Southeast Notes: Curry, Hornets, Heat, Hawks
Three Southeast Division teams have winning records, the most of any Eastern Conference division, but there are no powerhouses, allowing Western Conference heavies like the Warriors to record two wins of 15 points or more in consecutive nights on the road in Florida. Golden State heads to Charlotte tonight after turning the Florida double play earlier this week, and there’s a heavy Warriors influence on the latest news out of the Southeast:
- Charlotte native Stephen Curry spoke this past summer about the idea of someday playing for the Hornets, but this week he sought to downplay the notion, even though he admits he’s always thought about it, as Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group details. “That’s hard to get out of your head, but obviously, it has no bearing on decisions that I make down the road,” Curry said. “It’s just a fun thought to have. The Hornets name does mean a lot to my family, and obviously I’m starting a new thing with the Warriors. I definitely feel right at home here [with Golden State].”
- Warriors coach Steve Kerr is confident that Heat first-round pick Shabazz Napier will become a starting-level NBA point guard, and fellow Heat rookie James Ennis is drawing widespread praise as well, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.
- The Hawks have officially assigned Adreian Payne and John Jenkins to the D-League, the team announced via press release. Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Thursday that the team intended to make the moves.
Pacers Waive A.J. Price
The Pacers have waived A.J. Price, the team announced. The move is no surprise, since the team’s hardship provision for a 16th roster spot had expired, and with players on their way back from injury, the team apparently elected not to attempt to renew it. Price joined the team as its 16th player earlier this month, presumably on a non-guaranteed contract, though that detail was never confirmed. His release brings Indiana back to 15 players.
Price was a capable fill-in during his 10-game stint, averaging 10.5 points, 2.7 assists and 1.0 turnover in 19.3 minutes per contest. The 28-year-old opened the season on the Cavs roster, but Cleveland let him go within the first week of the regular season to sign Will Cherry instead. A Chinese team reportedly made an offer to Price, and he was just “days away” from signing it when the Pacers swooped in, writes Wheat Hotchkiss.com of Pacers.com. The Excel Sports Management client has acknowledged that he’s ready to play overseas, though he’d like to land another deal in the NBA and Pacers coach Frank Vogel has said that he’s deserving of an NBA roster spot somewhere.
The league gave the Pacers a pair of 10-day clearances to carry 16 players, since they met the criteria for such a provision, which required the team to have four players who were expected to miss time with injury after three had already sat out at least three games. Paul George is likely to miss the entire season, George Hill continues to be out indefinitely with a bruised left knee, but Vogel said today that David West will return to action tonight against the Magic, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Roy Hibbert will miss the game with a sprained left ankle, Robbins also notes, but C.J. Watson will return, according to Autumn Allison of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter link). Still, the Pacers could have spared Price and selected another player to release to trim the roster to the conventional 15-man limit, as the Thunder did when they cut Sebastian Telfair rather 16th man Ish Smith when their hardship exception ran out.
Central Notes: Butler, Sanders, Pistons
The Bucks can move into first place in the Central Division tonight if they beat the Pistons and the Bulls lose on the road to the Celtics. It’s early, of course, but new coach Jason Kidd is making a case for Coach of the Year honors, though he’s receiving an assist from the arrival of Jabari Parker and the improved play of others. There’s more on Milwaukee amid the latest from the Central:
- A source tells Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times that the Bulls offered Jimmy Butler a four-year extension worth more than $40MM. That largely falls in line with the $11MM annual salaries that an earlier report from K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune indicated the Bulls had put on the table.
- Larry Sanders is only playing 22.2 minutes per game, but Kidd is pleased with his play not just on defense but on offense as well, and the center credits Kidd and the new Bucks owners for a culture change, as Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel details. The revival of Sanders, whose poor performance last season had him in trade rumors shortly after he signed a four-year, $44MM extension, has helped the surprising Bucks to a 9-7 record.
- The Pistons have recalled Tony Mitchell from the D-League, the team announced (Twitter link). He had 12 points and 12 rebounds in his lone appearance with the Grand Rapids Drive this week after Detroit sent him down Wednesday.
