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Author: Chuck Myron

Dirk Nowitzki To Opt Out, Plans To Re-Sign

By | at May 2, 2016 12:30 pm

Dirk Nowitzki will opt out of his contract and become a free agent this summer, though he still plans to remain with the Mavericks, as he said today on the “Bob and Dan” show on KTCK-AM in Dallas, notes Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com (Twitter link and ESPN Now link). That confirms an earlier report from Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram but runs counter to Nowitzki’s previous statements indicating that he would remain under contract.

Nowitzki spoke to the radio hosts about his desire to work with owner Mark Cuban and president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson to improve the team, though it’s uncertain what sort of salary Nowitzki will insist upon. The option is worth slightly more than $8.692MM, which would have been a major bargain for Dallas, particularly given the escalating salary cap. It’s conceivable that Nowitzki will take a further discount, given his loyalty to the team, though it remains to be seen.

The star power forward, who turns 38 this June, hinted subtly in March that remaining with the Mavericks beyond this season wasn’t a foregone conclusion, suggesting he would evaluate his options if Dallas were to pivot into full-scale rebuilding. Still, he’s otherwise given every indication he intends to remain with the Mavs, the only team he’s played for during his 18 NBA seasons.

Chandler Parsons has said that he intends to opt out, confirming what had been the general assumption, notes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, and Deron Williams plans to do so as well, as sources told MacMahon last week. Their options, plus Nowitzki’s, are collectively worth more than $30.3MM, so Dallas would have only about $29MM in guaranteed salary commitments against a projected $92MM cap if all three players decline their options as expected.

The Mavericks nonetheless want to re-sign all three, so their cap holds would occupy more than $38.9MM until they either sign new deals or Dallas renounces them. MacMahon reported that Parsons is in line to receive max offers, which will likely come close to $22MM for next season, exceeding the value of his $19,969,950 cap hold. Williams also appears due for a raise, so just how much cap space the Mavs will have is up in the air. Still, the opt-out from Nowitzki ultimately allows him and the Mavs greater flexibility, helping explain his choice to become a free agent. The deadline for all three Mavs to formally decide on their options is June 22nd.

7 comments Dallas Mavericks Newsstand Transactions

Offseason Outlook: Houston Rockets

By | at May 2, 2016 11:30 am

Trevor Ruszkowski / USA TODAY Sports Images
Trevor Ruszkowski / USA TODAY Sports Images

Hoops Rumors is looking ahead to offseason moves for all 30 teams. We’ll examine free agency, the draft, trades and other key storylines for each franchise as the summer approaches.

Coaching Search

Jeff Van Gundy apparently sits atop the list of Rockets coaching candidates, but interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff will seemingly get a look, at least. Owner Leslie Alexander wants to make sure Van Gundy, who hasn’t coached since 2007, would update his offense, but GM Daryl Morey indicated that he won’t make system a priority in the search, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

Dwight Howard‘s future

The decision on a coach will reportedly play a role in any future Howard might have in Houston, and a coach committed to the outside game would seemingly reduce the slim chance the former All-Star center would stay. Still, Howard’s best days were under Van Gundy’s brother Stan in Orlando, where the big man’s presence inside was key to opening space for 3-point shooters. Offenses predicated on movement would ostensibly coax the ball out of the hands of James Harden and allow more touches for Howard.

It’s nonetheless difficult to envision Harden and Howard continuing to coexist, with one Rockets player telling The Vertical’s Michael Lee that they don’t hate each other but simply can’t play together. One team source who spoke with Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com described the chemistry between the star duo as “cordially bad.” Howard is 30 and simply not what he used to be, but the new client of Perry Rogers is still expected to opt out and seek a max deal that would pay him $30MM next season. The Rockets apparently aren’t completely opposed to re-signing Howard, and Morey certainly seems open to it, but it would surely have to be for less money than the max, and at least four other teams are apparently better bets.

