Mavericks Waive Aric Holman, Dakota Mathias
The Mavericks have waived Aric Holman and Dakota Mathias, the team announced today in a press release. The team’s training camp roster now sits at 17 players, as Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets.
Mathias was not selected in the 2019 NBA Draft after spending four seasons at Purdue. The shooting guard is a candidate for the team’s G League affiliate, the Texas Legends.
The Mavericks claimed Holman off waivers earlier this offseason from the Lakers, though the big man was never expected to make the regular season roster. Like Mathias, Holman could also find his way onto the Legends.
Suns Waive Three Players
The Suns are trimming their roster down in preparation of opening night. Guard David Kramer, center Norense Odiase, and forward Tariq Owens have all been waived, according to the team.
All three players were on Exhibit 10 deals. It wouldn’t be surprising if each player finds his way to the franchise’s G League affiliate, the Northern Arizona Suns.
Phoenix’s roster is down to 16 players. That figure includes Jared Harper, who is on a two-way deal.
Derrick Favors Adjusting To New Team, New Role
This offseason was not the first time Derrick Favors had been traded. He came to the Jazz halfway through his rookie season via the Deron Williams trade. However, the big man said his move to New Orleans this offseason was easier than his move to Utah back in 2011, as he tells Tony Jones of The Athletic.
“It’s a difference of going from one city to another,” Favors said. “It was a little harder when I got traded to the Jazz, because I was still a teenager and I didn’t know much. Everything was new to me. It’s a little easier now because I knew more what to expect, and I’m grown up and mature. It will take some getting used to, but I’m in a good place physically and mentally.”
Favors became a cap casualty this offseason. The Jazz traded for Mike Conley and inked Bojan Bogdanovic to a four-year deal in free agency, which added a desperately needed scoring wing to the rotation. Those high-priced acquisitions forced the Jazz to shed salary, which made Favors – who is making $17.65MM this season – the cap casualty.
Despite having the opportunity to add Bogdanovic to their roster, some within the Jazz organization fought against jettisoning Favors, sources tell Jones. The Jazz valued Favors highly, though he’s arguably best suited to play the five. With Rudy Gobert on the squad and the team adding new pieces around their All-NBA center, Favors would have been a high-priced luxury that the Jazz simply could not afford.
Favors will join Jrue Holiday and a team of young, up-and-comers with the Pelicans. He should see more minutes at the five in New Orleans than he has at any point his career. Favors has never played more than 62% of his minutes at the center position in any season, but it would be surprising if that number doesn’t rise dramatically in 2019/20, since he should see the majority of his time alongside No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson.
On the court, Favors will provide a fundamentally-sound game for a team that has many raw parts. Off the court, he’ll provide leadership for a team that features just two players with more NBA experience than him (Holiday and J.J. Redick).
“It’s a new challenge and a new start,” Favors said told Jones. “I have no choice but to embrace it.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Tyler Johnson Talks Role With Suns, Goals This Season
Tyler Johnson is expected to be Phoenix’s sixth man this season, providing offense off the bench. The 27-year-old is excited to play that role for the new-look Suns.
“Obviously, you want to be the greatest that you can be for yourself,” Johnson said (via Gina Mizell of The Athletic). “But at the same time, you get so many kids who come up and they think ‘I’m supposed to be the man.’ Well, you’ve got 30 teams in the NBA …
“[Being a sixth man] was where I made my mark and was able to stay in the league and get paid. My thing was, man, you find a niche and you excel in it.”
Johnson credits Jamal Crawford—his teammate for part of last season—as a player who made contributing off the bench a more attractive option.
“I tell [Crawford] he made that role sexy,” Johnson said. “Between him and Lou Will (the Clippers’ Lou Williams), they really transformed what it meant to come off the bench and how it really don’t matter.”
Johnson added that his goal is to be available for all 82 of the Suns’ regular-season games, telling Mizell that his offseason priority was “getting [his] body right.” Injuries have forced Johnson to miss games in each of his five seasons in the league, including 25 in 2018/19. The combo guard is entering the last year of the four-year, $50MM deal he inked back in 2016.
Western Notes: Valanciunas, Rockets, Johnson
Jonas Valanciunas is dealing with foot soreness, though David Cobb of The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link) hears that there is no structurial damage in the center’s foot. The big man played for Lithuania in the FIBA World Cup and it’s possible the quick turnaround to training camp contributed to his soreness. Valanciunas won’t suit up for the remainder of the preseason, as the Grizzlies are opting to provide him with rest so that he’s fresh for the regular season.
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni said “there’s always challenges” when it comes to setting the regular season roster, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 relays (Twitter link). D’Antoni added that he feels getting to a nine-man rotation will also be difficult, since he believes Houston has “about 11-12 guys that can play.”
- Spurs first-rounder Keldon Johnson, who turned 20 this weekend, has impressed his veteran teammates, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News tweets. “I remember those days,” Rudy Gay said. “It’s amazing what he’s accomplished at this young age and to be out here playing with somebody like me who has been here since dinosaurs were playing basketball.”
- Patrick Beverley is back at practice at suffering an undisclosed injury earlier this week, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times reports. The point guard re-signed with the Clippers this offseason on a three-year, $40MM deal.
Mavericks Waive Yudai Baba
The Mavericks have waived Yudai Baba, as Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News relays (via Twitter).
Baba played in three preseason games for the Mavericks. The Japanese shooting guard scored 2.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.0 minutes per contest.