‘Melo On Knicks, Bulls, Rockets, Mavs, Lakers
Carmelo Anthony met with the Bulls, Rockets, Mavs and Lakers in addition to the Knicks this summer, but in a forthcoming documentary, he makes it clear that his final decision was between the Knicks and the Bulls, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman obtained a preliminary cut of the film, called “Carmelo Anthony: Made In NY,’’ that’s set to air next week on MSG Network, and Anthony’s statements in the movie demonstrate just how close the high-scoring forward came to wearing red-and-black.
“Chicago was the one from Day 1 [and] was something I was very impressed with,” Anthony said in the film. “They were looking for someone like me to come in and take them to the next level. So it was perfect. It was a perfect setup and perfect fit for me in Chicago. But also I had to think about just living in Chicago. Do I want to live in Chicago? Do I want to take everything I created in New York and move all of that? It came down to that. But there was one point in time I was like — oh, I’m going.’’
Berman shared several other revelations from the documentary in his full-length story, and we’ll summarize them here:
- ‘Melo’s camp concluded that they’d need to have the Knicks sign-and-trade him to Chicago for him to end up on the Bulls with a max deal, Berman writes. Anthony’s manager, Bay Frazier, said in the documentary that the Bulls could offer a total of only $74MM, according to Berman. There were various hypothetical scenarios in which the Bulls could have opened more flexibility, but it sounds like $74MM was the realistic amount on the table.
- Anthony spoke of affection for the winning attitude of the Bulls and said that Derrick Rose reached out to recruit him, as Berman details. Rose’s supposed unwillingness to go along with Chicago’s pitch to Anthony was reportedly at the root of tension between the team and its star point guard. “D-Rose is tough. He even hit me [up],” Anthony said. “I’ve been talking to him. Him and [Joakim] Noah. Noah’s more outgoing. But I’m glad we did them first.’’
- Anthony said he didn’t want to endure the “culture change” that would come with living in Texas and playing for either the Mavs or the Rockets, Berman notes.
- Kobe Bryant and Anthony have spoken about one day playing together, but the specter of changing teams just to find himself in another rebuilding situation made jumping to the Lakers an unappealing choice, Anthony said in the documentary, as Berman relays.
Offseason In Review: Portland Trail Blazers
Hoops Rumors is in the process of looking back at each team’s offseason, from the end of the playoffs in June right up until opening night. Trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more will be covered, as we examine the moves each franchise made over the last several months.
Signings
- Chris Kaman: Two years, $9.816MM. Signed via mid-level exception. Second year is partially guaranteed for $1MM.
- Steve Blake: Two years, $4.247MM. Signed via biannual exception. Second year is player option.
Extensions
- None
Trades
- None
Waiver Claims
- None
Draft Picks
- None
Camp Invitees
Departing Players
Rookie Contract Option Decisions
- Meyers Leonard (fourth year, $3,075,880) — Exercised
- Damian Lillard (fourth year, $4,236,287) — Exercised
- CJ McCollum (third year, $2,525,160) — Exercised
- Thomas Robinson (fourth year, $4,660,482) — Declined
The Blazers knew their starting lineup wasn’t the issue. Damian Lillard, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum, LaMarcus Aldridge and Robin Lopez were the fifth-best five-man group in the league last season in terms of per-possession point differential among those that played at least 500 minutes together, according to NBA.com. That unit outscored opponents by 8.5 points per 100 possessions, but Portland as a whole was just plus-3.5 in that category. The Blazers entered the summer with no real cap flexibility and no draft picks, but GM Neil Olshey set about to prove just how valuable the mid-level and biannual exceptions can be.
Olshey used the mid-level to ink Chris Kaman, a player who two years prior wouldn’t have been obtainable for that sort of money or for the reserve role the Blazers expect him to play. The one-time All-Star was one of the key figures in a fairly strong class of free agent centers in 2012, and he signed a one-year, $8MM deal with the Mavs that gave him the chance to excel in filling the team’s need for a starting center and to net more money over the long-term on his next contract. Instead, Kaman failed to see eye-to-eye with coach Rick Carlisle and played just 20.7 minutes per game that season, deflating his value and prompting him to turn to a one-year, $3.183MM deal for the taxpayer’s mid-level with the Lakers in 2013. Mike D’Antoni had even less use for him, and he appeared in only 39 games last season. Having turned 32 this past April, it seemed unlikely that Kaman would merit a raise, and quite conceivable that he’d have to settle for the minimum salary and a third-string job.