Two power forwards poised for restricted free agency

Howard isn’t the only one seemingly on his way out of Houston. The Rockets already pulled off a trade to send Donatas Motiejunas to Detroit, but the Pistons voided the deadline swap. Now, Motiejunas is up for restricted free agency, along with fellow power forward Terrence Jones. Motiejunas returned to Houston’s starting lineup shortly after the trade that wasn’t, and while he proved he could be a consistent presence on the floor after missing most of a calendar year with back trouble, he averaged only 15.7 minutes per game in 21 starts down the stretch. His inability to come anywhere close to the 36.8% he shot from 3-point range last season bodes poorly for his future in Houston, and while he excelled in Houston’s lone playoff win this spring with a 14-point, 13-rebound performance in Game 3 against the Warriors, he otherwise averaged 7.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in that series.

Jones started 71 games for the Rockets in his second year in the NBA, but he fell out of the rotation this season, his fourth since becoming the 18th pick in 2012, and he didn’t play at all in the postseason. It wouldn’t be a shock to see Houston pass on making a qualifying offer to Jones, thus allowing him to hit unrestricted free agency. The Rockets will probably make a qualifying offer to Motiejunas, but they assuredly won’t be afraid to rescind it if that’s what it takes to sign someone else.

Free agent targets

Clearing Howard, Jones and perhaps Motiejunas would give the Rockets about $40MM of cap room to play with, more than enough to sign any free agent. They, like so many others, will go after Durant, and they’ll use Harden, his old teammate, as a selling point, but a reunion appears unlikely. The focus would shift to the next most attractive free agents if Durant says no. Stretchy big man Al Horford and his emerging 3-point game at his max of about $26MM would fit well in Houston. Combining Horford with stretch four extraordinaire Ryan Anderson at around $14MM sounds even better, but that might not be enough for Anderson. The Rockets would have snagged Pau Gasol in the nixed 2011 Chris Paul trade, so perhaps Morey will revisit that idea. Houston could go cheaper and sign Jared Dudley to play the four, leaving money to upgrade the bench.

Potential trades

Houston would surely love to unload Corey Brewer, who had a dreadful year and is still under contract for two more seasons, but that’ll be a tough sell. Better potential for a deal exists deeper on the bench, where young players K.J. McDaniels, Sam Dekker and Montrezl Harrell could become expendable if the Rockets commit fully to win-now mode. Trevor Ariza and Patrick Beverley have contracts in the middle of the salary scale, the sort that often make for easy trade fodder, but neither appears destined for a new home unless the Rockets are forced to give them up to accommodate a trade for a star or a second max free agent signing.

Draft outlook

  • First-round picks: None
  • Second-round picks: 37th, 43rd

The Rockets already have three top-40 picks from the last two drafts with guaranteed deals for next season, so unless they offload some of them, it’s tough to see the players at No. 37 and No. 43 both making Houston’s roster come opening night. Look for Houston to trade at least one of its picks.

Other decisions

Michael Beasley was superb after signing a two-year contract in early March, and keeping him on his non-guaranteed minimum salary should be an easy choice. Fellow March signee Andrew Goudelock didn’t have nearly the same sort of impact, so he’ll be expendable. Midseason trade acquisition Josh Smith failed to come close to the production he gave the Rockets during last year’s stint with the team, so he’ll probably be an afterthought at best for Houston in free agency this summer. Jason Terry‘s versatility has value, but he turns 39 in September and the team reportedly wants to explore other options before doing any would-be new deal with the combo guard.

Final take

The Rockets endured a profoundly disappointing season this year, but they still have one of the game’s pre-eminent stars in Harden, and this summer they’ll have not only the chance to hire the right coach but also the flexibility to make significant roster changes and land another star. Houston can rise as quickly as it fell.

