Wizards Sign Toure’ Murry To Second 10-Day
The Wizards have signed Toure’ Murry to a second 10-day contract, the team announced. Shams Charania of RealGM reported Thursday that the move was likely even as the team continues to eye Will Bynum, who’s recovering from a hamstring injury. Bynum remained the team’s top free agent target when Murry signed his first 10-day contract, as Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post wrote then. That first 10-day deal for Murry expired overnight Saturday.
It appears Washington’s primary motivation in keeping Murry around is depth. The second-year combo guard has only played in two games for a total of four minutes for the Wizards, even though fellow combo guard Garrett Temple hasn’t played since March 9th because of a hamstring injury of his own.
Washington has 14 other players signed through at least the end of the season, so Murry’s roster spot represents a measure of flexibility for the club. The team can’t sign him to a third 10-day contract, and with Bynum apparently still in the mix, it seems unlikely Murry will see a deal with the Wizards for the balance of 2014/15 once his latest 10-day contract expires.
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Lakers Sign Jabari Brown To Second 10-Day
SATURDAY, 12:43pm: The signing is official, the Lakers have announced.
FRIDAY, 8:36am: The Lakers will re-sign Jabari Brown to a second 10-day contract on Saturday, reports Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). Brown said he spoke with GM Mitch Kupchak and confirmed that’s the plan to reporters, including Mike Trudell of Lakers.com (Twitter link). Coach Byron Scott had said minutes earlier that he anticipated Brown would be back, according to Pincus (on Twitter). Scott expressed his desire on Thursday afternoon for the team to re-sign the shooting guard.
A second deal for Brown presumably means the NBA has granted the Lakers another 10-day hardship exception to carry a 16th man on the roster. That was the allowance the league provided when the Lakers inked Brown to his first 10-day contract even though they already had 15 players. Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Julius Randle are all out for the season and Ronnie Price is probably in the same situation, giving the Lakers enough injured players to qualify to apply for the extra roster spot. Nick Young also remains out with a small fracture in his left kneecap.
Brown’s initial contract expired after Thursday’s game. Waiting until Saturday to sign a second 10-day deal enables the Lakers to have him for their game on March 30th against the Sixers without having to sign him for the balance of the season. The rookie has played a prominent role, averaging 7.0 points in 20.0 minutes per contest over four games on his first 10-day contract.
Colleges That Produced Multiple $10MM+ Players
The eye-popping volume of high-profile prospects at the University of Kentucky makes their NCAA tournament games required viewing for just about anyone involved in NBA personnel matters. The Wildcats boast six players within the top 50 on Chad Ford’s ESPN.com Big Board and five among the top 50 prospects that Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress compiles. Coach John Calipari’s presence seemingly ensures that Kentucky will produce a steady stream of NBA players, and NBA stars, for years to come.
Already, Kentucky is one of two schools with four former players making at least $10MM in NBA salary this year. The other school is an SEC rival. Florida boasts just as many, and another is probably on his way, as Bradley Beal will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this year.
Eight other schools can boast multiple $10MM players, counting those who signed extensions this past fall that will give them eight-figure salaries next season and those who are receiving $10MM this season on contracts that were waived via the amnesty provision. Still, bluebloods like North Carolina (Ty Lawson), Indiana (Eric Gordon) and Georgetown (Roy Hibbert) only have one such player apiece.
Here’s a breakdown of schools that have produced multiple NBA players making $10MM-plus:
- Florida — David Lee ($15.012MM), Chandler Parsons ($14.7MM), Joakim Noah ($12.7MM), Al Horford ($12MM)
- Kentucky — DeMarcus Cousins ($14.746MM), John Wall ($14.746MM) Eric Bledsoe ($13MM), Rajon Rondo ($12.909MM)
- Connecticut — Rudy Gay ($19.317MM), Kemba Walker ($12MM in 2015/16)
- Duke — Carlos Boozer ($16.8MM), Kyrie Irving ($15.857MM in 2015/16)
- Georgia Tech — Chris Bosh ($20.644MM), Derrick Favors ($12.95MM)
- Memphis — Derrick Rose ($18.863MM), Tyreke Evans ($11.265MM)
- Texas — Kevin Durant ($18.996MM), LaMarcus Aldridge ($16.256MM)
- UCLA — Kevin Love ($15.719MM), Russell Westbrook ($15.719MM)
- USC — Nikola Vucevic ($11.25MM in 2015/16), DeMar DeRozan ($10.1MM)
- Wake Forest — Chris Paul ($20.069MM), Tim Duncan ($10.361MM)
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Clippers Sign Jordan Hamilton To Multiyear Deal
2:24pm: The deal also covers next season with non-guaranteed salary, Woike adds (on Twitter).