The Landmark Sports Agency client instead came away with $4.8MM this year, almost the full value of the $5.305MM non-taxpayer’s mid-level, plus a $1MM partial guarantee for 2015/16. It was a gamble for Olshey, but so far it’s paid off, as Kaman is putting up 10.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 19.0 minutes per game. He’s the NBA’s ninth leading per-minute rebounder among those who’ve played at least 100 total minutes this season, according to Basketball-Reference, and his 20.6 PER is a career high.
Olshey used all of the team’s biannual exception to come up with another player who began last season on the Lakers. It’s a reunion for the Blazers and Steve Blake, though Olshey wasn’t around when Blake played in Portland from 2007 to 2010. Olshey nonetheless had a chance to get an up-close look at the point guard when the GM was with the Clippers and Blake was in his early days with the other Staples Center tenants. Derek Fisher, Steve Nash and even Ramon Sessions had played in front of Blake on the Lakers, for whom he started just 45 games in three and a half years, but the 34-year-old hasn’t averaged fewer than 20.0 minutes per game since the 2004/05 season. That’s a testament to his value as a bench contributor, and so far for Portland he’s been an even more efficient ball-distributor than he had been in recent years. He’s averaging 7.1 assists against just 2.2 turnovers per 36 minutes, a ratio well clear of 3-to-1, and though most of his stats are by no means gaudy, he earns his keep in his time on the floor.
The Blazers as a whole are outscoring opponents at a rate of 8.6 points per 100 possessions so far this season, a rate almost identical to the one their starting five had produced last season, as NBA.com shows. Part of that is because the starting unit has upped its differential in that category to plus-10.7, but Portland’s bench has picked up some of the slack. The Blazers are missing one their top reserves from last season, as Mo Williams fled to the Timberwolves for a one-year, $3.75MM deal that was only slightly greater in value than the approximately $3.18MM that Portland was limited to giving him via Non-Bird rights. Agent Mark Bartelstein said before Williams signed with Minnesota that there was a chance, however slight, that his client would return to Portland even after the Blazers committed their mid-level to Hawes, which wiped out their ability to give Williams more than that $3.18MM. It’s unclear what Portland could have done at that point to woo him back, and perhaps a multiyear offer might have done the trick, but Williams nonetheless departed, leaving Portland to rely more heavily on C.J. McCollum, Allen Crabbe and Will Barton to supplement Blake. Still, that could be a blessing in disguise, since it’ll give the Blazers a chance to evaluate that trio, all of whom are either second- or third-year players, and much is eventually expected of McCollum, the 10th overall pick in 2013.
The Blazers made a tough call on another recent lottery pick, declining their fourth-year rookie scale option on 2012 No. 5 selection Thomas Robinson. The big man had a tough go of it in his first two seasons, rebounding efficiently and running the floor well but otherwise failing to show many glimpses of the promise that made him such a hot prospect coming out of Kansas. The Blazers can still re-sign him next summer, but he’ll be an unrestricted free agent, and they can’t pay him a salary greater than the $4,660,482 option they turned down. Robinson probably won’t merit more than that unless he has a breakout season this year, but teams rarely re-sign players after declining their rookie scale options, so he’s likely in his final days with Portland.
The decision pick up Meyers Leonard‘s somewhat cheaper rookie scale option wasn’t clear-cut, since Leonard has been just as disappointing after having been the No. 11 pick in the same draft that Robinson was a part of. Still, Leonard’s willingness to try to remake himself into a 7’1″ stretch power forward bears watching, and perhaps Portland felt compelled to keep him around for at least another season to see how that experiment turns out.
Such tinkering pales in comparison to the importance of Aldridge’s free agency in the summer to come, though the team’s preeminent star made it clear this past summer that he intends to re-sign with the Blazers. That he was willing at times last season to entertain the idea of signing an extension, which wouldn’t be in his best financial interests, is demonstrative of his commitment to Portland, even though he said in July that an extension was no longer a consideration. It was also quite a switch from the summer of 2013, when it seemed that Aldridge was looking for a way out of town in the wake of consecutive losing seasons. Last year’s revival was clearly a game-changer for the long-term future of the Blazers, and the team’s second consecutive hot start is impressing upon the league, and upon Aldridge, that last season was no fluke.