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

Team Options

  • None

Non-Guaranteed Salary

Restricted Free Agents (Qualifying Offers/Cap Holds)

Unrestricted Free Agents (Cap Holds)

Projected Salary Cap: $92,000,000

Footnotes: 

  1. The cap hold for Howard if he opts out will be the maximum salary for a veteran of 10 or more seasons. The number shown here is an estimate based on the projected cap figure.
5 comments Hoops Rumors Originals Houston Rockets Offseason Preview

Kings Coaching Search Primer: All The Names

By | at April 29, 2016 3:18 pm

George Karl‘s 14-month tenure as Kings coach was tumultuous, to say the least, and uncertainty has similarly marked the search to replace him. Reports have identified 21 candidates, including Tom Thibodeau, Scott Brooks and Kenny Atkinson, who’ve since taken other NBA head coaching jobs. GM Vlade Divac apparently wants to make a hire by sometime next week, but that seems like a daunting challenge, given all the names he’s sorting through.

Here’s a look where the Kings stand with each reported candidate, aside from the three who are already off the market:

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Eastern Notes: Durant, Brooks, Clifford

By | at April 29, 2016 1:48 pm

The Celtics believe they’ll get a meeting with Kevin Durant this summer, but they understand they won’t have any realistic shot at him if they don’t secure a commitment to acquire another star first, The Vertical’s Chris Mannix writes. Boston is on the fringes of the race for the former MVP who’s poised to hit free agency this summer, though the belief has been widespread that come July the Celtics will end up on Durant’s radar, at least, as Mannix has previously reported.

See more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Scott Brooks had already decided he wanted the Wizards job if it were to be offered to him when team executives Ernie Grunfeld and Tommy Sheppard flew to California to recruit him in what turned out to be a 10-hour meeting, writes Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. “I got everything I wanted, and I wasn’t looking for anything else,” said Brooks, whom the Wizards officially hired this week. “This is where I wanted to be.”
  • The identity of the coach means little in free agent recruiting, but muted though it may be, the presence of Steve Clifford has a positive impact on the way players view the Hornets, observes Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Clifford, like Terry Stotts of the Trail Blazers and Quin Snyder of the Jazz, makes a small-market team attractive through his ability to get the most out of players and increase their market value, Wojnarowski writes. The Hornets signed Clifford in November to an extension that ties him to Charlotte through at least the 2018/19 season.
  • T.J. McConnell‘s contract with the Sixers is non-guaranteed for next year, and he wound up seeing less than 20 minutes per game after a revelatory start to the season, but he was a bright spot and has a fan in coach Brett Brown, notes Jessica Camerato of CSN Philly. “The thing that I respect most about him is that he epitomizes that quality that I think might be the No. 1 thing that we need: day-to-day guys, people that you know what you’re getting,” Brown said. “He’s steady, he’s stable, he’s personality, he’s tough, he brings that edge to a game, to a practice, to a locker room. I just respect him. That’s just how he’s wired.”
1 comment Boston Celtics Charlotte Hornets Philadelphia 76ers Washington Wizards

Deron Williams To Opt Out; Mavs Want Him Back

By | at April 29, 2016 12:18 pm

Deron Williams plans to turn down his player option worth more than $5.621MM and hit free agency to seek a multiyear contract this summer, sources told Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link). The Mavericks and the point guard have mutual interest in doing a new deal, according to MacMahon.

The 11-year veteran who turns 32 in June likely needs offseason surgery to address a sports hernia. The Jeff Schwartz client said in the aftermath of the Mavs’ playoff ouster this week that he’d love to return to Dallas, and coach Rick Carlisle said he’d also like to see him return. President of basketball operations Donnie Nelson pointed to what he saw as a renewed sense of enthusiasm in Williams’ play this season, the first for Williams with the Mavericks.

Dallas will have a clearer shot at opening enough cap room to sign a player for the middle-tier maximum salary of an estimated $26MM with Williams’ option out of the way, as we noted earlier this week, but re-signing Williams would probably come at a cost greater than the value of his option (Twitter link). MacMahon thinks the market will afford Williams a decent raise on the close to $5.379MM salary he took home this year. Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post sees Williams ending up with at least twice as much as his option would have given him (Twitter link).

