Players Becoming Trade-Eligible On December 15th
Trade rumors are already starting to perk up with a major date on the NBA calendar precisely one week away. Dozens of offseason signees become eligible to be traded on December 15th, freeing the early-season shackles that limit player movement. The deadline affects some teams more than others, as the majority of the players on the Kings, Knicks, Mavs and Nets become trade-eligible December 15th while the Thunder don’t have a single player who qualifies.
Oklahoma City has two signees, Enes Kanter and Kyle Singler, who become trade-eligible on January 15th, the most common trade-eligibility date other than December 15th. Still, more players are on the list below than the one we compiled earlier showing those who become eligible on a date other than December 15th.
Some of the players on this list will continue to have trade restrictions that cover where they can be traded, and some have the power to veto trades. The list doesn’t include players who signed as draft picks, since they become trade-eligible 30 days after they sign. Still, it’s easy to see from the volume of players here why many more trades happen in December than in November.
- Bucks — Chris Copeland, Greg Monroe
- Bulls — Aaron Brooks, Cristiano Felicio
- Cavaliers — Matthew Dellavedova, LeBron James, Richard Jefferson, James Jones, J.R. Smith, Mo Williams
- Celtics — Jonas Jerebko, Amir Johnson
- Clippers — Cole Aldrich, Wesley Johnson, Luc Mbah a Moute, Paul Pierce, Pablo Prigioni, Josh Smith
- Grizzlies — Brandan Wright
- Hawks — Justin Holiday, Paul Millsap, Terran Petteway
- Heat — Gerald Green, Amar’e Stoudemire
- Hornets — Tyler Hansbrough, Aaron Harrison, Jeremy Lin
- Jazz — Joe Ingles, Jeff Withey
- Kings — Quincy Acy, James Anderson, Marco Belinelli, Caron Butler, Omri Casspi, Seth Curry, Duje Dukan, Eric Moreland, Rajon Rondo
- Knicks — Arron Afflalo, Lou Amundson, Robin Lopez, Kyle O’Quinn, Kevin Seraphin, Lance Thomas, Sasha Vujacic, Derrick Williams
- Lakers — Brandon Bass, Marcelo Huertas, Lou Williams
- Magic — Jason Smith, C.J. Watson
- Mavericks — J.J. Barea, Jeremy Evans, John Jenkins, Wesley Matthews, JaVale McGee, Salah Mejri, Charlie Villanueva, Deron Williams
- Nets — Andrea Bargnani, Wayne Ellington, Shane Larkin, Willie Reed, Thomas Robinson, Donald Sloan, Thaddeus Young
- Nuggets — Darrell Arthur, Will Barton, Jameer Nelson
- Pacers — Monta Ellis, Jordan Hill, Glenn Robinson III, Rodney Stuckey, Shayne Whittington
- Pelicans — Omer Asik, Luke Babbitt, Dante Cunningham, Alonzo Gee, Kendrick Perkins
- Pistons — Joel Anthony, Aron Baynes
- Raptors — Bismack Biyombo, DeMarre Carroll, Cory Joseph, Luis Scola
- Rockets — K.J. McDaniels, Jason Terry, Marcus Thornton
- Sixers — Kendall Marshall, Christian Wood
- Spurs — LaMarcus Aldridge, Matt Bonner, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Boban Marjanovic, Jonathon Simmons, David West
- Suns — Tyson Chandler, Cory Jefferson, Ronnie Price, Mirza Teletovic, Sonny Weems
- Thunder — None
- Timberwolves — Kevin Garnett, Andre Miller, Tayshaun Prince
- Trail Blazers — Cliff Alexander, Al-Farouq Aminu, Ed Davis, Luis Montero
- Warriors — Leandro Barbosa, Ian Clark
- Wizards — Alan Anderson, Gary Neal
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Pelicans, Suns Open Talks On Markieff Morris
The Pelicans and Suns have engaged in preliminary dialogue about a trade involving Markieff Morris, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski and Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. New Orleans has “significant interest” in acquiring Morris and would consider giving up Ryan Anderson, especially if Anderson, who’s on an expiring contract, doesn’t show interest in signing new deal, Wojnarowski and Charania hear. Morris has continued to push for a trade, the Yahoo scribes write, which casts doubt on what seemed to be a change of heart at the beginning of the season, when Morris professed that he wanted to stay in Phoenix.
The felony aggravated assault charges that Morris faces concern just about every team interested in trading for him, sources told Wojnarowski and Charania. Still, belief around the league is growing that the Suns are warming to the idea of trading him after having resisted since he demanded a trade over the summer, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported when he identified the Rockets as another Morris suitor. The Pistons are also reportedly interested, as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press reported in October.