Olshey hasn’t made any earth-shattering moves in his three offseasons with the Blazers, aside from the shrewd drafting of Lillard at No. 6 in 2012, but adding Lopez in the summer of 2013 and Kaman and Blake this year show his ability to be a consistent singles hitter. Still, he’ll most likely need to display a little more power for the team to become a true title contender, and this coming offseason, when only three Blazers have fully guaranteed contracts, will provide that opportunity.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Eastern Notes: Price, Stephenson, Raptors
A.J. Price has probably played his last game with the Pacers, since the 10-day window of Indiana’s second hardship provision for a 16th roster spot has expired and the team’s injured players are on their way back, observes Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star.
“I’m optimistic it’ll work out, if not here then somewhere else,” Price said. “Everything’s an option at this point. You can’t rule anything out at this point. If I’m not able to get a job here in the NBA, then overseas is definitely an option.”
Of course, the Pacers don’t have to waive Price, whom they picked up when the league granted the extra roster spot, just as the Thunder decided to keep their hardship addition, Ish Smith, and waive Sebastian Telfair instead. While we wait to see how it shakes out in Indiana, here’s the latest from around the Eastern Conference:
- Hornets coach Steve Clifford has been reluctant to give Lance Stephenson crunch-time minutes in part because he doesn’t think the shooting guard has developed into a marquee player yet, despite the three-year, $27.405MM contract the shooting guard signed this summer. Michael Wallace of ESPN.com has the details. “To be fair, one of the things that’s made it more difficult for him is that he came here and people proclaimed him as the next superstar,” Clifford said. “He’s not a star. He’s a guy that has talent to become a star. To be a star in this league, you have to do it over years.”
- This summer’s trade for Lou Williams was a win for the Raptors, as they snatched a player who has proven valuable on both ends of the floor so far in Toronto and whose departure has left the Hawks with an underwhelming bench, writes Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun.
- The Hawks plan to send John Jenkins and Adreian Payne to the D-League on Friday, reports Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It’ll be the second trip to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants for Payne, as our log of D-League assignments and recalls shows, and the first of the season for Jenkins, though he went on assignment in each of the past two seasons.
Southwest Notes: Davis, Chandler, Lee, Mills
Trevor Ariza and Tyson Chandler were probably the most significant newcomers to the Southwest Division this past summer, but even devoid of an influx of star talent, every team in the Southwest has a winning record so far. I covered Ariza’s impact earlier today in my look at what the Rockets did over the offseason, and there’s more on Chandler amid the latest from around the division:
- Anthony Davis is up for a rookie scale extension in the offseason ahead, and he seems comfortable with his surroundings, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports details. “I love it here in New Orleans,” Davis said. “Great city. Great atmosphere. …We’re getting the fans back and New Orleans back buzzing for the Pelicans, a great organization. I love my team here. We’re definitely moving in the right direction. I don’t know what the future holds, but right now I’m definitely loving the team and the organization.”
- Knicks president Phil Jackson deferred to GM Steve Mills when it came to communicating with Chandler, as the now-Mavs center told reporters on Wednesday, notes Marc Berman of the New York Post. “I just don’t think I was in the [Knicks’] future plans to be honest,” Chandler said, according to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link).
- The Celtics sought to clear salary when they traded Courtney Lee to the Grizzlies less than 11 months ago, but his hot three-point shooting is one reason he’s proven well worth his $5.45MM salary this year for Memphis, as Ronald Tillery of The Commericial Appeal examines (subscription only).
- A clause in the Spurs‘ contract with Patty Mills gives him an extra $333K if he meets conditioning benchmarks throughout the season, according to Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News. The incentive is considered likely to be met, so that $333K is already included in his cap hit of more than $3.842MM, Monroe notes. It’s unclear if the torn right rotator cuff that’s kept Mills out all season so far will keep him from meeting those benchmarks.
Offseason In Review: Houston Rockets
Hoops Rumors is in the process of looking back at each team’s offseason, from the end of the playoffs in June right up until opening night. Trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more will be covered, as we examine the moves each franchise made over the last several months.
Signings
- Joey Dorsey: Two years, $1.964MM. Signed via minimum-salary exception.
