league source tells Shams Charania of RealGM. Ayon tipped the signing earlier in the afternoon, writing "Go Atlanta Hawks" on his Facebook page earlier in the afternoon.
The Bucks released Ayon on Thursday due to their glut in the frontcourt, but the 6'10" big man received heavy interest due to his inside presence and affordable $1.5MM contract. Ayon is expected to get a fair trial to earn a spot in a Hawks rotation that has lacked a young, developing center alongside Al Horford, Charania writes. The 28-year-old has averaged 4.8 PPG and 4.3 RPG in two NBA seasons for three different clubs.
Eastern Notes: Price, Magic, Antic, Raptors, C’s
Ronnie Price's minimum-salary contract with the Magic was originally reported as a one-year deal, but in his latest update of the team's books at ShamSports.com, Mark Deeks notes that Price will actually be locked up for two years. The second season will be non-guaranteed, with Orlando having the chance to avoid Price's cap hit if he's released on or before July 10th, 2014. Here are more Magic notes, more contract details from Deeks, and more items from around the Eastern Conference:
- While it's been a fairly quiet offseason for the Magic, the team still needs to resolve a few outstanding issues, says Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Among Robbins' tidbits: The team is making sure there are no possible trades involving Hedo Turkoglu and Al Harrington before getting serious about buyouts; the club's $17.8MM Dwight Howard trade exception will likely go unused; and the Magic were never as interested in Eric Bledsoe as various reports suggested.
- Pero Antic's contract with the Hawks is worth a guaranteed $1.2MM for 2013/14 and a non-guaranteed $1.25MM in '14/15, notes Deeks.
- In his latest update of the Raptors' salaries, Deeks points out that the second and third years of Quentin Richardson's new contract with Toronto will become guaranteed if he's not waived by January 1st, 2014. In other words, there's no chance that Richardson sticks on the team's roster all season. The Raps will likely release the veteran prior to opening night.
- J. Michael of CSNWashington.com explores a few possible options for the Wizards' 15th roster spot.
- New Celtics head coach Brad Stevens appeared on WEEI's Green Street podcast, and provided plenty of interesting quotes on a variety of Celtics-related topics. Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com passes along the highlights.
Potential Destinations For Gustavo Ayon
Before Gustavo Ayon's 2013/14 contract could become fully guaranteed yesterday, the Bucks made a somewhat surprising decision, electing to release him and avoid paying his modest $1.5MM salary. Ayon isn't a star, or even a starter, but he has size (6'10") and has exhibited an ability to be productive and efficient (15.1 PER) in limited playing time in his first two NBA seasons. As ESPN.com's Kevin Pelton tweeted last night, the 25-year-old would make a good, cheap fourth or fifth big man for many teams around the league.
Ayon is currently on waivers, set to become a free agent this weekend if he goes unclaimed. Considering we recently saw promising big man Bernard James clear waivers without any teams placing a claim, it's certainly not a lock that any club claims Ayon — particularly since his $1.5MM salary would be fully guaranteed for a team that grabbed him off waivers.
Still, let's assume that a number of teams are at least mulling the possibility of placing a claim, if not entirely committed to the move quite yet. Ayon isn't on a minimum-salary contract, which means not every NBA team is able to submit a claim. As we note in our glossary entry on the waiver process, only teams with at least $1.5MM in cap space or a traded player exception worth $1.5MM+ are eligible to claim Ayon.
Keeping those criteria in mind, and recalling that if two or more teams place a claim, the club with the worst record last season gets first priority, here are the teams who could claim Ayon, in order of priority:
- Charlotte Bobcats: Renouncing Gerald Henderson would be necessary to place a claim on Ayon, so the Bobcats probably won't be in the mix.
- Cleveland Cavaliers: Like the Bobcats, the Cavs would have to make a corresponding move (waiving C.J. Miles' non-guaranteed contract) to create the necessary room for Ayon, so they're not a likely suitor.
- Philadelphia 76ers: The 76ers still appear to have more than $11MM in cap room, per Mark Deeks of ShamSports.
- Utah Jazz: Within the same piece, Deeks notes that the Jazz should still be about $2.4MM below the cap, even without making additional cap-clearing moves.
- Atlanta Hawks: The Hawks have about $1.8MM in space, according to Deeks, and could create more by waiving their non-guaranteed players. That figure doesn't take into account Pero Antic's new deal with the team though.
