Clippers Waive Kyle Wiltjer
The Clippers have waived Kyle Wiltjer, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). The power forward was traded to Los Angeles in the deal that sent Chris Paul to Houston.
The 24-year-old spent most of his 2016/17 campaign playing for the Rockets’ G-League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. He was able to see some NBA action last year. He played in 14 games for Houston where he scored a total of 13 points.
Wiltjer played four seasons in the collegiate ranks, spending two seasons at Kentucky before transferring to Gonzaga. He entered the 2016 draft but was not selected.
Kings Sign Second-Rounder Frank Mason
JULY 15: Mason signed a three-year deal with the Kings, according to Keith Smith of RealGM (via Twitter). Mason’s deal is believed to be fully guaranteed for 2017/18 and he will likely hit restricted free agency in 2020.
JULY 13: The Kings have signed Frank Mason, according to the team’s website. Sacramento has remaining cap room, so Mason may receive more than just a two-year deal, and it’s possible that it will be worth more than the minimum salary.
Mason spent four seasons at Kansas where he played in 145 games and averaged 13.0 points per contest. He was named the AP National Player of the Year during his senior season after leading his team to a 31-5 record while averaging 20.9 points and 5.2 assists per contest.
Sacramento selected the point guard with the No. 34 overall pick in the 2017 draft. He is one of four prospects drafted by the team.
Thunder Re-Sign Andre Roberson
JULY 14: The Thunder have officially re-signed Robinson, the team announced today in a press release.
JULY 5: The Thunder and Andre Roberson have agreed on a three-year, $30MM deal, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). The scribe adds that Roberson preferred the three-year deal over a four-year contract.
The move will put the Thunder at roughly $125.1MM in team salary, ESPN’s Bobby Marks adds (ESPN Now link). Oklahoma City sits at $5.8MM over the luxury tax line, which will give the franchise a projected tax bill of approximately $8.9MM. The organization will have the entire 2017/18 to shed salary if it wants to avoid paying the tax.
Roberson has developed into one of the league’s better perimeter defenders during his four years with OKC. He was the best defender among all shooting guards last season, according to ESPN’s Real Defensive Plus/Minus, and he added the fifth-most value on the defensive end among all non-bigs, according to NBAMath.com.
Of course, as impressive as Roberson was on defense, he had virtually the opposite impact on the other end of the court, making just 24.5% of his three-pointers and 42.3% of his free throws in 2016/17. He also missed 18 of 21 free throws in the postseason. At age 25, Roberson still has room to develop, but it will be a challenge for the Thunder to turn him into a positive asset on the offensive side of the ball.
In addition to bringing back Roberson, the Thunder have also agreed to sign Patrick Patterson and will send Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis to Indiana in exchange for Paul George after the July moratorium ends.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Spurs Sign Brandon Paul
JULY 14, 12:32pm: The Spurs have formally issued a press release making their deal with Paul official.
JULY 13, 2:24pm: The Spurs have reached an agreement with Brandon Paul to add him to the team, international journalist David Pick reports (Twitter link). Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com adds that the contract will be guaranteed, though no other details of the deal have trickled out yet.
Paul played abroad last season for Anadolu Efes Istanbul where he shot 41.5% from behind the arc. He played for the Cavaliers’ Summer League team in 2017 and the Sixers’ squad during the summer of 2016.
The combo guard spent four years at the University of Illinois before going undrafted in the 2013 draft. During his senior year in college, he scored 16.6 points per game while shooting 40.1% from the field.
Carmelo Anthony Trade Talks On Hold
JULY 14, 9:13am: As the Knicks regroup on the Anthony front, the team’s primary hope is that Carmelo will consider expanding his wish list beyond Houston and Cleveland, a source tells Marc Berman of The New York Post.
Anthony, who has a no-trade clause, could veto any deal, but has expressed a willingness to waive that NTC for the Rockets or Cavaliers — the Knicks have been unable to work out a deal with either of those teams, so adding more clubs to the list could increase their chances of getting something done.
Berman also notes within his story that the Nuggets were among the clubs who explored getting involved in three- or four-team trade talks when those discussions were active.
JULY 13, 9:04pm: The Knicks have paused Carmelo Anthony trade talks with both the Rockets and Cavaliers, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. New York would like to reopen dialogue with Anthony about “reincorporating him into the organization.”
It was previously reported that Anthony’s representatives wanted to see a deal get done this week. The Rockets and Knicks were looking to pull off a multi-team trade and were searching for a fourth team to help facilitate a deal. The two sides discussed a three-team deal last weekend, but those talks reportedly “stalled.”
Scott Perry’s pending arrival as GM has made team executive Steve Mills reconsider his stance on trading Anthony, the pair of scribes add. Perry, who currently is the Kings VP of basketball operations, and the Knicks have agreed on a deal to make the executive the team’s new GM. However, Sacramento and New York still need to work out compensation in order to finalize Perry’s hiring.
The Knicks would like Anthony to meet with the team’s new front office as well as coach Jeff Hornacek soon, but the pair of ESPN scribes add that it’s unlikely Anthony will respond with eagerness to stay with the franchise.
