Five Key Stories: 1/6/18 – 1/13/18
Hoops Rumors has you covered in the event you missed any of this past week’s headlines from around the NBA. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last 7 days.
Monday is the last day for teams to sign players to two-way contracts for the remainder of the 2017/18 season. Below is a list of players who signed or agreed to sign a two-way contract this week:
- The Bucks signed Xavier Munford.
- The Jazz agreed to sign Georges Niang.
- The Pacers signed Ben Moore.
- The Grizzlies signed Myke Henry.
- The Pelicans agreed to signed Mike James.
Sunday was the last day for teams to waive players on non-guaranteed contracts before those players’ contracts become guaranteed for the remainder of the 2017/18 season. The following players were waived before the deadline:
- The Lakers waived Andrew Bogut.
- The Pacers waived Damien Wilkins.
- The Bucks waived DeAndre Liggins and Joel Bolomboy.
- The Rockets waived Bobby Brown.
Perhaps the most talked-about trade candidate so far this season, Clippers center DeAndre Jordan has yet to garner any serious offers from opposing teams, with Adrian Wojnarowski calling the pursuit of Jordan “sluggish” and one anonymous GM being told that not many teams feel Jordan will put them over the top (i.e. able to beat the Warriors). Part of the issue also stems from teams’ unwillingness to part with draft picks as a result of Brooklyn’s infamous 2013 trade with Boston, with Woj being told that no club, including the Clippers, wants to end up “embarrassed like the Nets were.”
The Jazz and the Bulls are engaged in discussions about a potential trade involving Nikola Mirotic. Mirotic, who is in the first season of a two-year deal that features a $12.5MM team option for 2018/19, becomes trade-eligible on Monday, and while any deal involving him would require his approval, that’s not expected to be a major roadblock considering Mirotic’s relationship with teammate Bobby Portis. The asking price for Mirotic is a first-round pick with no long-term contracts attached.
Multiple NBA teams have identified Tristan Thompson as a player the Cavaliers would be willing to move before the trade deadline, with one report indicating that Thompson would be a prime candidate to head to Los Angeles in exchange for Jordan. However, the Cavs are said to be reticent to trade away the Nets’ 2018 first-round pick.
Here are 10 more headlines from around the NBA last week.
- The Kings fired former assistant coach Mike Bratz, who was the senior director of scouting and senior advisor to GM Vlade Divac.
- Several teams have contacted the Knicks about trading for backup center Willy Hernangomez, who has struggled to find playing time this season.
- The Grizzlies, positioned to be sellers at next month’s trade deadline, are asking for a first-round pick in exchange for Tyreke Evans.
- The Lakers agreed to sign Jamil Wilson to a two-way deal before reneging days later after news surfaced that Wilson was named in a civil suit.
- Bulls guard Zach LaVine will make his long-awaited debut for his new team tonight against Detroit.
- In addition to the Jazz, the Pistons and Blazers are also interested in trading for Mirotic, with all three teams having Chicago’s first-round pick asking price.
- After being waived by the Bucks, DeAndre Liggins signed a 10-day contract with the Pelicans.
- The Clippers and veteran guard Lou Williams have recently engaged in discussions about a possible extension.
- The Pistons are receiving trade interest on rookie Luke Kennard.
- The Pistons are converting the contract of guard Dwight Buycks from a two-way pact to a standard NBA deal.
Mavs Sign Kyle Collinsworth To 10-Day Deal
Just three days after waiving him from his two-way contract, the Mavericks have signed Kyle Collinsworth to a 10-day deal, according to an official press release from the team.
Collinsworth, 26, appeared in only four games for Dallas while on his two-way contract, averaging 1.0 points and 0.5 rebounds in 5.8 minutes per game. Nevertheless, the deal was somewhat expected, as head coach Rick Carlisle said that Collinsworth could potentially be back on a 10-day contract after he was waived earlier this week.
The signing of Collinsworth will give Dallas a full 17-man roster, with Johnathan Motley and Collinsworth’s replacement, Jalen Jones, holding the team’s two-way spots.
Dallas, who is currently below the cap floor, will incur a modest cap hit of $46,080 for Collinsworth’s deal.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 12/30/17 – 1/6/18
Every week, even during the holidays, we at Hoops Rumors strive to create interesting original content to complement our news feed. Below are our original segments and features from the last 7 days:
- Given the new year, Luke Adams detailed the important NBA dates and deadlines coming up in January, 2018.
- In two different Community Shootaround posts, we asked:
- Which team, the Celtics or the Sixers, would more greatly benefit from receipt of the Lakers‘ 2018 first round pick?
- How do you expect the Clippers so-far underwhelming 2017/18 season to play out?
- In a Weekly Mailbag segment, Arthur Hill answered questions involving the latest trade rumors surrounding the Bucks, the asking price for Bulls frontcourt players Nikola Mirotic and Robin Lopez, and LaVar Ball’s junior basketball league.