- Golden State Warriors: Having created a pair trade exceptions in their three-way deal with the Nuggets and Jazz, the Warriors could use the smaller of the two ($4MM) to claim Ayon.
- Los Angeles Clippers: The Clippers created a TPE worth Eric Bledsoe's salary (about $2.6MM) in the trade that sent him to the Suns.
- Memphis Grizzlies: The Grizzlies have stockpiled a number of TPEs, but the $2.08MM exception created in last January's deal with the Cavs would make the most sense for claiming Ayon.
- Denver Nuggets: In the aforementioned three-way deal with Golden State and Utah, the Nuggets created a trade exception worth nearly $10MM.
- Oklahoma City Thunder: OKC has a pair of TPEs large enough to absorb Ayon — one was created when they moved Eric Maynor, while the more recent one came as a result of signing-and-trading Kevin Martin.
Even though 10 teams can technically place a waiver claim on Ayon, there's no guarantee that any of them actually will. Pelton thinks the Sixers, Jazz, Warriors, and Clippers represent the likeliest candidates for a claim, and I agree with him.
Philadelphia and Utah have room to add salary (in the Sixers' case, they need to add salary to reach the cap floor) and are heading into rebuilding years, which would allow them to take a long look at Ayon. Meanwhile, the Warriors and Clippers could each use one more big man, and Ayon's inexpensive salary wouldn't take Golden State into tax territory.
If Ayon goes unclaimed, I imagine he'd strongly consider returning overseas, since he'd at least have a chance to earn more playing time there. Don't be surprised to see one of the 10 NBA teams above take a shot on him though.
This post originally listed the Magic as a team eligible to claim Ayon, but because Orlando traded him in February, the club can't claim or re-sign him until the one-year anniversary of the deal.
Eastern Notes: Wall, Cartier Martin, Antic
SB Nation's Tom Ziller isn't totally convinced that the Wizards need to offer a maximum contract to John Wall this summer, pointing out that at worst, he'd be no more expensive to retain as a restricted free agent one year from now. He mentions Stephen Curry and Jrue Holiday as perfect examples where their respective teams were able to get good discounts by negotiating early extensions, but in Washington's case, offering a max extension now would eliminate potential negotiating leverage next summer in the event that Wall has a subpar season in 2013-14. Though Ziller understands why Wall deserves a maximum contract now, he argues that there'd be little risk and tangible potential benefit in waiting until next year to offer that type of deal.
Here are a few more news and notes out of the Eastern Conference:
- In addition to their interest in free agent center Greg Oden, the Heat are also keeping their eye on Mo Williams, says Alex Kennedy of Hoopsworld.
- Emiliano Carchia of Sportando passes along a report that Cartier Martin is close to a deal with Olympiacos (hat tip to Eurohoops). The 28-year-old swingman spent last season with the Wizards.
- Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets that new Hawks addition Pero Antic had previously passed up an offer to join the Magic in 2008.
- After bringing back Kenyon Martin, the Knicks are still in the market for one more point guard and possibly another big man, notes Newsday's Al Iannazzone.
- Josh Newman of SNYNets.com reports that Brooklyn forward Tornike Shengelia will have surgery next Wednesday to repair a damaged meniscus in his left knee and will most likely miss the FIBA Eurobasket Games in September at the very least.
- With the departure of Mike Miller, Heat reserve James Jones is looking for an opportunity at an expanded role next season (NBA.com via the Associated Press).
Odds & Ends: Raptors, Camby, Oden, Bynum
The Raptors' buyout of center Marcus Camby will save the club $2MM in 2013/14, according to Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld. The veteran had a guaranteed $5.4MM between this year's salary and the $1MM partial guarantee on 2014/15 and he agreed to part ways with Toronto for $3.4MM. The Raptors will take a cap hit of $2.8MM for the coming season and $646K for 2014/15. Here's more from around the Association..
- In addition to the Hawks, Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter) hears that the Spurs and Pelicans also have representatives at Greg Oden's latest workout audition in Indianapolis.
- It's no secret that the Andrew Bynum deal didn't work out for the Sixers and yesterday, new CEO Scott O'Neil apologized to fans for how it turned out, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- There are two main questions to consider when weighing the idea of the Wizards giving point guard John Wall an extension, argues Tom Ziller of SBNation.com.