Much of the free agent money around the league last summer had already been committed by the time Williams worked his buyout from the Nets and signed with the Mavericks in mid-July. He averaged 14.1 points, 5.8 assists and 2.3 turnovers in 32.4 minutes per game this season, production not too far removed from what he put up in his final season with Brooklyn.

Is Williams the right point guard for the Mavericks? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

17 comments Dallas Mavericks Newsstand Transactions

Hoops Rumors Glossary: Early Bird Rights

By | at April 29, 2016 12:06 pm

Bird rights offer teams the chance to sign their own free agents without regard to the salary cap, but they don’t apply to every player. Other salary cap exceptions are available for teams to keep players who don’t qualify for Bird rights. One such exception is the Early Bird, which applies to players formally known as Early Qualifying Veteran Free Agents.

The Bird exception is for players who’ve spent three seasons with one club without changing teams as a free agent, but Early Bird rights are earned after just two such seasons. Virtually all of the same rules that apply to Bird rights apply to Early Bird rights, with the requirements condensed to two years rather than three. Players still see their Bird clocks restart by changing teams via free agency, being claimed in an expansion draft, or having their rights renounced.

The crucial difference between Bird rights and Early Bird rights involves the limitations on contract offers. Bird players can receive maximum-salary deals for up to five years, while the most a team can offer an Early Bird free agent without using cap space is 175% of his previous salary or 104.5% of the league-average salary in the previous season, whichever is greater. These offers are also capped at four years rather than five, and the new contracts must run for at least two years.

The Heat will have to reckon with having only Early Bird rights instead of full Bird rights on Hassan Whiteside this summer. Miami has only about $48MM in guaranteed salary against a projected $92MM cap for next season, but cap holds for Dwyane Wade and Luol Deng add about $43MM to the team’s books. Whiteside, who’s rapidly emerged while on a two-year deal for the minimum salary, is likely to command a deal at or near his maximum-salary of an estimated $21.7MM. The Heat would have to open cap space to sign him for more than 104.5% of the average salary, which is expected to be only about a third of the value of Whiteside’s max. The Heat face a stiff challenge if they’re to re-sign the foursome of Whiteside, Wade, Deng and Joe Johnson, another key contributor who’s hitting free agency this year.

Their Southeast Division rivals in Atlanta can sympathize. The Hawks fostered DeMarre Carroll‘s development on a cheap two-year contract and had to choose between re-signing him and Paul Millsap when Carroll entered Early Bird free agency last year. A similar predicament faces the Hawks this summer, when Al Horford and 2014 bargain signee Kent Bazemore hit the market. The Hawks have full Bird rights with Horford, as they did with Millsap last year, but re-signing Horford at his max of an estimated $26MM would add to the more than $51.7MM in guaranteed salary already on Atlanta’s books. Other cap holds would limit the Hawks to no more than about $12MM of space for Bazemore, with whom they only have Early Bird rights and can’t pay more than roughly $7MM without using cap room. Bazemore didn’t break through quite as profoundly as Carroll did with the Hawks, but it’ll be a player’s market in free agency this summer, and Atlanta will be hard-pressed to keep both Horford and Bazemore.

Teams can nonetheless benefit from having Early Bird rights instead of full Bird rights when they’re trying to preserve cap space. The cap hold for an Early Bird player is 130% of his previous salary, significantly less than most Bird players, who take up either 150% or 190% of their previous salaries. That helps the Heat, since the cap hold for Deng, an Early Bird free agent who isn’t due for the sort of raise Whiteside is, will be only about $13MM, not much higher than his salary of roughly $10MM for this season.