- Troy Daniels: Two years, $1.764MM. Re-signed via minimum-salary exception.
- Tarik Black: Two years, $1.352MM. Signed via minimum-salary exception. First year is partially guaranteed for $50K. Second year is non-guaranteed.
- Francisco Garcia: One year, $1.317MM. Re-signed via minimum-salary exception.
- Jeff Adrien: One year, $981K. Signed via minimum-salary exception. Subsequently waived.
- Ish Smith: One year $981K. Signed via minimum-salary exception. Subsequently waived.
Extensions
- None
Trades
- Acquired 2014 pick No. 53 from the Timberwolves in exchange for cash.
- Acquired the rights to Sergei Lishchuk from the Lakers in exchange for Jeremy Lin, Houston’s 2015 first-round pick (lottery protected), and the Clippers’ 2015 second-round pick if it falls anywhere from 51st through 55th.
- Acquired Trevor Ariza, Alonzo Gee, Scotty Hopson and New Orleans’ 2015 first-round pick if it falls anywhere from fourth through 19th in a three-way trade with the Pelicans and Wizards in exchange for Omer Asik, Omri Casspi, and $1.5MM cash. Ariza was signed-and-traded for four years, $32MM.
- Acquired Jason Terry, Sacramento’s 2015 second-round pick if it falls anywhere from 31st through 49th, and New York’s unprotected 2016 second-round pick from the Kings in exchange for Alonzo Gee and Scotty Hopson.
Waiver Claims
- Earl Clark: Claimed from the Grizzlies. One year, $1.063MM remaining. Contract was non-guaranteed. Subsequently waived.
Draft Picks
- Clint Capela (Round 1, 25th overall). Signed via rookie scale exception to rookie scale contract.
- Nick Johnson (Round 2, 42nd overall). Signed via mid-level exception for three years, $2.333MM.
- Alessandro Gentile (Round 2, 53rd overall). Playing overseas.
- Kostas Papanikolaou (2012, Round 2, 48th overall). Signed via mid-level exception for two years, $9.389MM. Second year is team option and also non-guaranteed. Contains $207K signing bonus.
Camp Invitees
- Akil Mitchell
- Geron Johnson
- Akeem Richmond
Departing Players
Rookie Contract Option Decisions
- Terrence Jones (fourth year, $2,489,530) — Exercised
- Donatas Motiejunas (fourth year, $2,288,205) — Exercised
It wasn’t too long ago that GM Daryl Morey took just nine months to turn a roster that seemed poised to challenge for last place in the Western Conference into a rising title contender with two superstars. Houston entered this past summer in position to make a third superstar acquisition in less than two years, but the franchise’s positive momentum vanished just as suddenly as it had gathered. Morey and the Rockets once more aimed high, pursuing LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh, the top three free agents in the 2014 Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, but he swung and missed on all three pitches. Houston didn’t just come up short on attracting outside talent. The Rockets flubbed the handling of their team option on Chandler Parsons, who bolted for the Mavs, and they traded Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin to clear cap space for the stars that never came, stripping the team of valuable role players. Murphy’s Law had so befallen Houston that Morey felt compelled to defend himself against a storm of criticism, even though the Rockets were appreciably better than they had been two years prior and remain on the verge of contention.
Still, the summer was a tough blow to a franchise that almost became a true power. Morey failed to land a face-to-face meeting with LeBron’s agent and though he did meet with ‘Melo, that encounter is more remembered for the giant image of Anthony wearing Lin’s No. 7 Rockets jersey that the Rockets hung than for any sway that Morey held with the high-scoring Knicks forward. Yet the team was agonizingly close to landing Bosh on a four-year deal for the maximum salary before Miami swooped in with a five-year max offer. A Bosh-Howard tandem would have given the Rockets the league’s best big-man pairing to go along with Harden’s slithery scoring prowess, and if Houston had opted in with Parsons, the Rockets could have paid him a mere $960K to play with those three. Still, such a fantasy never became more than just that.