- Luke Adams revisited the Hoops Rumors Glossary to analyze 10-day contracts and the Ted Stepien Rule.
- We reminded our readers of the new Hoops Rumors feature, 2017/18 NBA Reverse Standings.
- Our Free Agent Stock Watch focused on the Charlotte Hornets.
- Chris Crouse offered fantasy hoops advice focusing on Marquese Chriss, James Harden, and even newly-signed Gerald Green, among others.
- We polled our readers, asking:
- Should the Hornets look to trade All-Star point guard Kemba Walker?
- Which team represents the biggest threat to the defending champion Warriors?
Five Key Stories: 12/30/17 – 1/6/18
Hoops Rumors has you covered in the event you missed any of this past week’s (Happy New Year!) headlines from around the NBA. Here are some of the most noteworthy stories from the last 7 days.
Tomorrow is the last day for teams to waive players on non-guaranteed contracts before those players’ contracts become guaranteed for the remainder of the 2017/18 season. As a result, several teams have already come out and reported that they plan to retain certain players beyond the deadline, thereby guaranteeing (albeit unofficially) those players’ salaries for the remainder of the season. As it currently stands, the following players will reportedly not be waived:
- The Rockets will guarantee the non-guaranteed contract of Gerald Green.
- The Jazz will guarantee the non-guaranteed contract of Raul Neto.
- The Hawks will guarantee the non-guaranteed contracts of Tyler Cavanaugh and Isaiah Taylor.
- The Magic will guarantee the non-guaranteed contract of Khem Birch.
In other news, Isaiah Thomas made his return for the defending Eastern Conference Champions in the Cavaliers‘ win over Portland on Tuesday. Thomas came off the bench and, as part of his continued treatment, did not play Wednesday against his former team in Boston. However, Thomas is expected to start tonight against Orlando. In his first game back, Thomas went off for 17 points in only 19 minutes.
Rockets star guard and MVP candidate James Harden will be sidelined for at least another week, if not more, after suffering a Grade 2 hamstring strain in the team’s double-overtime victory over the Lakers last Sunday. Despite the injury, Harden still managed to post 40 points and 11 assists.
Warriors point guard and two-time MVP Stephen Curry returned to action last Saturday night in the Warriors’ win over Memphis. Curry, who had missed 11 games with a sprained right ankle, scored 38 points in only 26 minutes of action in Golden State’s victory.
Here are 11 more headlines from around the NBA last week.
- Former Knicks forward Mindaugas Kuzminskas has signed with Olimpia Milano of Italy’s Lega Basket Serie A.
- Former Hawks forward Nicolas Brussino has signed with CB Gran Canaria of Spain’s Liga ACB.
- The Heat waived shooting guard Matt Williams and signed small forward Derrick Jones to his now vacant two-way contract.
- In response to a missed call that potentially cost the Thunder a win against the Bucks, the NBA is going to consider potential solutions on late game out-of-bounds replays.
- Blazers All-Star point guard Damian Lillard returned to action Tuesday after missing nearly two weeks with a hamstring injury
- The Wizards waived one their two-way players – rookie forward Michael Young.
- Turns out that the Spurs were serious contenders for Kyrie Irving this summer, but ultimately failed to have the draft assets so coveted by Cleveland that Boston possesed.
- The Knicks are considering signing former first-round pick and current G League star Trey Burke to an NBA deal.
- Despite signing a lucrative three-year, $57MM deal with the Kings this summer, George Hill is having a difficult time adjusting to his new role.
- The Clippers signed Tyrone Wallace to a two-way deal after waiving two-way contributor Jamil Wilson.
- The Sixers signed former first-round pick James Young to a two-way contract after waiving guard Jacob Pullen.
Magic Will Retain Khem Birch
The Magic will retain rookie big man Khem Birch for the remainder of the 2017/18 NBA season, reports Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Birch’s non-guaranteed minimum salary contract of $815.6K will become fully guaranteed tomorrow evening, whereas the Magic would have only had to pay Birch the first $407.8K (or half) of his contract had they chosen to waive him today or tomorrow morning.
Birch, a 25-year-old rookie out of UNLV, has spent most of his rookie season with the Magic’s G League affiliate in Lakeland, FL. In the six games he has played for the Magic, he has averaged only 1.3 points and less than one rebound per game. However, with Nikola Vucevic now injured, the Magic will keep Birch around as a young prospect vying for playing time behind Bismack Biyombo and Marreese Speights.
Hawks To Guarantee Contracts of Cavanaugh, Taylor
Per a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Hawks are expected to guarantee the contracts of Isaiah Taylor and Tyler Cavanaugh before tomorrow’s guarantee deadline. Combined, that adds up to almost $2.0MM in guaranteed money that Atlanta could have saved by waiving the two players.
Taylor, a second-year guard out of Texas, played in seven total games for Houston last season as a rookie before signing with the Hawks in October. He has averaged 5.0 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game in 31 games so far this season primarily as a backup to Dennis Schroder.