Another distinction between Bird rights and Early Bird rights applies to waivers. Players who are claimed off waivers retain their Early Bird rights, just as they would if they were traded. Those who had Bird rights instead see those reduced to Early Bird rights if they’re claimed off waivers. This rule stems from a 2012 settlement between the league and the union in which J.J. Hickson was given a special exception and retained his full Bird rights for the summer of 2012 even though he’d been claimed off waivers that March.

A special wrinkle involving Early Bird rights, called the Gilbert Arenas Provision, applies to players who’ve only been in the league for one or two years. We covered the Gilbert Arenas Provision in another glossary entry.

Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.

Earlier versions of this post were initially published in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.

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Southwest Notes: Gasol, Joerger, Pachulia

By | at April 29, 2016 11:00 am

Pau Gasol once more finds the idea of joining the Spurs intriguing, as he said to the Marca newspaper in his native Spain (translation via HoopsHype). Marc Gasol, who’s under contract with the Grizzlies for at least another three years, this week curiously advised his brother to sign with San Antonio. The Spurs were among the teams Pau Gasol reportedly considered when he was a free agent two years ago. The new Creative Artists Agency client has a player option with the Bulls for next season, but it’s worth less than $7.77MM and he’s long said he’ll likely turn it down, and chances of a new deal in Chicago appear to be waning.

See more from the Southwest Division:

  • The idea that the Timberwolves considered Dave Joerger for the coaching job that’s since gone to Tom Thibodeau simply wasn’t true, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Any would-be path to Minnesota for Joerger vanished when former coach/executive Flip Saunders died, Tillery writes. The Commercial Appeal scribe expects Joerger to seek an extension with the Grizzlies as he heads into next season, the last one that’s guaranteed on his existing deal.
  • Joerger pushed hard for the team to draft Rodney Hood two years ago, when the Grizzlies selected Jordan Adams instead, as Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN.com details amid a larger piece on the team. Despite the way Hood, a 36% 3-point shooter, has blossomed for the Jazz, Grizzlies executive Ed Stefanski rejects the notion that the front office hasn’t looked for shooting. “Of course we want shooters,” Stefanski said. “An ‘oh, [expletive]’ shooter would be a helluva weapon for us, but they’re not easily had. It makes me laugh when people act like we’re ignoring shooters. You think we’re not looking?”
  • Soon-to-be free agent Mavericks center Zaza Pachulia wishes he had a lifetime contract and doesn’t understand why more players don’t choose to play in Dallas, observes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. “It’s my first year for me being here so I don’t exactly know what happened previously,” Pachulia said. “But the one thing, whoever will come here and play for this team and this organization would love it. Very few percentage of the players — very few — wouldn’t like it. The city, the fans, the organization, the personality and the heart. This team is all about winning. So if you are a winner definitely this is the place to be.”
5 comments Chicago Bulls Dallas Mavericks Memphis Grizzlies Minnesota Timberwolves San Antonio Spurs Utah Jazz

Offseason Salary Cap Digest: Houston Rockets

By | at April 29, 2016 9:59 am

Rockets GM Daryl Morey will have plenty of cap flexibility this summer to pivot away from the profound disappointment of this season, as long as Dwight Howard opts out as expected. Houston’s guaranteed salary commitments only come to about half the projected salary cap, so if the team moves on from the disjointed pairing of Howard and James Harden, it’ll have the chance to sign a new maximum-salary free agent and then some. See how the Rockets’ cap situation looks for 2016/17 as Hoops Rumors continues its offseason salary cap digest series.

Guaranteed Salary

Player Options

Team Options

  • None

Non-Guaranteed Salary

Restricted Free Agents (Qualifying Offers/Cap Holds)

Unrestricted Free Agents (Cap Holds)

Projected Salary Cap: $92,000,000

Footnotes: 

  1. The cap hold for Howard if he opts out will be the maximum salary for a veteran of 10 or more seasons. The number shown here is an estimate based on the projected cap figure.

The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.

