Clippers Sign DaJuan Summers
FRIDAY, 12:39pm: The Clippers have officially signed Summers to a 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release.
THURSDAY, 6:53pm: Summers will join the Clippers tomorrow, according to Shelburne (Twitter link).
6:31pm: The Clippers will indeed sign Summers, a source tells Kennedy (Twitter link). Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com tweets further confirmation.
6:14pm: The Clippers plan to sign DaJuan Summers out of the D-League, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). After the team waived Trey Thompkins this afternoon a move appeared imminent, as Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld noted via Twitter that the Clippers would likely fill the roster spot. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com heard the team was after a "youngish point guard," but it appears they're going in a different direction with Summers, a 6'8" forward.
Summers, 25, is averaging 18.0 points and 7.6 rebounds a game over 29 contests for the Maine Red Claws this year. He appeared in 15 games with the Hornets last season after spending two seasons with the Pistons, who made him the 35th overall pick in the 2009 draft. The Georgetown product was in camp with the Bobcats this past fall, and drew interest from Panathinaikos of Greece before opting to go to the D-League.
Terms of Summers' pending deal are unclear, but I'd guess he'll be on a 10-day contract, just like soon-to-be Clippers teammate Maalik Wayns. Since he hasn't been on another NBA team's roster during the regular season this year, Summers would be eligible for the playoffs if the Clippers keep him around for the rest of the season, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors detailed.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Chris Kaman
Chris Kaman entered last summer as a 30-year-old coming off a down season, but as a 7-footer just two years removed from an All-Star berth, an $8MM annual salary seemed reasonable. That's what he got from the Mavericks, but surprisingly, his deal is only for one season. Kaman wasn't without other suitors, as the Pacers showed interest, and the Spurs, Jazz and Kings were reportedly in the running as well. Kaman's one-year deal seems even more curious given that earlier this season he told Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida, "Nobody wants to do a one-year deal."
This season has been a prime example of why Kaman and others might be motivated to lock themselves up long-term. The former sixth overall pick, approaching his 31st birthday next month, has missed 14 games so far this season, mostly due to a concussion he suffered in late January. It's the third straight season he's been out at least that many games, and even when he's able to play, he doesn't see much time on the floor. He's seeing a career-low in minutes per game, and his production has taken a commensurate hit. His 11.4 points per game average is his worst since 2006/07, and his 5.9 rebounds per game are the fewest he's collected since he pulled down 5.6 as a rookie.
Still, when Kaman has played, he's performed about as well as he ever has. Only once in his career, during his All-Star season, has he scored more than the 18.5 points per 36 minutes that he's delivering this year. He's posting a 16.4 PER, a better-than-average mark that exceeds his 14.6 career PER. That might explain why Kaman was so upset when coach Rick Carlisle kept him on the bench after only two minutes of playing time Tuesday against the Bucks, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News details. Kaman said he wouldn't let the incident dissuade him from considering another go with the Mavs in free agency this summer, and just last week he praised the organization's professionalism, remarking that he hoped the Mavericks would have him back next season.
Given his lack of minutes and the Mavs' likely pursuit of Dwight Howard this summer, Kaman appears a fallback option at best for Dallas, a team that would probably be just as hesitant to give him a long-term deal as it was last year. Joe Kaiser of ESPN.com (Insider link) came up with a list of teams that could be better fits for Kaman, pointing to the Celtics, Bucks, Sixers, Bobcats and Blazers. Of those teams, I think the Blazers probably make the most sense, as they're set to have plenty of cap room and would give Kaman, who's only been to the playoffs once in his 10 NBA seasons, a chance to join an up-and-coming club. Still, he'd likely only be a Plan B in case Portland can't re-sign J.J. Hickson. Few teams will have Kaman too high on their wish lists during an offseason in which Howard, Andrew Bynum, Al Jefferson, Nikola Pekovic, Tiago Splitter and others are also set to hit free agency, so "Plan B" might become the theme of the summer for Kaman.
That's why I think Kaman may have to settle for the mid-level exception that Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors believed he wouldn't have to take when he looked at Kaman's free agent stock last year. The full non-taxpayer's mid-level would give him four years with a starting salary of $5.15MM, and the total package would be worth up to nearly $22MM. That would open up the bidding to more than just teams with cap space or clubs willing to pursue a sign-and-trade, a maneuver that will be tougher to pull off now that taxpaying teams can't acquire signed-and-traded players. Kaman could go to a contender, or at least a playoff team, and still have the long-term stability he seems to want.