Jordan Schultz of the Huffington Post first connected Anderson and Morris in the offseason, when he wrote that Phoenix was attempting to trade Morris and that Phoenix was targeting Anderson. That report came after the Suns agreed to trade Marcus Morris, Markieff’s twin, to the Pistons, but before Markieff publicly made his trade demand.
Sources close to the Pelicans recently told Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders that the team values Anderson quite highly and that it would take a “monster offer” for New Orleans to think about parting with him. The Pelicans are enamored with the potential pairing of Morris and Anthony Davis, Wojnarowski and Charania write, so perhaps that’s enough to sway the New Orleans brass.
Morris has indicated on multiple occasions since he backed off his trade demand at the start of training camp that he’s content with the Suns, and he even said after coach Jeff Hornacek removed him from the starting lineup for Friday’s game that he deserved the benching. Morris didn’t comment after Sunday’s game, when Hornacek declined to play him at all.
Anderson’s $8.5MM salary is nearly identical to the $8MM Morris is making, so a one-for-one swap would work. Both are eligible to be traded immediately and aren’t subject to the December 15th date upon which most offseason signees become trade-eligible. The primary difference in their contracts is the remaining length. Morris is in the first year of a four-year extension, while Anderson is poised to hit free agency in the summer ahead.
Who do you think would benefit most from a Morris-Anderson swap? Leave a comment to let us know.
Southwest Notes: Williams, Motiejunas, Jones
Playing in Brooklyn gave Deron Williams the sense that “everybody felt I was the problem,” and he cited his own injuries as well as what he saw as the negative effect frequent coaching turnover had on chemistry for reasons why it didn’t work out with the Nets, as Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com chronicles. The Nets weren’t pleased with Williams’ attitude, nor his declining production, sources told Mazzeo, but Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle has showered praise on the point guard, who feels much more at home on his new team.
“[Dallas] has been great for me,” Williams said, according to Mazzeo. “It’s been great for my family. [There’s] a lot more positivity in Dallas, and I think I needed that in my life.”
Williams has a player option worth more than $5.621MM for next season. See more on the Mavs amid the latest from the Southwest Division:
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said Monday that he wanted every player the Knicks wound up with from the 2015 draft: Kristaps Porzingis, Jerian Grant and Guillermo Hernangomez, a second-round draft-and-stash pick, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. The main attraction was naturally Porzingis, the No. 4 overall selection, as Marc Berman of the New York Post details. “We would have traded up in a heartbeat to get that kid,’’ Cuban said. “We loved him. Obviously, people are going to compare him to Dirk [Nowitzki] because that’s what people like to do. When you’re 7’3″, those three inches make a difference.”
- The Rockets are reportedly thinking about trading Donatas Motiejunas and Terrence Jones, but Jonathan Tjarks of RealGM points to their presence in Houston as reason for hope amid the team’s slow start.
- Kendrick Perkins was expected to miss three months when he went down with a right pectoral injury in early November, but a decent chance exists that he returns to play sometime this month, according to John Reid of The Times Picayune. Coach Alvin Gentry lauded the big man’s work ethic during rehab, Reid notes, and this weekend Gentry praised Perkins’ locker room influence, as Brett Dawson of the New Orleans Advocate relays (Twitter link). Perkins is with the Pelicans on a one-year deal. “I think he’s the best teammate I’ve ever seen,” Gentry said. “I mean, without a doubt. I really do believe that.”
More Reaction To Sixers Hiring Of Jerry Colangelo
Owners around the league pressured the NBA to put the brakes on Philadelphia’s aggressive rebuilding plan, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reported and as we passed along Monday night, and that indeed played a role in the hiring of Jerry Colangelo, Windhorst writes. The owners were upset with the Sixers, a large market team with a storied history, as many of the games that featured Philadelphia as the visitor have been among the most lightly attended all season, sources told Windhorst. People who know Colangelo, who joined the Sixers to find a new challenge after his plans for a new Team USA practice facility fell through, believe he’ll have major influence on the Sixers going forward, despite owner Josh Harris’ remark that radical changes to the team’s process aren’t to be expected. Colangelo is notorious for negotiating favorable deals for himself, so he probably didn’t come cheaply, an executive said to Windhorst. See more on the aftermath of Philly’s decision to install Colangelo as a special adviser to the owner and chairman of basketball operations:
- Coach Brett Brown was furious amid the spate of incidents involving Jahlil Okafor lately, and Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Daily News suggests that the team’s handling of Okafor “might have been the last straw” for Brown if not for the Colangelo hiring. Brown and the Sixers say they are deep in talks on an extension.
