Heat Sign Tyler Herro To Rookie Contract
The Heat have signed rookie shooting guard Tyler Herro to his rookie contract, the team announced in an official release. Herro, 19, was the No. 13 overall selection in last month’s 2019 NBA Draft.
Because Herro signed for the typical 120% of the rookie-scale (h/t to Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel), he will earn $3,640,200 during his first year in the league and $17,188,836 over the life of the contract. If he ends up being a factor in a potential trade for Russell Westbrook, he can’t be traded for 30 days.
In his lone season at Kentucky, Herro started all 37 games he appeared in while averaging 14.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 32.6 minutes per game. He was named SEC Newcomer of the Year for his efforts.
As NBA cap expert Albert Nahmad notes (Twitter link), the Heat now have 14 players under contract after Herro’s signing. With a combined salary of $135.8MM, they’re $987K below the hard cap, which is not enough to add another free agent.
This is because while the rookie minimum salary is only $898K, the two-year minimum salary ($1.621MM) is used in place of the salary of a non-drafted rookie when determining a team’s salary in relation to the hard cap.
Pelicans Waive Dairis Bertans
4:27pm: Bertans’ release is now official, per NBA.com’s transactions log. According to Lithuanian journalist Donatas Urbonas (Twitter link), the 29-year-old has already reached an agreement to sign with Russian club Khimki.
3:04pm: According to his agent, Arturs Kalnitis (Twitter link), the Pelicans will waive guard Dairis Bertans. Per Kalnitis’ tweet, it appears unlikely that Bertans will be claimed off waivers by another NBA team.
The news isn’t entirely unexpected, as the Pelicans would have had 17 players on standard contracts after the team’s trade for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, and Josh Hart, reported trade for Derrick Favors, and reported signings of J.J. Redick, Darius Miller, and Nicolo Melli all came through.
Teams are permitted to have as many as 20 players on their roster during the offseason, but the Pelicans didn’t have the necessary cap space to sign Redick and trade for Favors without trimming some salary from their roster. By waiving Bertans, the Pelicans now figure to be able to complete those two deals, depending on the value of the first-year salary of Redick’s new contract.
Based on my math, the Pelicans can sign Redick to a starting salary of $12,853,641 after waiving Bertans (assuming Melli is signed with the room exception). With standard 5% raises, the total value of Redick’s contract would be just under $26.35MM, which is in line with the reported $26.5MM value.
As for Bertans, the 29-year-old Latvian will likely return to Europe after his one-year stay in the NBA, where he averaged 2.8 PPG in 12 games with the Pelicans.
Southwest Notes: Chandler, Conley, Mavericks, Erman, Turner
Sources tell Tim MacMahon of ESPN that veteran big man Tyson Chandler is a likely target for the Rockets in their search for a center to backup starter Clint Capela.
Chandler, who turns 37 later this year, had an effective 2018/19 season with the Lakers as a defender, rebounder, and veteran mentor. Per MacMahon, he is known as a good locker room guy and has a strong relationship with Rockets’ point guard Chris Paul from their days as teammates with the New Orleans Hornets.
There’s more from the Southwest Division this afternoon:
- The Grizzlies will retire No. 11 in honor of longtime franchise point guard Mike Conley, per an official release from team owner Robert J. Pera.
- After missing out on Danny Green, owner Mark Cuban says that the Mavericks 2019 free agency is probably done except for an opportunistic situation like a potential offer sheet to restricted free agent Delon Wright, reports Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.
- The Mavericks have since agreed to acquire Wright via S&T.
- Should they change their mind about free agency, the Mavericks no longer need to worry about the cap hold for Petteri Koponen after the league office permitted Dallas to remove the hold amount for the 2019/20 season (per RealGM transactions log).
- According to Scott Kushner of The Advocate, associate head coach Darren Erman is leaving the Pelicans coaching staff. Per Kushner, Erman remains a candidate for other NBA coaching jobs.
- Elston Turner has officially been hired as the Rockets new lead assistant coach under Mike D’Antoni, per a press release from the team. Turner previously worked for the Rockets under Rick Adelman and has spent the last three seasons in Sacramento working for the Kings under former head coach Dave Joerger.