Baba was never expected to make the regular season roster for the Mavericks, though playing for the Texas Legends of the G League remains a possibility. Dallas’ roster now sits at 19 players.
Jazz Sign Kyle Collinsworth, Waive Trevon Bluiett
The Jazz have signed free agent small forward Kyle Collinsworth, according to a team press release. The team has waived camp invitee Trevon Bluiett to accomodate the signing.
The terms of the deal were not disclosed but it’s likely a non-guaranteed contract. Collinsworth spent last season with the Raptors 905 of the G League.
The Utah native saw NBA action with the Mavs back in the 2017/18 season, appearing in 32 contests. During his stint in Dallas, he also played for the team’s G League affiliate, the Texas Legends.
Buddy Hield Willing To Accept Less Than Max To Remain With Kings
Buddy Hield is eligable for a rookie-scale contract extension and while the Kings would love to lock him up long-term, it’s unclear what they are willing to offer the shooting guard.
Jason Jones of The Athletic hears that Hield is willing to accept less than the max in order to get a deal done. However, Hield doesn’t want an offer that would be considered an “insult.”
Ben Simmons and Jamal Murray are among the few players from the 2016 draft class to receive rookie-scale extensions this offseason. Both players signed max deals and it’s arguable that Simmons and Murray are the only players from the draft class who have shown as much promise as Hield.
[RELATED: Early Maximum Salary Projections For 2020/21]
“I think everyone knows we love Buddy,” Kings coach Luke Walton said. “That’s him and the front office dealing with that.”
October 21 is the deadline for teams to come to terms on rookie-scale extensions. The Kings have several young players who will be up for new deals soon, as our own Luke Adams recently explained. De’Aaron Fox will be eligible for a rookie-scale extension next summer and Bogdan Bogdanovic will be a restricted free agent at that time.
“As a player, you want to have that trust that the franchise has your back and we’re just waiting for them to make a move and come to an agreement,” Hield said earlier this week. “They’re talking, but nothing is moving yet. Nothing has moved. I’m ready to make things happen, man. I want to make Sacramento my home. I’m ready to get this [explicit] done. I want to be here and if it doesn’t happen, then things can go the other way.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Wizards Notes: Anderson, Schofield, Smith
Justin Anderson is hoping to make the Wizards‘ roster and knows the role he has to play to get there, as I wrote on SLAM Newswire.
“I’m not a guy that’s going to iso and score buckets. That’s not my game. My game is to play a role, fill a void, play defense, play hard, play passionately,” Anderson said.
Washington has 13 players under guaranteed deals, but Anderson is not one of them, meaning he’ll likely compete with a handful of players for the last two spots on the roster, as our own Luke Adams detailed earlier today. Anderson, who is from Virginia and played his collegiate ball at the University of Virginia, would love the opportunity to play for the Wizards, with his family close by.
“It’s the opportunity of a lifetime,” he said. “We see Kawhi and Paul George, they get to go back home. You see it happen on all levels. Everyone is excited to go back home.”
Here’s more from training camp in Washington:
- Second-round pick Admiral Schofield was forced out of a scrimmage today with what appeared to be a leg injury. There’s no word yet on the severity of the injury.
- Earlier in the week, Ish Smith compared playing alongside Bradley Beal to his time playing alongside Blake Griffin. “Shooting the basketball when I’m open, cutting sometimes, mixing it up and playing it off the catch,” Smith said of the style he expects to play while on the court next to Beal. With Isaiah Thomas and John Wall sidelined, Smith is the favorite to open the season as the team’s starting point guard.
- The two starting forward positions are also up for grabs during camp. Rui Hachimura and Davis Bertans could end up with those spots, though that would leave one of the two players playing out of his best position. Thomas Bryant and Beal are the only two starters that are essentially set in stone.
- As we passed along earlier today, Ian Mahinmi will miss at least six weeks with a strained Achilles. Of the Wizards’ 13 players with guaranteed deals, five are currently injured.
Joel Embiid On Jimmy Butler: “I Wish He Was Still On The Team”
The Sixers made several changes this offseason, but the team looks like just as much of a threat to steal the Eastern Conference crown as they did last season before Kawhi Leonard‘s knockout shot. While center Joel Embiid is focused on getting the team to NBA Finals for the first time since 2001, he admits that having Jimmy Butler around would make for a better journey.
“It was a big loss because me and him, we got to the point where we were really close – we’re still close,” Embiid said of losing Butler (via ESPN’s The Jump; h/t Kurt Helin of NBC Sports).
“We talk a lot, that’s my guy, that’s my brother forever. I wish he was still on the team, because I feel like the relationship that I built with him could have gone a long way. When it was the fourth quarter, we knew the ball would either be in me or Jimmy’s hands. I knew I could count on him. This year it kind of changes around. Now other guys have to step up and I have to do more.”
Butler landed in Miami via sign-and-trade this offseason while the 76ers netted Josh Richardson. Philadelphia also brought in Al Horford to give the team arguably the best frontcourt in the NBA. GM Elton Brand‘s squad is expected to be one of the best defensive teams in the league. However, Embiid acknowledges that they haven’t accomplished anything yet.
“I think we should be up there. Obviously, we still have to prove ourselves,” Embiid said of the team’s title chances. “We lost a big piece in Jimmy, he did a lot of great things for us, but we should be up there. On paper, we got a really good team so now it’s on us to go out there and actually prove it.”