- Colangelo pointed to “a void of leadership, playerwise” as he spoke Monday to reporters, including Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post, a comment that would seem to lend credence to Brown’s remark that he thinks the team will give more regard to having veteran players around.
- The Sixers shouldn’t give up on Hinkie’s strategy just yet, since the team is in position to have a viable roster as soon as next season, argues Chris Mannix of SI.com. Philadelphia is in line to feature as many as six additional first-round picks in the lineup in 2016/17, between the return of Joel Embiid, draft-and-stash prospect Dario Saric and the four 2016 first-rounders the team could end up with.
- Colangelo is a coup for the Sixers, opines Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News, who believes the 76-year-old’s voice will carry more weight than Hinkie’s in the new Sixers hierarchy.
Sixers Hire Jerry Colangelo To Front Office Role
10:28pm: NBA owners have been pressuring the league’s front office since the summer of 2014 to do something about the Sixers’ rebuilding plan, sources told ESPN.com’s Brian Windhorst.
7:17pm: League commissioner Adam Silver played a significant role in the Sixers’ decision to hire Colangelo, including placing a call to Colangelo to gauge his interest, sources told USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt.
3:44pm: The Sixers have hired USA Basketball chairman and longtime NBA executive Jerry Colangelo to serve in their front office, the team announced via press release and in a press conference. Colangelo will hold the titles of Special Advisor to the Managing General Partner and Chairman of Basketball Operations. The statement doesn’t specify whether Colangelo will continue with Team USA, but he’s said in the past that he would stay through the 2020 Olympics. Sixers GM Sam Hinkie will continue in his capacity in charge of day-to-day basketball operations, owner Josh Harris said, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter).
Hinkie will still have the final say on personnel, though “a lot of collaboration and discussion” will be involved in the team’s roster moves, Colangelo said, according to Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post (Twitter link). The deal for the 76-year-old Hall-of-Famer to join the Sixers came together within the past week, Colangelo said, according to John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com (on Twitter).
“It’s not every day you have the opportunity to work alongside a Hall of Famer with Jerry’s unique set of experiences,” Hinkie said in the team’s statement. “I feel incredibly fortunate to have him as part of our organization.”
Hinkie has served as the team’s GM since May 2013, and with Harris’ support, he’s embarked on an extreme rebuilding project of the likes the NBA has never seen before. Colangelo built the Suns up from expansion as its primary basketball executive from its inception in 1968 until 1994. He won the Executive of the Year award four times.
“This is not a deviation from our plan. … We believe we are entering the next phase of our process,” Harris said, according to Jake Fischer of SI Now (on Twitter).
Fallout From Sixers Hiring Of Jerry Colangelo
Sixers owner Josh Harris said GM Sam Hinkie will remain in charge of day-to-day basketball operations and that the hiring of Jerry Colangelo to the front office isn’t a deviation from the team’s rebuilding plan, but not everyone believes that the move doesn’t represent a sea change. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports casts it as a reduction of power for Hinkie and hears that several executives around the league are wondering whether Colangelo will eventually persuade the Sixers to hire son Bryan Colangelo, the former Suns and Raptors GM. Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com hears speculation that Jerry Colangelo will end up with an ownership stake in the Sixers (Twitter link). Still, owner Josh Harris insists not much will be different, as Tom Moore of Calkins Media relays (on Twitter).
“We’re still committed to the process,” Harris said. “We’re committed to Sam. Don’t expect radical changes to the process.”
See more on Philadelphia’s surprising hire:
- Harris admitted to reporters that he’s frustrated amid the team’s slow start, Moore tweets, and that he hopes that Colangelo will expedite the team’s rebuilding process, notes Dan Gelston of The Associated Press (Twitter link). Sixers management lost patience amid 20 losses in 21 games so far and a series of unflattering reports about Jahlil Okafor‘s alleged off-court behavior, Wojnarowski writes in the same piece.
- Coach Brett Brown said he believes the team will take free agency and the value of veteran players more seriously in the wake of the move, observes Derek Bodner of Philadelphia magazine (on Twitter).
- The addition of Colangelo gives the Sixers an agent-friendly presence, notes Mark Perner of the Philadelphia Daily News (Twitter link). The team has reportedly upset agents with its tactics the past few years. “I went through four and a half decades of basketball on handshakes with agents and players,” Colangelo said, as Moore tweets. “My job is to be here to help.”