Cavanaugh, an undrafted rookie big man out of George Washington, signed a two-way contract with the Hawks in November before ultimately having his contract converted to a standard NBA deal last month. In 26 games played so far this season, he has averaged 5.3 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.
Jazz To Guarantee Contract of Raul Neto
The Jazz are expected to guarantee the contract of Raul Neto, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The deadline for Neto’s non-guaranteed deal is tomorrow, January 7, but Utah reportedly has every intention to keep him on their roster, despite a recent injury to his left knee.
Neto, a 25-year-old Brazilian who made his professional debut as a teenager in 2008, signed a three-year deal with the Jazz in July, 2015. He started 53 games as a rookie during the 2015/16 season, but has seen his minutes drop over the last two seasons, this season at least in part due to the Jazz’ acquisition of Ricky Rubio.
Neto has averaged 4.9 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game over 138 career NBA games.
Lou Amundson Signs In Japan
Lou Amundson, who last played in the NBA during the 2015/16 season for the Knicks, has signed with the Kawasaki Brave Thunders of the Japanese B.League, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
Amundson, who was part of the 2015 trade that sent Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to Cleveland, began his career in the G League and was named All-NBA D-League First Team and NBA D-League Rookie of the Year in 2007.
The 35-year-old veteran power forward has played in 428 games over 10 NBA seasons, with career averages of 3.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.
NBA Competition Committee To Review Out-Of-Bounds Replays
Just last week we highlighted how the growing tension between NBA players and officials had gotten to a point where leaders of their respective unions felt compelled to meet. Then, in response to an NBA Officiating Last Two Minute Report, LeBron James came out and stated that the issue irking him most about the officiating is when an official refuses to acknowledge that an infraction occurred (per Dave McMenamin of ESPN).
Now, based at least in large part on a call missed by the officials during the Bucks win over the Thunder on Friday night, the NBA’s competition committee will look into making missed out-of-bounds calls replayable, according to Royce Young of ESPN.
The controversial non-call occurred with less than 5.0 seconds remaining in the game. The Bucks called timeout and set up a play for Giannis Antetokounmpo, who spun around Josh Huestis and finished with a dunk over Russell Westbrook. However, replays visible in the arena clearly showed that Antetokounmpo stepped out of bounds on his way to the hoop.
Unfortunately for the Thunder, the officials were not permitted to review the play because it did not meet the criteria to trigger a review. In order for a review to be triggered under the current replay system, the officials would have needed to make a call on the floor signaling that Antetokounmpo was out of bounds.
As succinctly explained by head official Derrick Stafford after Friday’s game, “In any reviewable matter, there has to be a whistle called on the floor. There was no whistle blown for the play, so we couldn’t review it.”
The NBA’s competition committee will meet in March to discuss this and other issues, but a change, if any, would not be implemented until the 2018-19 season.
Southeast Notes: Whiteside, Payton, Gordon
Heat center Hassan Whiteside returned from injury this week after missing 13 games with a bone bruise in his left knee. In his absence, the Heat modified their offense a bit to involve their big men in more dribble handoffs and other ball-handling activities, showcasing the skill of players like Kelly Olynyk and Bam Adebayo. And as Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel reports, Whiteside will be called upon to continue this change.
“You’re going to get assists when you handle the ball more,” he said. “It’s just part of the game. (Coach is) putting it into the big’s hands more (and) I love it, man. I can’t wait to get my hands into that. It’s not as much pick-and-roll as much as it was. It’s more handoffs, bigs flashing to the elbows, that sort of stuff.”
And while Whiteside is eager to see how he fits into the new offense, Winderman figures that the adjustment will be gradual as Whiteside’s playing time increases. As head coach Eric Spoelstra explained, “The rhythm, the timing, the cohesiveness, you can’t take it for granted. You actually have to spend time working at it and getting back into the swing of things. It’s one thing to watch it. It’s different when you drill five on five.”
There’s more today from the Southeast Division:
- Magic guard Elfrid Payton may be playing some of the best basketball of his career, and it’s on the heels of head coach Frank Vogel asking Payton for more production and aggressiveness in the wake of a rash of injuries to the Magic roster, reports John Denton of NBA.com. Payton has averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 assists and 5.3 rebounds a game on 59.5 percent shooting since he was approached by Vogel.
- As we discussed yesterday, Magic rookie Jonathan Isaac is out indefinitely while he recovers from injury. In another piece for NBA.com, Denton explains how Isaac is being patient and waiting for his ankle to completely heal. Said Isaac, “Just take my time, day-by-day. It’s tough (being out). It takes time and trying to come back when it’s not completely there (physically) is tough, so I just have to be patient and take it day-by-day.’’
- In yet another story for NBA.com, Denton also profiles how Aaron Gordon is beginning to embrace pressure packed moments. Gordon, only 22, has already made two game-winning three pointers for the Magic this season.