Morey didn’t envision having Parsons at such a cheap rate this season, anyway. The GM instead expected that turning down the option would allow the Rockets to tie him up on a long-term deal in restricted free agency this past summer without exposing him to unrestricted free agency in 2015, which he was poised to hit if Houston had opted in. Leave it to frequent Morey critic and Mavs owner Mark Cuban to throw a curveball, signing Parsons to an above-market offer sheet for nearly the maximum salary. Dan Fegan, the agent for Parsons, reportedly designed the structure of the deal that won plaudits from other league executives for features like a 15% trade kicker, a player option and the contract’s three-year length, all of which made it tricky for the Rockets to match. Fegan’s involvement was a further twist of the knife for Houston, since he represents Howard, who can hit free agency in 2016.
Houston’s offseason was thoroughly disappointing, but it was far from a complete disaster. The Rockets wound up with a top-notch perimeter defender in Trevor Ariza, whose become significantly more valuable since he added accurate three-point marksmanship to his repertoire. Ariza shot 40.7% from long range in 2013/14, setting a career high for a second straight season. That makes him a fit with Houston’s floor-spreading philosophy, but it’s his defense that truly makes him a seamless complement to Harden, whose defensive shortcomings have been well-documented. It’s no coincidence that the Rockets are giving up the fewest points per possession of any NBA team this season after finishing 12th in that category last season, according to NBA.com.
The Ariza acquisition came as part of a sign-and-trade that sent Asik to the Pelicans in exchange for a first-round pick that’s protected in such a way that Houston is likely to end up with a lottery selection. It’s reminiscent of the protection on the pick that the Raptors gave up for Kyle Lowry, and the Rockets swapped that Toronto pick in the package that netted Harden. It’s a stretch to say that the Rockets are in position to once more strike gold with such a pick, but at the very least they wound up with a first-rounder that will probably be more valuable than the one they attached to Lin to entice the Lakers to take him on. Houston also netted a trade exception worth the equivalent of Lin’s nearly $8.375MM cap hit in that deal. The exception is the largest in the league as it stands, and while it doesn’t allow the team to grab a star, Morey seems eager to use it to trade for an intriguing rotation-level player whom he could package with another asset or two at the deadline to acquire a marquee name. Morey’s proven creative and ever willing to trade, so the exception in his hands is a weapon indeed.
He pulled off a trade this summer that serves as some degree of payback for the sting of losing Parsons to the rival Mavericks, bringing on one-time Mavs sixth man Jason Terry. Houston also netted a pair of second-round picks as Morey took advantage of tax-conscious Sacramento’s desire to clear his guaranteed salary of more than $5.85MM and Terry’s wish to play for a team closer to the title picture. Terry’s 37 now, his days as one of the league’s premiere reserves long since behind him, but he’s off to a hot start behind the arc, and he’ll help strengthen a bench that took a hit this summer.
Houston spent much of the summer filling out that bench with familiar faces who were willing to accept the minimum salary, re-signing Francisco Garcia and playoff revelation Troy Daniels, and bringing back former Rockets Joey Dorsey, Jeff Adrien and Ish Smith. Adrien and Smith fell victim to the team’s decision to bring 15 fully guaranteed contracts plus Patrick Beverley on a non-guaranteed contract to camp, which created a crunch for opening-night roster spots. Rookie Tarik Black, on a contract only guaranteed for $50K, furthered that logjam when he played his way into the rotation and earned his way onto the club for the regular season.
Black is one of four rookies on the team, and the size of that group is further indication that Houston’s offseason didn’t go as planned. There was speculation that the Rockets would trade their first-round pick or stash him overseas to avoid the guaranteed money on their cap. Morey instead signed No. 25 overall pick Clint Capela, a center from Switzerland, and for 42nd overall selection Nick Johnson, the Rockets doled out a three-year contract that, in a rarity, is fully guaranteed for each season. Still, the most surprising Rockets rookie deal is the one with Kostas Papanikolaou, who changed his mind after deciding in mid-July to remain overseas. He’ll make more than $4.591MM this season, a hefty sum that took up most of Houston’s mid-level exception, though his nearly $4.798MM salary for next season is both non-guaranteed and a team option. The deal gives Houston protection in case he fails to prove worth that money, but if he does wind up having merited that sum and perhaps more, the Rockets could have trouble retaining him thanks to the very same Gilbert Arenas Provision that helped them sign Lin and Asik two years ago.