- It was Harris who reached out to Colangelo about joining the organization, Colangelo said, according to Gelston (on Twitter).
- Colangelo will continue to live in Phoenix, but he’s excited about the ability to collaborate with Hinkie, as Moore chronicles (Twitter links). “I think I can offer a lot of mentoring to Sam and make him even better at his job,” Colangelo said.
- Colangelo, who ran basketball operations for the Suns from the team’s inception in 1968 until 1994, is anxious to help the Sixers rebuild, as Jake Fischer of SI Now relays (Twitter link). “I’m intrigued quite honestly,” Colangelo said. “During my years in Phoenix, I tore down the team four times and came back four times.”
- Hinkie called it a “a really good day for the Sixers,” and said he feels positively about the hiring of Colangelo, whom the GM believes “will be a breath of fresh air in a lot of ways,” as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer and Moore all relay (All four Twitter links). “I think we’re ready to go to the next phase,” Hinkie said. “Jerry knows every player, every coach. His knowledge will be invaluable.”
Sixers Likely To Sign Brett Brown To Extension
4:41pm: Brown confirmed to reporters that the sides are heavily in engaged in talks, notes Tom Moore of Calkins Media (Twitter link).
“I am in deep conversations about my contract,” Brown said. “This is where I want to be.”
4:00pm: The Sixers are “very likely” to sign coach Brett Brown to an extension, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The team is deep in talks about a deal with Brown, owner Josh Harris said today amid the press conference in which Philadelphia announced the hiring of Jerry Colangelo to a front office position, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports (on Twitter). The coach’s contract is set to end after next season.
The subject of an extension has been a topic of speculation for months, even as Brown has insisted that he doesn’t feel comfortable talking about his contract, other than to say that he intends to see it through. Harris and GM Sam Hinkie didn’t address the subject of an extension at the team’s media day at the start of training camp, but they nonetheless made it clear they like the coach.
Brown reportedly had some doubt about his job security early last season, but Hinkie lent his support, and his willingness to keep plugging away with an understocked, ever-changing roster has won Brown the respect of the team’s brass. The coach has occasionally admitted he wished the team had more veterans and that the burden of the team’s losing wears on him from time to time, but he’s nonetheless countered that with near-relentless enthusiasm as the Sixers continue to lose. Philadelphia is 1-20 this season and 38-147 overall under Brown, who spent several years as a Spurs assistant before joining the Sixers for the 2013/14 season.
Central Notes: Portis, J.R. Smith, Pacers, Bairstow
Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg says Bobby Portis will have a chance to play extensive minutes at some point this season, likely soon, but this year’s 22nd overall pick has seen just 22 total minutes all season, observes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. Portis admits it’s difficult to sit on the bench but understands the level of talent in front of him, which includes Pau Gasol, Nikola Mirotic, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, Johnson notes. Portis is anxious enough to play that he’d welcome a D-League assignment.
“People hear D-League and think, ‘Oh, man, he’s in the D-League,'” Portis said, according to Johnson. “It’s not about the D-League. It’s about getting reps and getting ready. The D-League’s great for getting better.”
The Bulls are instead making other D-League moves, as we detail amid the latest from the Central Division:
- J.R. Smith says it’s not time for the Cavs to panic yet, but he’s nonetheless concerned, with the Cavs having lost three straight and four of their last six, as he explained to Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. The team was without the resting LeBron James in Saturday’s loss, but it’s a matter of competitiveness, and not roster composition, Smith contends. “Just overall competing,” Smith said to Haynes. “We have all the talent. We got all the skills. It’s just competing.”
- Indianapolis and Fort Wayne are close enough to allow the Pacers to frequently shuttle their D-League assignees back and forth, but they’ve instead kept Rakeem Christmas, who’s the D-League Performer of the Week, and Shayne Whittington in Fort Wayne from November 2nd on, notes Adam Johnson of D-League Digest. That’s a longer stretch of time than any other NBA player has spent on D-League assignment this season, and it’s helped Christmas and Whittington gain a sense of consistency, as Pacers D-League GM Brian Levy told Johnson. “Giving the players the greatest chance to succeed in turn gives the team the greatest chance to succeed,” Levy said. “The Pacers have embraced that idea.”
- The Bulls have recalled Cameron Bairstow from the D-League, the team announced. The second-year big man was with San Antonio’s affiliate since Chicago is without a D-League team of its own. Bairstow, whose salary is partially guaranteed for about half its value this season, averaged 14.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in 26.5 minutes per game across five contests for the Austin Spurs.