Western Rumors: Grizzlies, Johnson, Smith, Kings
The Spurs topped the Mavericks tonight for their 50th win of the season, extending their string of 50-win seasons to a league-high 14. The Mavs, who had an 11-year stretch of 50-win seasons snapped in 2011/12, are merely fighting for their playoff lives this time around. Tonight's loss leaves them three games out of the eighth spot in the West. There's plenty more going on around the West this evening, and we've got the latest here:
- Along with his leaguewide roundup, Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld shares a video interview with Tony Allen, who points to the Grizzlies' run to the conference semifinals in 2011 as justification for the Rudy Gay trade. Gay missed the playoffs that year with an injured shoulder. "Well, I just think we turned into the team we were two years ago, without the guy we traded," Allen said.
- Big man Chris Johnson's deal with the Wolves includes a non-guaranteed season next year, and coach Rick Adelman is calling for the wiry Johnson to improve his strength going into 2013/14, observes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
- Craig Smith, who spent last year with the Blazers, is headed back to the States after his Israeli team cut him loose following a clash with the club's coach, reports Sportando contributor David Pick (Twitter links).
- A pair of Sacramento-area attorneys are threatening to petition the city to hold a referendum on whether to provide an expected $250MM in public funding for a new Kings arena, as Tony Bizjak, Dale Kasler and Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee report. Such a petition would require 20,000 signatures, according to estimates by city officials.
- Neither Patrick Patterson nor Cole Aldrich has seen extensive playing time since coming to the Kings at the trade deadline, but they've made positive impressions in their brief stints, as Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee details in a pair of stories.
Players Who Have Met Starter Criteria
We're a little more than three-quarters of the way through the NBA season, and it's exactly three weeks after the trade deadline, so for the most part, player roles are clearly defined. For soon-to-be free agents, their coach's decision to either start them or bring them off the bench has a significant, if indirect, effect on their next contracts. For restricted free agents, that decision can have a direct effect.
The NBA's collective barganing agreement defines a "starter criteria" that determines the amount of the qualifying offer teams must extend to retain the ability to match offers for their restricted free agents. Any player set to hit restricted free agency who starts at least 41 games or plays 2,000 or more minutes in the final season of his contract meets the criteria. Players may also meet the criteria by averaging those figures over the final two seasons of their contract. Since there were only 66 games in last year's lockout-shortened season, the starter criteria figures were prorated accordingly — so, 33 games started or 1,610 minutes played.
For players drafted in the first round, the size of the QO is determined by the player's draft position. Second-rounders get a QO worth 125% of the their previous salary, or their minimum salary plus $200K, whichever is greater.
But, if a player meets the starter criteria, those figures can go up. Players drafted No. 10 through No. 30 can get a QO equivalent to that of the No. 9 pick in their draft class by meeting the starter criteria. Second-rounders and undrafted players can get a QO equal to the No. 21 pick in their draft class by doing so.
Lottery picks can actually lose money on their qualifying offers if they fail to meet the starter criteria. Anyone drafted No. 1 through No. 14 will see his QO reduced to the level of the No. 15 pick in his draft class if he falls short of the starter criteria.
Usually, restricted free agents don't sign their QOs; they're merely placeholders or starting points for negotiations. But, there's been a rise in the number of players taking their QOs of late, and Brandon Jennings has threatened to do just that to get to unrestricted free agency sooner. Jennings, picked No. 10 in the 2009 draft, has met the starter criteria, but will only get a slight bump in his QO, to $4.531MM from $4.33MM, for doing so.
Most of the soon-to-be restricted free agents have either achieved the starter criteria or appear unlikely to do so. The only one on the fence is Byron Mullens. He's unlikely to get to 2,000 minutes this season, but he needs just one more start to qualify. Unfortunately for Mullens, Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap removed him from the starting lineup this past weekend, a decision that could prove costly for Mullens, the 24th overall pick in 2009, if he remains a reserve. He's due a $3.294MM QO as of now, but he could get the $4.531MM that Jennings is in line for with just one more start.
Here are the players up for restricted free agency in the offseason who've already met the starter criteria:
- Darren Collison
- Brandon Jennings
- Jeff Teague
- Tyreke Evans
- Gerald Henderson
- Nikola Pekovic
- Tiago Splitter
All players set to hit restricted free agency are denoted with an "(R)" on our list of 2013/14 NBA free agents.
