Pistons Waive Center Dewayne Dedmon
The Pistons have waived recently-acquired center Dewayne Dedmon, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets.
Detroit officially acquired Dedmon from the Hawks on Friday and sent out wings Tony Snell and Khyri Thomas in the deal. However, the Pistons had no intention of keeping Dedmon, who has a $13.3MM guaranteed contract in 2020/21.
Dedmon also had a $13.3MM salary for ’21/22 but it was only guaranteed for $1MM. Detroit is expected to use the stretch provision to distribute the cap hit over five seasons. Dedmon would only count $2.9MM per season against the Pistons’ cap if his salary is stretched.
Dedmon, 31, appeared in a combined 44 games with the Kings and Hawks last season. He’s averaged 6.4 PPG and 6.0 RPG in 18.3 MPG over 394 career games.
Blazers Sign Second-Round Pick CJ Elleby
NOVEMBER 24: Elleby’s deal will be fully guaranteed, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).
NOVEMBER 22: The Trail Blazers have signed second-round draft pick CJ Elleby. according to a team press release.
It’s a two-year minimum deal, according to The Athletic’s Jason Quick (Twitter link). He’ll receive $898,310 next season and $1,517,981 in 2021/22.
The 6’6” Elleby was taken with the 46th overall pick. Elleby, 20, spent two years at Washington State, where he averaged 16.6 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 2.4 APG and 1.4 SPG in 32.1 MPG. Elleby, the first player to be drafted from the school since 2011, was an All-Pac-12 First Team selection last season.
Atlantic Notes: Harden, Oladipo, Grant, VanVleet
The Nets have shifted their focus away from a potential James Harden blockbuster and are simply looking to make marginal upgrades to the roster, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Brooklyn might pursue the Hornets’ Nicolas Batum once he clears waivers to give itself another defensive wing. The Nets tried and failed to secure Serge Ibaka‘s services with the $5.7MM taxpayer mid-level exception and also struck out on wing Kent Bazemore, Lewis adds.
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- Knicks president Leon Rose isn’t eager to pursue a trade for Pacers guard Victor Oladipo even though GM Scott Perry wants to explore that possibility, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. The front office did make a strong push for free agent forward Jerami Grant, who wound up with the Pistons in a sign-and-trade with Denver. Rose could still make another trade for a rotation player or take on another team’s unwanted contract with an asset attached in order to reach the salary cap floor, Berman adds.
- Re-signing Fred VanVleet to a four-year, $85MM contract could be considered overpaying but the Raptors have a reputation for rewarding players for a job well done, Eric Koreen of The Athletic opines. While the Raptors may have essentially been bidding against themselves at that price, their reputation of taking care of their own helps in acquiring other players. The contract is also structured so that they can pursue a top-flight free agent next summer.
- That contract could ultimately prove to be a good value if VanVleet improves in a few areas, according to Blake Murphy of The Athletic. He needs to get better with his pull-up shooting and finishing at the rim when he takes over lead guard responsibilities, which will happen when Kyle Lowry leaves or shifts to more of an off-guard role. He also needs to get better in pick-and-rolls, Murphy adds.
Southwest Notes: Adams, Cousins, Wood, Haliburton, Covington
The Thunder are trading center Steven Adams to the Pelicans and it isn’t the first time New Orleans tried to make that happen, ESPN’s Royce Young tweets. The Pelicans pursued an Adams trade last offseason when the Thunder shook up their roster by trading Paul George and Russell Westbrook but the teams couldn’t work out an agreement at that time.
We have more news from the Southwest Division:
- A workout on Monday convinced the Rockets to sign DeMarcus Cousins, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets. Cousins’ workout squelched any concerns about Cousins’ health, Haynes adds. Cousins agreed to a non-guaranteed one-year deal.
- The acquisition of Christian Wood should have a major impact on the retooled Rockets, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. Wood, who’s headed to Houston on a sign-and-trade, should provide elite production in pick-and-rolls with two star play-makers setting him up. Wood’s perimeter shooting will facilitate the Rockets’ small lineups by provide spacing for Westbrook with his ability to attack closeouts off the dribble and finish, Feigen adds.
- The Mavericks tried to trade up in the draft to land guard Tyrese Haliburton, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe (hat tip to RealGM). Dallas attempted to trade multiple picks to lottery teams in the 7-11 range to make that move. Haliburton was ultimately selected at No. 12 by the Kings. The Mavs also tried to work out a deal with the Rockets for small forward Robert Covington, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN, but Houston instead chose to deal him to the Trail Blazers.
Jordan Bone Agrees To Two-Way Deal With Magic
Second-year point guard Jordan Bone has agreed to a two-way contract with the Magic, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.
Bone played on a similar contract with the Pistons after being drafted in the second round in 2019 but spent much of the season in the G League. He appeared in 10 games with Detroit but only averaged 5.3 MPG in those outings.
The Pistons, under new GM Troy Weaver, decided not to extend a qualifying offer to Bone. That made the former Tennessee star an unrestricted free agent.