Wizards Use Stretch Provision On Martell Webster
The Wizards used the stretch provision to spread out the cap hit associated with the $2.5MM partial guarantee on Martell Webster‘s salary for next season, reports Zach Lowe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Webster, who cleared waivers after the team released him last week, will see the $2.5MM in three equal parts of $833,333 each season from 2016/17 through 2018/19 instead of receiving the $2.5MM all in 2016/17. That gives the Wizards about $1.667MM in added cap flexibility this summer, when they’re poised to chase soon-to-be free agent Kevin Durant and reportedly plan to re-sign Bradley Beal to a max contract in free agency.
The stretch doesn’t apply to this season’s salary of almost $5.614MM. The full amount of Webster’s salary for next season was to have been more than $5.845MM, but Washington is only on the hook for the partially guaranteed value.
The league allows teams until the end of the first full day after a player clears waivers to decide whether they want to use the stretch provision to spread out his cap hit, so that accounts for some of the delay in reporting. The Wizards could have taken until the end of this past Thursday to declare whether they were stretching Webster’s salary.
The move leaves Washington with $37,691,855 in guaranteed salary for next season, when the cap is projected to hit $89MM. Beal’s cap hold is worth $14,734,954, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. The Wizards would incur roster charges worth $3,804,297, a number equal to seven times the rookie minimum salary, if they were to strip down merely to Beal and the four players on their roster with fully guaranteed salary for next season. The maximum salary for Durant, who’ll have nine years of experience by next summer, is projected to be $24.9MM. That means the Wizards would have at least $81,131,106 tied up if they sign Durant, so they could spend between that amount and the cap to supplement their roster before circling back to re-sign Beal. Washington could use Beal’s Bird rights to exceed the cap, a privilege the team wouldn’t have with outside free agents.
Still, those numbers are merely based on projections and the idea that Washington would waive Kris Humphries, Drew Gooden and DeJuan Blair, all of whom also have partially guaranteed salary for next season. It would also require the team to get rid of its obligation to pay its 2016 first-round pick, which the Wizards could achieve by trading the pick or using it on a draft-and-stash player. The Wizards could pry open additional flexibility if they use the stretch provision on other players they might waive. In any case, the decision to stretch Webster’s salary will help the team supplement its roster for next season, even as it places slightly more burden on the team’s payroll for 2017/18 and 2018/19.
Records Of Teams Since Trade Deadline
Lots of teams make in-season trades with the idea of bettering themselves, yet of the 17 that swung a deal at the February trade deadline last season, only five have a winning record since. That’s a strikingly low number as front offices get set for the unofficial start of in-season trading for 2015/16 on December 15th, the date that most offseason signees become eligible to be traded.
Still, that’s not to say that plenty of movement can’t lead to success. The Celtics made seven in-season trades in 2014/15, and they have the best record since the February deadline among those that made deals that day. The Rockets have struggled this season and trade rumors involving Houston have emerged, but they’re right behind the Celtics in this category.
It’s no surprise to see the Sixers at the bottom of this list, but it’s noteworthy that the Suns and Bucks, who were part of a three-team deadline-day deal with Philadelphia that sent Brandon Knight from Milwaukee to Phoenix, have almost the same poor record since.
Here’s a look at each team that swung a trade at the deadline last year, ranked by winning percentage since then. Details on the trade each team made can be seen by clicking the date. If a team made multiple trades at the deadline, further details are linked within parentheses.
- Celtics — 31-20 (.608) February 19th, 2015 (also see other trade made that day)
- Rockets — 30-20 (.600) February 19th, 2015 (also see other trade made that day)
- Jazz — 28-19 (.596) February 19th, 2015
- Thunder — 29-20 (.592) February 19th, 2015 (also see other trade made that day)
- Heat — 27-21 (.563) February 19th, 2015
- Trail Blazers — 24-26 (.480) February 19th, 2015
- Pelicans — 23-26 (.469) February 19th, 2015
- Pistons — 23-26 (.469) February 19th, 2015 (also see other trade made that day)
- Wizards — 21-25 (.457) February 19th, 2015
- Nets — 22-28 (.440) February 19th, 2015
- Bucks — 19-31 (.380) February 19th, 2015
- Suns — 18-31 (.367) February 19th, 2015 (also see two other trades made that day)
- Nuggets — 18-32 (.360) February 19th, 2015 (also see other trade made that day)
- Kings — 18-34 (.346) February 19th, 2015
- Knicks — 17-33 (.340) February 19th, 2015
- Timberwolves — 13-35 (.271) February 19th, 2015
- Sixers — 7-43 (.140) February 19th, 2015 (also see two other trades made that day)