Pelicans Sign Hayes, Alexander-Walker
The Pelicans have inked their two first-rounders from the 2019 NBA Draft not named Zion, agreeing to terms with both big man Jaxson Hayes (No. 8 overall) and guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (No. 17 overall), per the NBA.com’s transactions log.
Assuming both players signed for the standard 120% of the rookie-scale, Hayes will earn $4,862,040 in his rookie season and $22,118,492 over the life of the contract, while Alexander-Walker will earn $2,964,840 in his first season and $14,349,113 over four years.
In his lone season at Texas, Hayes appeared in 32 games, averaging 10.0 PPG. 5.0 RPG, and an impressive 2.2 BPG en route to being named the 2018/19 Big 12 Rookie of the Year.
As for Alexander-Walker, he averaged 16.2 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and 4.0 APG during his sophomore season for Virginia Tech after averaging 10.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per game as a freshman. For his efforts last year, he was named 2018/19 Third Team All-ACC.
Ekpe Udoh To Play In China
Free agent Ekpe Udoh has agreed to a one-year deal with the Beijing Ducks of the Chinese Basketball Association, per a report from Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.
Per Varlas, the 32-year-old big man who last played for the Jazz during the 2017/18 and 2018/19 seasons after being drafted No. 6 overall by the Warriors back in 2010, will become the highest-paid non-Chinese player in the CBA.
Confirming Eurohoops’ report, Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News adds that Udoh was strongly considering a return to the EuroLeague (where he played from 2015 to 2017), with reportedly up to five multi-million dollar offers from strong franchises in Spain, Italy and Turkey on the table.
A seven-year NBA veteran, Udoh holds career averages of 3.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 14.8 minutes per game. In addition to the potential financial incentive of heading overseas, Udoh also figures to play a more prominent role in China than he did in the NBA. After all, he was successful enough to earn Final Four MVP during his previous stint overseas.
Hawks Officially Sign De’Andre Hunter, Bruno Fernando
The Hawks have officially signed two of their rookies to their first NBA contracts, announcing today in a pair of press releases (links here) that they’ve finalized contracts with lottery-selection De’Andre Hunter and second-rounder Bruno Fernando.
Hunter, the No. 4 overall section in last month’s draft, was traded to Atlanta from New Orleans after being part of the trade that sent Anthony Davis to the Lakers. Locked in to the NBA’s rookie scale, Hunter will make just under $7.07MM in his rookie season. Should he play out his full four-year rookie contract he’ll earn approximately $32.1MM.
The 21-year-old forward was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and All-ACC First Team en route to leading Virginia to the NCAA Championship last season. He averaged 15.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 32.5 minutes per game while shooting an impressive 43.8% from three-point range.
As for Fernando, the terms of his new contract are unclear. The Hawks still have a two-way contract slot open after coming to terms with fellow rookie Charlie Brown Jr.; however, it’s likely Fernando’s signing would have been reported as a two-way contract if he was taking the other spot beside Brown.
It’s more likely that the Hawks will use some of their substantial remaining cap space (about $14MM) to accommodate a three to four-year contract with the Maryland big man. A three-year pact at the minimum would see Fernando earn nearly $4.2MM. I anticipate the deal to be in that vicinity, with perhaps a higher first-year salary somewhere between $1MM to 1.5MM.
Kings Sign Kyle Guy To Two-Way Deal
The Kings and rookie guard Kyle Guy have finalized an agreement for Guy to fill one of the team’s two-way contracts for the 2019/20 season, according to an official release from the team (h/t to Jason Jones of The Athletic).
Guy, the 55th overall selection in the 2019 NBA Draft, has already appeared in four Summer League games with the Kings, including a 21-point performance in Sacramento’s Las Vegas Summer League debut against the Chinese National Team.
A key part of Virginia’s run to a national title last season, Guy averaged 15.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 35.4 minutes per game in 38 games (38 starts) during his junior season for the Cavaliers. He was named All-ACC First Team and Final Four Most Outstanding Player.
Wenyen Gabriel and Troy Williams occupied the Kings’ two-way slots during the 2018/19 season, but Williams is a free agent, so Guy’s deal appears to indicate that he and Gabriel are on track to hold the team’s two two-way slots for the 2019/20 season.