Orlando is also reportedly using its other two-way slot on another point guard, Karim Mane.
Free Agent Rumors: Batum, Thomas, Mudiay, Ferrell, Briscoe
The Hornets plan to waive Nicolas Batum and use the stretch provision on his $27.1MM contract for the upcoming season in order to sign Gordon Hayward, unless they can figure out a sign-and-trade deal that would save them from stretching Batum.
Assuming he’s released, Batum shouldn’t have trouble finding a new home. His agent, Jeremy Medjana, told Basket Session that the Warriors, Jazz, Clippers, Bucks and Raptors are interested in signing him once he clears waivers (hat tip to Frank Urbina of HoopsHype). Batum, who has played for Charlotte the past five seasons, only appeared in 22 games last season.
Here are more free agency notes and rumors:
- Former MVP candidate Isaiah Thomas said his latest hip procedure was a success and he’s eager to prove it, the Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach reports. Thomas says he feels like his former self in workouts. “I was blowing by people,” he said. “I haven’t blown by anybody since I had a Celtics uniform on.” Thomas was waived after the Wizards traded him to the Clippers in February and remains unsigned.
- Reserve point guards Emmanuel Mudiay and Yogi Ferrell are generating some interest on the free agent market, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets. Both players could likely be had for the veteran’s minimum.
- Point guard Isaiah Briscoe hopes to return to the NBA, according to Hoops Rumors’ JD Shaw (Twitter link). Briscoe went undrafted out of Kentucky in 2017, but made it onto the Magic’s roster for the 2018/19 season. He spent the 2019/20 season in Poland playing for King Szczecin. In 39 games with Orlando, Briscoe averaged 3.5 PPG, 2.2 APG, and 1.9 RPG, across 14.3 MPG.
Alex Kirschenbaum contributed to this post.
Hornets To Sign Xavier Sneed
The Hornets have reached a contract agreement with undrafted rookie forward Xavier Sneed, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets.
Charlotte has reportedly filled its two-way slots, so Sneed’s deal is likely an Exhibit 10 deal. An Exhibit 10 contract provides players with an invitation to training camp and a guarantee of up to $50K if they are waived and later assigned to the team’s affiliate in the G League.
Sneed was a four-year player and three-year starter at Kansas State. As a senior, he averaged 14.2 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 1.7 APG and 1.8 SPG in 32.6 MPG. Sneed was an early entrant for the 2019 draft but withdrew his name in time to return for his senior campaign at KSU.
Celtics Re-Sign Tremont Waters To Two-Way Deal
NOVEMBER 24: Waters’ deal is now official, according to the NBA’s transactions log.
NOVEMBER 23: The Celtics are bringing back guard Tremont Waters on a two-way contract, Jared Weiss of The Athletic tweets.
Waters also played on a two-way contract last season. With center Tacko Fall also coming back on a two-way deal, Boston has reached agreements to fill both its slots.
A 2019 second-round pick out of LSU, Waters appeared in 11 regular-season games last season and averaged 3.6 PPG and 1.5 APG in 10.8 MPG. He also made a cameo appearance in the postseason.
Waters spent most of his rookie campaign with the Maine Red Claws and was named to the All-NBAGL Second Team. Waters averaged 18.0 PPG, 7.3 APG and 2.0 SPG in 33.8 MPG while starting 36 games for the Red Claws.
Pelicans Sign Wenyen Gabriel, Sindarius Thornwell
NOVEMBER 30: Both signings are now official, per RealGM’s NBA transactions log.
NOVEMBER 23: The Pelicans are filling two of their roster spots with forward Wenyen Gabriel and guard Sindarius Thornwell, ESPN’s Andrew Lopez tweets.
Both will play on veteran minimum deals. Gabriel is receiving a two-year contract with a team option for the 2021/22 season.
New Orleans plans to go with a 14-player roster, including restricted free agent Brandon Ingram, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets. Ingram has yet to sign but he’s expected to get a max contract.
The Pelicans also plan to fill both two-way slots, Guillory adds.
Gabriel began last season with the Kings and was traded in midseason to the Trail Blazers. The undrafted Gabriel appeared in a combined 30 regular-season games as a rookie and also saw action in four postseason games.
Thornwell was part of the Clippers’ rotation for two seasons but appeared in just two games with the Pelicans last season after signing as a substitute player during the restart. Otherwise, he spent the 2019/20 season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the G League.
Pistons To Sign Former Vermont Star Anthony Lamb
Undrafted free agent swingman Anthony Lamb has reached an agreement with the Pistons, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets.
It’s uncertain whether he’s receiving a training camp deal or if he’s signing a two-way contract. Detroit has a two-way slot available.
The 6’6” Lamb was a four-year starter at Vermont and the two-time America East Conference Player of the Year. Lamb averaged 16.7 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 2.5 APG and 1.2 BPG as a senior. During his college career, Lamb made 33.6% of his 3-point attempts.
He withdrew his name from the 2019 draft after working out for several teams.