Larry Coon's Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.
Gilbert Arenas Not Planning To Return To NBA
It's been a precipitous fall for Gilbert Arenas, as three years after he averaged 22.6 points per game for the Wizards, it appears there's not much interest in him among NBA executives. For his part, Arenas doesn't have his sights set on a return to the Association after spending this season playing in China, according to comments he recently made to Karan Madhok of SLAM Online.
"Nah!," Arenas said, shaking his head vehemently. "Because after this season I can enjoy my family. You know my kids are getting older. Being in the NBA, you don’t really get to enjoy your family life because you’re always on the road, you’re always gone. So, no. After this season will be the first time I’ll get to be with my kids for a long period of time."
The Chinese season is over, so Arenas, who averaged 20.4 points for the Shanghai Sharks this year, including a 45-point effort against Fujian, could sign with an NBA team and still be eligible for the playoffs, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors pointed out earlier today. But, it looks like that's not going to happen, and as Madhok notes, Arenas isn't fully healthy. The three-time NBA All-Star indicated he's fine with continuing his career in China, noting the CBA's shorter season and game lengths.
"Thirty-two games a year," he said. "Maximum 36 minutes. That’s all I need at this point in my career. So as long as China teams want me, I’ll be here."
Arenas last appeared in the NBA with the Grizzlies in 2011/12, notching 4.2 PPG over 12.4 minutes per game in 17 regular season contests. He totaled just 23 minutes in six playoff games for Memphis last year. He signed a six-year, $110MM contract with the Wizards in 2008, who traded him to Orlando in 2010. Arenas is still receiving money from the Magic, who used the amnesty clause to remove him from their roster and salary cap in 2011.
Hawks Likely To Re-Sign Shelvin Mack
There's a "good chance" the Hawks will re-sign point guard Shelvin Mack to a second 10-day contract after his first deal expires this weekend, a source tells Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). Vivlamore says Mack's contract is up Sunday, but the Hawks announced his signing on March 6th, meaning the 10-day deal would expire after tonight. Either way, it appears the point guard will be with Atlanta for at least a little while longer.
Mack has appeared in four games for a total of 28 minutes so far with the Hawks, his third NBA team this season. He was with the Sixers on a pair of 10-day contracts, but Philadelphia opted not to keep him for the rest of the year after he totaled just seven minutes during stay there. The Wizards, who drafted him 34th overall in 2011, waived him at the end of training camp and brought him back on Christmas. The 23-year-old Butler product averaged 5.3 points and 3.3 assists in 20.1 minutes per game in seven contests this year for Washington, which dropped him in January, just before his contract would have become guaranteed for the rest of the season.
Mack is occupying the 15th and final roster spot for Atlanta, so if the Hawks do what the Sixers and Wizards have resisted doing and keep him for the rest of the season, they couldn't pick up anyone else this year without waiving someone on a guaranteed contract.
D-League Moves: Thunder, Heat, Lamb, Varnado
We'll keep track of today's D-League assignments and recalls here, with any additional moves added to the top of the page.
- The Heat announced that they have recalled Jarvis Varnado from the Sioux Falls Skyforce after a stay that lasted less than two weeks. In 15 D-League games this year, Varnado has averaged 12.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.67 blocks, 1.1 assists and 29.9 minutes while shooting 52.2 percent from the field.
- The Thunder continue to make liberal use of their nearby D-League affiliate, announcing they've assigned forward Perry Jones III and shooting guard Jeremy Lamb to the Tulsa 66ers. It's the sixth time Jones has been sent down this season, and the seventh assignment for Lamb, who's put up slightly better numbers over his time in Tulsa. Lamb is averaging 21.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in the D-League, while Jones has posted 14.8 PPG and 6.9 RPG.
Josh Smith On Trade Rumors, Max Deal, Atlanta
Josh Smith was perhaps the most talked-about target prior to the trade deadline, and though he remained with the Hawks, speculation about his future won't end anytime soon, since he'll be an unrestricted free agent this summer. If Dwight Howard and Chris Paul remain in Los Angeles, there could be no more sough-after commodity on the market than Atlanta's athletic power forward. He recently opened up about where he stands with his career seemingly in transition, and Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe and Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News shared some of his comments. We'll pass along the highlights here:
On his inclusion in trade rumors at the deadline:
"It was total chaos, for two or three weeks. It’s good just to concentrate, knowing where I’m at, at least until the end of the season, and now we can focus on what we can do to make a playoff push and jockeying for position, knowing that it’s a real tight race. It’s good to be able to focus on basketball."