2:22pm: The signing is official, the Clippers announced via press release.
2:12pm: The Clippers will sign Jordan Hamilton for the rest of the season in a move that’s expected to take place today, reports Dan Woike of the Orange County Register (Twitter link). Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers had told reporters Sunday that the move would take place, but it appeared as though the team changed course amid concern over Hamilton’s ankle injury. Now, it looks like the Clippers are once more ready to commit to the former 26th overall pick.
Hamilton earlier signed a pair of 10-day contracts with the Clippers, the last of which expired Sunday night. The 24-year-old has averaged 4.0 points in 9.5 minutes per game across eight appearances with the team, draining eight of 14 three-point attempts. He was originally with the Raptors for training camp, earning a $25K partial guarantee, and he briefly spent time with the Jazz at the beginning of the season after Utah claimed him off waivers, though he didn’t see any action there.
The Clippers are limited to the prorated minimum salary for the Aaron Mintz client, though they have the flexibility to tack on an additional season. The move will give the Clippers a full 15-man roster, though the team will retain a modicum of flexibility since Nate Robinson is on a 10-day contract.
Western Notes: Jazz, Hood, Crawford, Spurs
The Jazz‘s willingness to commit to paying building blocks like Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors has helped the team show signs that it will quickly rebound from its rebuilding project, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News details. Critical, too, was the deadline-day trade that sent Enes Kanter out, at his request, as the Jazz weren’t interested in paying a premium to keep him in restricted free agency this summer, writes Chris Mannix of SI.com. A greater focus on Favors and Rudy Gobert since then has paid dividends, as Mannix examines.
“[The trade] helped me work on my game a lot,” Favors said. “Enes was the first option in the post. Since the trade, it’s always been me. It’s helped me work on my game and made me better for it.”
Coach Quin Snyder downplays the connection between the Kanter trade and the team’s ascent in the standings, Mannix notes. Still, Utah was 19-34 at the deadline and has gone 12-3 since. There’s more on the Jazz amid the latest from the Western Conference:
- Jazz higher-ups are “positively giddy” about the future of Rodney Hood, as Mannix reports in the same piece. Utah selected Hood 23rd overall in June after the swingman spoke to Zach Links of Hoops Rumors last spring.
- The Clippers aren’t sure they’ll have Jamal Crawford back for the playoffs, according to Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. Crawford has missed the last eight games because of a bruised right calf that Doc Rivers has deemed a “serious injury” and one that won’t have him back “anytime soon, that’s for sure,” Howard-Cooper notes. L.A. has an open roster spot and Nate Robinson on a 10-day contract.
- The Spurs are keeping a close eye on draft-and-stash prospect Davis Bertans of late, as Lefteris Moutis of Eurohoops.net writes in a slideshow dedicated to the 10 European players who have the best chances of playing in the NBA next season. The power forward has a contract that runs through 2017 with Spain’s Laboral Kuxta (aka Saski Baskonia), as Mark Porcaro shows in our Draft Rights Held Players database, though it apparently contains NBA escape clauses for each year of the deal.
Players On The Cap For Multiple NBA Teams
Jameer Nelson is a one-time All-Star who carved out a consistent role for many years with the Magic, but only now, in his 11th season, has he represented seven figure cap hits to multiple teams. The Magic still have him on their books for $2MM this year, the result of having waived his partially guaranteed contract this summer. The point guard found a deal for the full value of the room exception from the Mavericks, and a pair of midseason trades took him to Denver by way of the Celtics. The Nuggets have Nelson’s $2.732MM salary for this season on their cap, just as the Magic have $2MM for Nelson on theirs.
Nelson and John Salmons are the only players this season who account for at least $1MM in cap hits to more than one team, but players who represent at least some money against the cap for more than one NBA franchise are not unusual. There are more than 30 such players this season, including swingman Chris Johnson and forward Quincy Miller, who are each on the books for three different clubs.
There are lots more players who’ve drawn paychecks from more than one team but only show up on the cap for one. That’s a group that includes traded players as well as those waived via the amnesty clause. However, our focus here is on a narrower but still fairly robust bunch who’ve managed to hit the cap in multiple locations. Here’s a complete list, including each player’s respective cap hit. Note that cap hit doesn’t always align precisely with the player’s salary.