Sixers Trade Bruno Fernando To Hawks For Bone, Future Picks
JULY 7: The trade has been officially completed, according to a press release issued by the Hawks. Bone will be flipped to the Pistons by the Sixers.
JUNE 20: The Sixers selected Maryland big man Bruno Fernando with the No. 34 overall selection in this year’s draft, but he will not play in Philadelphia, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, who tweets that the 76ers have traded Fernando to the Hawks for two future second-rounders and the No. 57 pick.
Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice reports that in addition to the No. 57 pick, Philadelphia will get Atlanta’s 2020 second-round pick (56-60 protected) and the most favorable of Atlanta’s, Charlotte’s, and Brooklyn’s 2023 second-round picks.
The Hawks were said to have interest in Fernando a little less than a month ago today, so it comes as no surprise that the team traded up into the top of the second round to draft the Maryland product.
Fernando averaged a double-double (13.6 PPG, 10.6 RPG) to go along with 1.9 BPG and a .607 FG% in 34 games for the Terrapins in 2018/19.
Damian Lillard Signs Super-Max Extension With Blazers
JULY 6: The Trail Blazers have officially signed Lillard to his super-max extension, the team announced today in a press release.
“Since the day we drafted Damian he has exemplified every quality an organization could hope for in a franchise player,” Olshey said in a statement. “His perpetual leadership, willingness to embrace responsibility for outcome on the floor and ability to set a cultural standard illustrates what it means to be a Portland Trail Blazer and makes us ecstatic he has chosen to extend his contract at the first opportunity.”
JUNE 30: The Trail Blazers and franchise point guard Damian Lillard are working toward an agreement on a four-year, $196MM super-max contract extension, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. Brian Windhorst of ESPN is reporting that the two sides have agreed on a deal, with Lillard also set to receive a player option for the 2024/25 season.
The extension will begin during the 2021/22 season. As we relayed yesterday, the projected cap figure for that season is $125MM, meaning that Lillard would earn an estimated $43.75MM in 2021/22, $47.25MM in 2022/23, $50.75MM in 2023/24, and a whopping $54.25MM in 2024/25.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports first indicated back in May that Portland and it’s star guard were working toward an extension. As we wrote then, Lillard’s four-year extension would cover his age 31-to-34 seasons, with the 29-year-old All-Star poised to make nearly $55MM at age 34.
Today, Haynes adds (link) that Lillard, his representatives, and Trail Blazers president of basketball operations Neil Olshey are meeting in Oakland tonight to finalize the maximum-contract extension.
Lillard, coming off one of his best seasons as a pro, averaged 25.8 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and a career-high 6.9 APG in 80 games for Portland on his way to being named All-NBA Second Team for the 2018/19 campaign.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Celtics Trade Aron Baynes, Ty Jerome To Suns For 2020 First-Rounder
JULY 6: The trade between the Celtics and Suns is now official, Boston announced today (via Twitter).
JUNE 20: The Celtics, who obtained the No. 24 selection from the Sixers earlier tonight, have agreed to trade the pick to the Suns, who have drafted Virginia point guard Ty Jerome (per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN). The Celtics also included big man Aron Baynes in the deal, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.
According to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe, Boston received a future draft pick from Phoenix in exchange for the rights to draft Jerome, and both Woj and Tim Bontemps of ESPN (link) report that the Suns are sending the Celtics the Bucks’ 2020 first-round pick. All told, the Suns will obtain both Baynes and Jerome, while the Celtics, who were said to be looking to move on from Baynes, pick up a first-rounder in next year’s draft.
The Bucks, of course, are expected to be one of the better teams in the league next season, so Boston’s selection will likely fall near the end of the first round, but they were evidently willing to wait a year for the first-round pick in order to move Baynes.
ESPN’s cap guru Bobby Marks notes that Phoenix is now down to a projected $14MM in cap space after accounting for Baynes’ salary and the cap hold for Jerome, which will surely curtail the level of free agent point guard Phoenix will be able to pursue on the free agent market this summer.
As for the Celtics, salary cap expert Albert Nahmad (link) notes that by trading Baynes and both the No. 20 and No. 24 picks away, Boston now has the ability to increase its cap room to $34.8MM, if Terry Rozier‘s cap hold is renounced (h/t to Marks).