Morey has never been afraid to experiment with unconventional moves to build a championship roster, but with experimentation comes the risk of failure. Houston experienced the downside of the GM’s approach this summer, but not every test tube shattered, and the Rockets remain an attractive destination for top-flight free agents as well as a serious player on the trade market. They took a step back, but they remain at least a step or two ahead of most.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Northwest Notes: Lopez, Exum, Shaw
If it weren’t for the 11-3 Blazers, who’ve won eight in a row, the Northwest Division would resemble one of the groupings from the Eastern Conference. Portland is the only Northwest team above .500, thanks in part to the offseason acquisition of backup center Chris Kaman, who’s averaging 10.9 points in 19.1 minutes to boost a bench that was a clear weakness last season. There’s more on another Blazers center who’s made a difference amid the latest from the Northwest:
- Robin Lopez has enjoyed his season and change with the Blazers and isn’t thinking about moving on when he hits free agency in the summer, as he tells The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman. That’s just what his teammates want to hear, as many of them let Freeman know of their affection for Lopez, whose arrival last year coincided with the team’s ascent in the standings. “I really love it here,” Lopez said. “I feel like I’ve really found a niche. Nothing is set in stone, but I’m comfortable here, I’m happy here.”
- Dante Exum, this year’s No. 5 overall pick, is off to a modest start, averaging just 4.9 points and 2.6 assists in 18.4 minutes per game, but the Jazz and coach Quin Snyder want to bring the 19-year-old phenom along slowly, as Aaron Falk of The Salk Lake Tribune details. Exum is “doing everything that we expected of him” so far, Snyder said.
- Nuggets coach Brian Shaw acknowledged the pressure on him earlier this season, but he’s been in too many winning NBA locker rooms to panic, and Denver’s five-game winning streak makes it clear he never lost control of the team, opines Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post.
Lakers Near Deal With Clark, Likely To Cut Henry
2:03pm: The team would likely waive Xavier Henry to accommodate Clark, tweets Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. That suggests that the Lakers aren’t in line to receive a 16th roster spot. Clark’s contract with the Lakers would be guaranteed, according to Bresnahan. Henry, who has a fully guaranteed salary worth $1.082MM, is expected to miss the season with a torn Achilles tendon.
11:49am: The Lakers and Clark are close to agreement on a one-year contract that would be for a pro-rated portion of the veteran’s minimum, reports Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
9:08am: The sides are working toward what would be a one-year deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
9:03am: The Lakers and Earl Clark have engaged in a “level of dialogue” about a possible deal, reports Shams Charania of RealGM. The five-year veteran’s name wasn’t among the several who were linked to the club last week, but the Lakers know him well, since he enjoyed a career year in purple-and-gold during the 2012/13 season.
Clark is averaging 28.8 points and 7.3 rebounds in 35.8 minutes per game across four appearances so far for the Rockets D-League affiliate this season. Houston briefly had him on its NBA roster after claiming his training camp deal off waivers from the Grizzlies, but the Rockets waived him before opening night. The Rockets reportedly have interest in Al Harrington, another forward whose game is somewhat similar, but there have been no reports indication that Houston is thinking about bringing Clark back to the big club.
The 26-year-old put up 5.3 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 12.5 MPG for Memphis during the preseason, failing to stick even though the Grizzlies began the regular season with an open roster spot. Clark’s career has hit the skids ever since he signed a two-year, $8.5MM deal with the Cavs in 2013, a pact that he and agent Kevin Bradbury were able to land in large measure because of the performance Clark delivered for the Lakers. He averaged 11.6 PPG and 9.2 RPG with 37.8% three-point shooting during a 22-game hot streak in the middle of his year with L.A., but he failed to match that production for Cleveland, which shipped him to the Sixers at the deadline last season. Philadelphia promptly waived him, and apart from a pair of 10-day contracts with the Knicks, Clark hasn’t appeared on a regular season roster since.
The Lakers recently received a nearly $4.851MM Disabled Player Exception for Steve Nash to go with the Disabled Player Exception worth almost $1.499MM that they have for Julius Randle, but it seems unlikely that it would take more than the minimum salary to sign Clark. The team has a full 15-man roster, though the Lakers have enough injured players to qualify for a 16th roster spot if they were to apply for one and the league were to grant it. Ronnie Price and Wayne Ellington, who have partially guaranteed deals for the minimum, are the only two Lakers without fully guaranteed contracts.