2 comments Hoops Rumors Originals Houston Rockets Offseason Salary Cap Digest

Celtics Notes: Turner, Ainge, Sullinger, Free Agency

By | at April 29, 2016 8:59 am

Evan Turner called Boston “the best place to play” and said he’d absolutely like to re-sign with the Celtics, but he cautioned that it’s not a foregone conclusion in comments he made after Thursday’s season-ending loss to Atlanta, as Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe relays. “Just fit obviously,” Turner said when asked what he’d prioritize in free agency. “I want to get a decent amount of money, you know what I’m saying? But at the same time the fit is going to be huge and the opportunity to play on a winning team. I have played on [bad] teams a couple times and it’s not fun. But obviously the fit, the opportunity to play, and the opportunity to progress and win.”

A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com points to the fondness the Knicks have for the former No. 2 overall pick and suggests the Magic will come after Turner, too. Orlando has no shortage of cap space, with enough for two maximum-salary free agents, and while it shouldn’t take the max to secure Turner, he appears poised for a raise on his salary of less than $3.426MM for this season.

See more from Boston:

  • President of basketball operations Danny Ainge expected more than a six-game exit from the playoffs this spring, as he tells Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, but the quick ouster shows the onus is on Ainge to upgrade the team’s talent, opines Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.
  • Teammates are a draw for soon-to-be restricted free agent Jared Sullinger, Himmelsbach notes (Twitter link). “If I leave it’s gonna be tough walking away from the great guys we have in this locker room,” Sullinger said.
  • Boston’s reputation as an unfriendly place for young black men persists, and whether or not that perception reflects reality, it works against the Celtics in free agent recruiting, as former NBA executive Amin Elhassan contends in an ESPN Insider 5-on-5 panel.
4 comments Boston Celtics Orlando Magic

Latest On The Kings’ Coaching Search

By | at April 28, 2016 9:42 pm

9:42pm: The Kings have been granted permission to speak with McMillan, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee relays, though the coach wants to wait until the Pacers’ postseason is complete before speaking with the team. Sacramento has also had extensive discussions with McHale to gauge his interest in the vacant post, Jones adds, and that dialogue is expected to continue, reports Sam Amick of USA Today. Additionally, the team plans to interview Messina in the near future, Amick relays.

1:55pm: Sacramento would like to talk to Walton, but no indications exist that the feeling is mutual, Amick tweets.

12:06pm: The Kings have received permission to interview Grizzlies assistant coach Elston Turner for their head coaching vacancy, reports Chris Haynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Northeast Ohio Media Group (Twitter link). GM Vlade Divac has reportedly been expected to meet with Warriors assistant Luke Walton, but Sacramento has yet to get Golden State’s permission to do so, as USA Today’s Sam Amick hears (Twitter link). Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee reported earlier this week that Turner would receive consideration for the Kings job.

The 56-year-old Turner has been with the Grizzlies since 2013, but his time as an NBA assistant dates back much farther. He was on Rick Adelman‘s coaching staff in Sacramento from 2000-06, when Turner was primarily responsible for the team’s defense, Jones tweets. Turner’s first gig as an NBA assistant was with the Trail Blazers from 1996-2000, and he’s also been an assistant for the Rockets, from 2007-11, and Suns, from 2011-13. He spent eight seasons as a player in the NBA from 1981-89, teaming with Michael Jordan on the Bulls from 1986-88.

Sacramento reportedly wants to hire a coach by sometime next week, but that seems far-fetched given the broad scope of the team’s search. The Kings have asked the Pacers for permission to interview assistant Nate McMillan, as Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago reported just hours ago. They’ve interviewed Sam Mitchell, Vinny Del Negro and Mike Woodson and would like to do so with Kevin McHale and Jeff Hornacek, according to earlier reports. Mark Jackson, Brian Shaw, Ettore Messina, Ime Udoka, Monty Williams, Jeff Van Gundy, Patrick Ewing, David Blatt, Jay Larranaga and Henry Bibby are the other names the team is apparently considering.

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