- The Raptors announced that they have filled out their coaching staff with assistants Bill Bayno and Jesse Mermuys.
Hawks Sign Pero Antic
The Hawks announced that they have signed Macedonian forward/center Pero Antic. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Antic's agent tipped the signing yesterday on his Twitter and indicated that it was a one-year deal with an option for year two. The Hawks still appear to have some cap space, so Antic could be getting more than the minimum salary.
Antic helped lead Greek powerhouse Olympiacos to back-to-back Euroleague titles in 2012 and 2013 and has also captured championships in Serbia, Russia, and Bulgaria. In 31 Euroleague contests in 2012/13, Antic averaged 6.0 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 17.5 minutes of action.
The 30-year-old is the captain of the Macedonian National Team, helping the team to the semifinals of EuroBasket 2011 in Lithuania. He averaged 11.5 points and 8.8 rebounds over 11 games in that year's tournament, while collecting three double-doubles.
Contract/Cap Details: Pressey, Ledo, Roberts
As various reporters and cap experts continue to fill on the gaps on team salaries, let's check out the latest details….
- Phil Pressey's deal with the Celtics is a three-year, minimum-salary pact, with a fully guaranteed first season, tweets Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld. Because it's a three-year contract, the C's likely used a portion of their mid-level execption to get it done.
- Ricky Ledo's four-year deal with the Mavericks will pay him $550K in year one, but will be worth the minimum for the other three years, tweets Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The first two years are guaranteed.
- Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com examines how much cap space the under-the-cap teams actually still have, and how much more they could theoretically create.
- Since he wasn't waived by last Saturday, Brian Roberts' salary for the upcoming season appears to be guaranteed, per ShamSports' breakdown of the Pelicans salaries.
- The Hawks are close to buying out Lucas Nogueira's contract, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Atlanta is allowed to contribute up to $550K toward a contract buyout, and the price for this year's 16th overall pick will be somewhere below $1MM, says Carchia.
Hawks Expected To Sign Pero Antic
The Hawks have reportedly reached an agreement to sign Macedonian big man Pero Antic, according to his agent Misko Raznatovic (hat tip to Sportando). Raznatovic tweets that his client will sign a deal with the Hawks that will be for one year, with a second-year option. It's not clear yet whether that will be a team or player option, though based on other contracts for international players, I'd guess the former.
Antic, who turns 30 next week, has helped lead Greek powerhouse Olympiacos to back-to-back Euroleague titles in 2012 and 2013. As Wendell Maxey writes at Ridiculous Upside, Antic will bring to Atlanta toughness in the paint and a resume that also includes championships in Serbia, Russia, and Bulgaria.
In 31 Euroleague contests in 2012/13, Antic averaged 6.0 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 17.5 minutes of action. He also hoisted up plenty of three-pointers, making about one per game, albeit only at a 26.1% rate.
The Hawks still appear to have some room below the salary cap, so Antic could be in line for more than the minimum salary. Terms of his deal aren't known yet, however.
Greg Oden Decision Expected Next Week
6:44pm: Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, Kings GM Pete D'Alessandro, and representatives from the Pelicans watched Oden workout today, sources close to the situation told Jeff Goodman and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Oden will put his skills on display again Thursday for Hawks officials before a private meeting with the Pelicans later this week in Las Vegas. One source close to the process told the ESPN.com duo that teams in the Oden hunt are still in the information-gathering stage and no offer has been made yet.
4:14pm: Greg Oden is expected to make a decision next week on where he'll sign for the coming season, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. According to Spears (via Twitter), the former first overall pick will be choosing from a list of suitors that includes the Heat, Spurs, Pelicans, Kings, Mavericks, and Hawks.
Oden was said to be working out today for a group of teams, including the Pelicans, Kings, and Heat. New Orleans' interest in Oden has seemingly ramped up lately, as multiple reports have indicated the team plans to make him an offer in the $3MM range. It appears as if the Pelicans are out of cap room, so perhaps the offer would be for the $2.65MM room exception, which could be used to hand out about $5.42MM over two years.
Despite the Pelicans' interest, reports continue to suggest that the Heat and Spurs remain the frontrunners for Oden. San Antonio has already used its mid-level exception, and doesn't have its bi-annual exception available this summer, so anything more than a minimum-salary offer is unlikely. Miami, on the other hand, could offer part or all of its taxpayer mid-level exception.
Zach Links contributed to this post.