On his worth as a player:
"I’m respected in the NBA as far as the players are concerned. I know I’m a highly attractive player and all I can do is keep playing confident, hold my head high, and not really worry about what the naysayers and haters say."
On his assertion that he deserves a max contract:
"I didn’t just come up and make the statement that I was (a maximum player) — it was a question that I was asked. I gave an honest answer. It’s not added pressure. I’m not going around just stating that. It was definitely a question."
On his impending free agency:
"I’m the type of person who doesn’t like to look ahead. I focus on the present. As long as we do special things during the season or during the postseason, I don’t look into the future. I’ll think about (free agency) when it gets here."
On playing in Atlanta, a city with laid-back fans:
"It is a little difficult. Last year like I was telling everybody, we were ranked No. 1 worst sports town in the United States. It was just the whole city, baseball, football – but football always has a crazy fanbase – it is a little bit difficult. But hopefully we can turn it around sooner than later."
Mavs Rumors: Open Roster Spot, Wright, Beaubois
Lost in the noise surrounding the Lakers’ ascent in the Western Conference standings has been a similar Lazarus act by the Mavericks. Dallas is just three games back of the eighth-place Jazz and four and a half behind the Rockets, who occupy the seventh spot in the West. The Mavs made a surprise move yesterday, waiving Dominique Jones, and we have more on the aftershocks from that transaction, along with some early offseason speculation:
- The Mavs will probably fill their open roster spot with a player from the D-League, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, who hears the team is likely to sign someone today or Monday.
- Reserve center Brandan Wright is one of many soon-to-be unrestricted free agents on the Mavs, but he’d like to return to Dallas for next season, notes Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
- Like Jones, fellow Mavs guard Rodrigue Beaubois hasn’t seen much playing time this season, but Price thinks Beaubois’ ability to remain on the bench without complaint is one reason he’s still around. Even so, Price would be surprised to the Mavs re-sign Beaubois this summer (Twitter links).
- Dirk Nowitzki believes Jones could blossom elsewhere in the NBA, as Price documents. “He never really got a real shot at it,’‘ Nowitzki said of his teammate on the Mavs 2011 championship team. “I like his athleticism, I like what he brought, it just wasn’t a good situation to be in.”
Jazz Waive Raja Bell
The Jazz have waived Raja Bell, agent Herb Rudoy tells Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). The move, which had been expected as the team neared an agreement Friday with Travis Leslie, ends a season-long standoff between the Jazz and Bell, who hasn't played a single game this season after the team told him not to come to training camp. Bell will receive his full $3.48MM salary this season, Oram tweets, and that money will remain on Utah's books as long as he clears waivers.
Bell asked for a trade last May after clashing with coach Tyrone Corbin, and he and the team have gone back and forth about the possibility of a buyout for months, reportedly even agreeing on one in July, but Utah never finalized his exit from the team until now. Bell started 33 games at shooting guard for the Jazz last season, but suffered a left knee injury in mid-March and appeared in only one game after his return, playing 18 minutes off the bench in the team's regular-season finale.
The 36-year-old Bell was reportedly telling those close to him last month he'd sign with the Lakers, but that was before the March 1st deadline for players to be waived and still be eligible for the postseason with another team. L.A. could sign Bell and use him in the regular season, but the Lakers are apparently wary of adding more salary that would increase their luxury tax bill. Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni failed in his effort to talk the team into making Bell an offer before March 1st, and without a guarantee he'd find a job with another team, Bell turned down Utah's final buyout offer before the deadline passed.
Rudoy tells Oram that Bell definitely plans to play again (Twitter link), and the Wolves and Bulls have shown interest at various points this season, though it's unclear whether they would want to give him a look now. Bell named the Heat his top choice in the fall, and as Jody Genessy of the Deseret News points out, he has spent the season hanging around Miami, where he attended high school and college. The Heat could open a roster space by electing not to re-up 10-day signee Juwan Howard, but they would have to reciprocate Bell's interest, and there's been no indication that they want to bring him aboard.
One of the reasons Bell remained in limbo for so long is that the Jazz didn't want to give in and reward what the team believed was poor behavior on Bell's part, Oram tweets, so that could scare other teams off. The 12-year veteran averaged his fewest minutes and points per game in nine seasons last year, but he still shot 39.1% from three-point range, just slightly below his 40.6% career mark.