The Rockets acquired Chris Paul two weeks ago and since the trade, Houston has been cited as a potential landing spot for Anthony. In order to bring the 10-time All-Star aboard, Houston would presumably need to move Ryan Anderson, who will earn more than $19.5MM during the 2017/18 campaign. New York has no interest in adding Anderson to the team.
Knicks To Hire Scott Perry As GM
JULY 14, 8:15am: The Knicks and Kings will have to agree on compensation terms before New York can officially hire Perry, league sources tell Wojnarowski and Ian Begley of ESPN.com. Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets that cash and perhaps a second-round pick seems like fair compensation for Sacramento, but it’s not clear what sort of terms the two sides are discussing.
ESPN’s full report also confirms that Perry would report to Mills in the Knicks’ new-look front office, with Mills being promoted to president. While Mills would have the final say, Perry will have “tremendous freedom” to operate and will be the day-to-day voice running basketball operations, per ESPN.
JULY 13, 4:32pm: Perry has agreed to a deal to become the team’s new GM, sources tell Vincent Goodwill of Comcast Sportsnet (Twitter link).
3:32pm: The Knicks have met with Kings Vice President of Basketball Operations Scott Perry and the two sides are discussing the parameters of a deal to make him the team’s new GM, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com tweets.
Perry joined Sacramento’s front office at the end of the 2016/17 campaign. He previously served as the assistant GM of the Magic and he also worked in the Sonics/Thunder organization, as well as for the Pistons.
The Knicks were interested in adding David Griffin to the GM role before the former Cavs executive withdrew his name from consideration. Griffin reportedly wanted to bring in the same front office staff he had in Cleveland, which was something the team opposed.
Team executive Steve Mills has been handling the GM duties on an interim basis since the organization fired Phil Jackson. The franchise remains on the hook to pay Jackson $24MM over the next two years. Mills, meanwhile, is poised to ascend to a president of basketball operations role for the Knicks.
Bucks Expected To Meet With Derrick Rose For Second Time
The Bucks are expecting to meet with Derrick Rose for the second time this summer, Chris Haynes of ESPN.com reports. The two sides previously met to discuss his fit alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, and Malcolm Brogdon.
Haynes adds the compensation remains the main obstacle stopping Rose from joining the team.
Milwaukee is currently over the tax by approximately $1.6MM, though it still has the tax-payer’s mid-level exception at its disposal. That exception comes with a starting salary of roughly $5.19MM, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors recently outlined. The club has used a small portion of it to sign Sterling Brown.
The organization may need to shed salary in order to make a competitive offer. Haynes suggests that John Henson could be a prime trade candidate should they make that sort of move.
Latest On Bucks’ Assistant GM Search
The Bucks are looking to add an experienced front office executive to pair with new GM Jon Horst, Gery Woelfel reports on his blog. Sources tell Woelfel that the team has interviewed several candidates with extensive front office experience for its open assistant GM position.
“They want someone who has either been a GM or who has worked closely with a GM,’’ a source tells the scribe.
Milwaukee has shown interest in former Cavs GM Jim Paxson. Paxson, who is currently a consultant for the Bulls, recently met with the Bucks about their open position.
Woelfel adds (in another post) that Milt Newton, who previously served as the Wolves GM, also met with the team and is a serious candidate for the position.
Pacers Offered Paul George To Warriors For Klay Thompson
Before the Pacers dealt Paul George to the Thunder, the team was interested in shipping George to the Warriors, offering him in a deal for Klay Thompson, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com shares on his podcast. George, who appeared on The Woj Pod, told the scribe that he was aware of the team’s offer.
“I would’ve looked forward to it, of just being in a good situation and a chance to compete for a championship. But it didn’t happen. It’s still fun to team up with a special talent and have a chance to compete against that team,” George said.
The four-time All-Star added that had a deal materialized, it would have been similar to the 2011 Chris Paul-to-the-Lakers deal that was ultimately shot down by the league.
Indiana ended up sending George to the Thunder to play alongside Russell Westbrook. The franchise received Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis in the deal.
Jazz Waive Boris Diaw
The Jazz were expected to wait until the weekend to waive Boris Diaw, but the team decided not to wait and has placed him on waivers today, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (Twitter link).
Diaw had one year left on his contract with a salary of $7.5MM for the 2017/18 season. That figure was set to become guaranteed at the end of the week and Utah was exploring trade scenarios involving the big man.
The 14-year veteran came to the Jazz in a trade last offseason and although he made 33 starts, he didn’t produce up to his normal standards. He scored 4.6 points per game, which was his lowest mark since his rookie season.
The Jazz are looking to make the playoffs for the second consecutive year and they’ve been busy adding veterans since Gordon Hayward departed. Earlier this week, the team inked Thabo Sefolosha (two years, $10.5MM), Jonas Jerebko (two years, $8.2MM), and Ekpe Udoh (two years, $6.5MM). Utah will presumably use the cap space created from waiving Diaw as well as the team’s mid-level exception to fit in those deals.