- Jeff Adrien, Rockets ($915K), Timberwolves ($242K)
- J.J. Barea, Timberwolves ($3.217MM), Mavericks ($910K)
- Michael Beasley, Heat, Suns ($778K), Heat ($264K)
- Jerrelle Benimon, Nuggets ($35K), Jazz ($29K)
- Will Cherry, Cavaliers ($95K), Raptors ($25K)
- *-Bryce Cotton, Jazz ($152K), Spurs ($50K)
- Robert Covington, Sixers ($1MM), Rockets ($150K)
- Seth Curry, Magic ($150K), Suns ($48K)
- Andre Dawkins, Heat ($218K), Celtics ($60K)
- Glen Davis, Magic ($6.6MM), Clippers ($915K)
- Austin Daye, Spurs ($1.063MM), Hawks ($54K)
- Larry Drew II, Sixers ($60K), Heat ($25K)
- Wayne Ellington, Kings ($924K), Lakers ($915K)
- JaMychal Green, Grizzlies ($194K), Spurs ($90K)
- Jorge Gutierrez, Sixers ($231K), Bucks ($96K)
- Jordan Hamilton, Clippers ($108K), Jazz ($67K)
- Chris Johnson, Sixers ($113K), Bucks ($108K), Jazz ($54K)
- Sean Kilpatrick, Warriors ($35K), Timberwolves ($30K)
- Ricky Ledo, Mavericks ($816K), Knicks ($48K)
- Gal Mekel, Mavericks ($816K), Pelicans ($86K)
- **-Quincy Miller, Pistons ($296K), Nuggets ($150K), Kings ($108K)
- Toure’ Murry, Jazz ($418K), Wizards ($48K)
- Jameer Nelson, Nuggets ($2.732MM), Magic ($2MM)
- Kendrick Perkins, Jazz ($8.72MM), Cavaliers ($275K)
- Nate Robinson, Celtics ($1.417MM), Clippers ($108K)
- John Salmons, Suns ($2MM), Hawks ($1MM)
- Ish Smith, Rockets ($915K), Sixers ($861K)
- Amar’e Stoudemire, Knicks ($20.911MM), Mavericks ($307K)
- Hassan Whiteside, Heat ($770K), Grizzlies ($22K)
- Elliot Williams, Jazz ($108), Hornets ($54), Pelicans ($54)
- Nate Wolters, Bucks ($816K), Pelicans ($96K)
* — Cotton’s figure with the Jazz assumes he’s making a prorated minimum salary on the multiyear deal he signed this week, though that’s not entirely certain.
** — Miller’s figure with the Pistons assumes he’s making a prorated minimum salary on the two-year deal he signed last week, though that’s not entirely certain.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Latest On Kevin Durant
Thunder GM Sam Presti wouldn’t declare Kevin Durant out for the season and the playoffs, but he said in a press conference today that’s essentially “the direction we’re headed right now,” according to Royce Young of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The reigning MVP won’t be back unless the soreness in his foot abates, Presti added, as Michael Lee of The Washington Post tweets. Presti said that Durant, who had been ramping up for a return that was expected within the next week, has been removed from basketball activity, and the GM doesn’t sound optimistic about a return this season, observes Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman (Twitter link).
The high-scoring forward hasn’t played since February 19th after undergoing a second procedure that was designed to alleviate the lingering pain in the Jones fracture that he suffered in his right foot before the season. Various ailments have limited Durant to just 27 games so far in 2014/15.
The Thunder are also without Serge Ibaka for as many as six weeks, with the playoffs set to begin in a little more than four weeks. They’re just a game up on New Orleans and two and a half up on Phoenix for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, and they have little recourse for upgrading their roster to help them salvage a postseason berth, as I examined. Oklahoma City has 15 players on contracts that run through at least the end of the season, and the team is already a taxpayer, making it difficult for the Thunder to waive a contract to sign someone else.
Durant is in the next to last season of his contract, which puts pressure on the Thunder to maximize their championship window. The team already has more than $78MM in commitments for next season, which doesn’t include a new contract for soon-to-be restricted free agent Enes Kanter.
Poll: What Will Reggie Jackson Make Next Year?
It’s been a discombobulated season for Reggie Jackson. It began under the shadow of extension negotiations with the Thunder that ultimately failed to produce a deal, seemingly in part because some teams reportedly believed he’d draw offers of $13-14MM in free agency and because Jackson made it clear he wants to be a starting point guard. That sort of role wasn’t going to come open for him in Oklahoma City, at least on any long-term basis. Still, the 24-year-old had a brief chance to audition for the sort of job he sought when Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook both missed most of November.
Jackson averaged 20.2 points and 7.8 assists against 3.3 turnovers per game in 13 contests without both Durant and Westbrook in November, a stretch during which the Thunder went 3-10. He also grabbed 5.2 rebounds a night, displaying all-around talent that nonetheless came amid a high volume of 17.9 field goal attempts per game, 27.0% three-point shooting, and Oklahoma City’s losing record. The poor outside shooting was no shock for the career 28.8% three-point shooter, and neither was the regression in his stats to 10.2 PPG, 3.1 APG, 3.6 RPG and 9.3 shot attempts per game from the time Westbrook made his return through the trade deadline.
Still, there was enough potential there for Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy to pull the trigger on a deadline-day deal that cost Detroit D.J. Augustin, Kyle Singler and a pair of second-round picks in return for Jackson. It wasn’t a dire price to pay, but it seems there’ll be a steeper cost for retaining Jackson when his contract is up this summer.
Jackson has so far compiled a decidedly up-and-down track record for GMs around the league to evaluate in his brief tenure as the starting point guard for the Pistons. He put up an eye-popping 23 points and 20 rebounds against a Grizzlies team without Mike Conley on Tuesday and followed it up with a triple-double against the Sixers the next night. He nearly recorded a triple-double against the Cavs in just his second game as a Piston, posting 22 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. The next game he shot just 5 for 24 against the Knicks, and his two-point, 1 for 9 performance against the Lakers is another red flag. Most disturbingly, the Pistons are just 2-11 when Jackson plays.
It’s the same Pistons core that went 12-4 in between the day the team waived Josh Smith and the time Brandon Jennings missed his first game with his season-ending Achilles tear. The presence of Jennings, who’ll be on an expiring contract next season, further complicates Jackson’s impending free agency for Detroit.
There are probably almost as many question marks about Jackson among other teams as there are for the Pistons. So, let us know the sort of starting salary you think the Aaron Mintz client will end up scoring on his next deal, and elaborate on your choice in the comments.
Eric Gordon Plans To Opt In With Pelicans
Eric Gordon gave a clear signal this week that he intends to pick up his player option for next season, worth more than $15.514MM, and stay with the Pelicans, referring to next season as a “contract year” in remarks that John Reid of The Times-Picayune relays. Player option aside, next season is the last on Gordon’s contract. The shooting guard echoed coach Monty Williams, who recently praised Gordon for putting off surgery on the torn labrum in his left shoulder.
”When I came back, I didn’t want to give up on this year because next year is a contract year for me,” Gordon said. ”I definitely didn’t want to give up on this team. I thought this was a special team and it’s just good to see where we’re at right now.”
It’s certainly no surprise that the Rob Pelinka client would choose to opt in, even though he’s played better since returning from the injury in January. His 13.3 points per game this season represent a fourth straight year of decline in his scoring average, and though his shot attempts have also gone down each of those years, his PER of 12.7 indicates that he’s not playing efficiently. He’s not the star that many thought he’d become when he was the jewel of the trade package New Orleans received for him in the Chris Paul deal. That reputation helped him earn the offer sheet, a four-year maximum-salary arrangement, that he signed with the Suns in the summer of 2012 and that the then-Hornets matched even after he’d played only nine games in 2011/12 because of injury.
The 26-year-old shooting guard is nonetheless draining 45.3% of his three-pointers, a career-best mark by far for the career 38.0% three-point shooter, and, as Reid points out, he’s been turning it on of late, scoring 16 points or more in five of his last six games. Williams is optimistic that Gordon is turning a corner, Reid notes.
“This is the guy that we thought we were going to have fortunately; he had so many injuries and it was hard for him to get the work in,” Williams said. “I think you are starting to see a part of it but not all of it. I think Eric, because A.D [Anthony Davis] is playing so well and Tyreke [Evans] has the ball a lot, he doesn’t get as many opportunities. I’ve got to find more ways to get him the ball. The thing I like about Eric is he tries to make the right play. Eric has so much in his game that people haven’t seen what all he can do with his ability to score and play off the dribble.”
Gordon expressed regret this week for saying when he signed the offer sheet that “Phoenix is just where my heart is now,” Reid notes. It’s the latest step Gordon has made to distance himself from that comment, an effort that began soon after New Orleans matched the offer. Regardless, it appears he’ll remain with the Pelicans for at least one more season. New Orleans would have about $55.8MM in guaranteed salary against a projected $67.4MM salary cap next season if Gordon were to indeed opt in.