Blazers Re-Sign Jusuf Nurkic To Four-Year Deal
JULY 7, 12:20pm: Per Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post, Nurkic’s partial guarantee in the final season of his new contract – 2021/22 – is for $4MM.
JULY 7, 7:23am: The Trail Blazers have officially re-signed Nurkic, the club early on Saturday morning in a press release.
JULY 6: Restricted free agent center Jusuf Nurkic has agreed to a four-year, $48MM contract to remain with the Trail Blazers, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
The deal includes a partial guarantee in the fourth season, Wojnarowski adds. The contract could be worth up to $53MM, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.
The 7-foot Nurkic, who turns 24 in August, posted averages of 14.3 PPG, 9.0 RPG and 1.4 BPG last season. Nurkic started all 79 games in which he played.
Nurkic could have signed for more money a few months ago, according to Wojnarowski’s follow-up story, but turned down that offer. With the market shrinking, Nurkic decided to take the Blazers’ revised offer.
Nurkic’s career took off when the Nuggets traded him to Portland during the 2016/17 season. He was one of the top big men available on the free agent market this summer, coming in at No. 16 overall on our list of 2018’s top 50 free agents.
With Nurkic back under contract, the Blazers have now made three signings this week, adding Nik Stauskas and Seth Curry to the mix as well. Those new deals project to take Portland over the tax line, though there’s still plenty of time for the team to dip back below it — last year, for instance, the Blazers went well over that threshold before moving Allen Crabbe and Noah Vonleh to avoid becoming a taxpayer.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Central Notes: Stephenson, Love, Polinsky, Evans
The Pacers offered a better contract to swingman Lance Stephenson than he received from the Lakers, Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard said on Friday (Twitter link via Mark Monteith). Stephenson agreed to a one-year, $4.5MM deal from the Lakers. A phone call from LeBron James influenced Stephenson’s decision to choose L.A., Monteith adds. However, the Pacers declined Stephenson’s team option of $4.36MM prior to free agency, so it seems odd Pritchard then turned around and offered more in the open market.
In other news around the Central Division:
- The Cavs don’t plan on tanking or trading their top remaining player Kevin Love, Joe Vardon of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. GM Koby Altman said he’s intent on keeping the team competitive despite the loss of LeBron James. “Kevin is an All-Star and you don’t get better by moving Kevin,” Altman said. “Kevin’s been incredible for us for four years and he wants to be here, and to me that’s a big part for guys that are here and the guys that we’re gonna acquire, is that they want to be here and be a part of this new chapter and culture that we’re creating.”
- The Pistons have hired Nets executive Gregg Polinsky as their director of player personnel, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Pistons senior advisor Ed Stefanski and Polinsky worked together in Brooklyn, Wojnarowski adds. Polinsky had the same title with the Nets but his role will expand in Detroit. Pat Garrity and Andrew Loomis, who were assistant GMs under former team president Stan Van Gundy, will continue in their roles, according to Rod Beard of the Detroit News. The Pistons could bring in another assistant GM to focus on analytics, Beard adds.
- Tyreke Evans is content with coming off the bench for the Pacers, Monteith writes for the team’s website. Evans joined the Pacers on a one-year, $12MM deal. Pritchard didn’t have to coax Evans into being a sixth man. “Not one bit,” he said. “We told him, ‘Here’s your role, does that interest you?’ He said, ‘Yes, I’m in.’ I think in his mind he’s going, ‘Boy, I’ve been scoring a lot of points and doing a lot of good stuff against starters, this is going to be fun.'”
- Tim Grgurich is likely to join Dwane Casey’s coaching staff with the Pistons, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press tweets. Grgurich, 76, has a long career as an NBA assistant and most recently was a consultant with the Bucks.
Warriors Sign DeMarcus Cousins
JULY 6th, 11:10pm: The signing is official, according to a team press release.
JULY 2nd, 7:36pm: The rich are about to get richer, as free agent center DeMarcus Cousins has agreed to a contract with the Warriors, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets. It’ll be a one-year, $5.3MM deal, with the Dubs using the taxpayer mid-level exception to add Cousins, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
It’s a shocking move for both Cousins and the defending champions, who initially didn’t appear to be locks to use their mid-level exception at all. However, when Kevin Durant agreed to a contract with a starting salary of $30MM rather than his max of $35.65MM, it opened the door for the Warriors to take advantage of the savings by using their MLE, which is worth $5.337MM.
Signing Cousins will cost the Warriors exponentially more than $5.337MM due to their projected luxury tax penalties, but the investment figures to be worth it for one of the NBA’s very best centers. Golden State will now have the opportunity to play an incredible five-man unit consisting of Cousins, Durant, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.
The club also retains key contributors like Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, Jordan Bell, and Quinn Cook, with youngsters Damian Jones and Jacob Evans expected to contribute as well.
While others Cousins suitors like the Pelicans and Lakers will undoubtedly be upset about seeing him sign with the Warriors for a salary they could have topped, it didn’t appear that New Orleans, L.A. or any other team was willing to make a huge offer for the big man, with cap space drying up around the league.
Of course, it’s also extremely unlikely that Cousins would have accepted a $5.3MM offer from any other team. No other club gives him as clear a path to his first NBA title, and as one source close to him explains to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link): “He’s about winning.”
Signing a one-year pact will also allow Cousins to rebuild his value after suffering a torn Achilles during the 2017/18 season. According to Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the Warriors have no intention of rushing their newly-added star back to the court, so a December or January return appears likely. If Cousins returns to form during the second half of the 2018/19 campaign, he’ll be able to reach the free agent market again a year from now and potentially land a more lucrative longer-term deal.
Before going down with that Achilles injury, Cousins was posting the best numbers of his career, filling up the stat sheet with 25.2 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.6 SPG, and 1.6 BPG. He also made 2.2 three-pointers per game at a 35.4% rate. Achilles tears aren’t easy to come back from, so there’s no guarantee that he’ll ever be the same player he was before the injury, but even if he’s operating at 60-70% capacity in 2018/19, he’ll make the already-stacked Warriors even more dangerous.
The move comes approximately 24 hours after LeBron James‘ agency announced that he’d be heading to the Lakers. While LeBron, Magic Johnson, and the new-look Lakers dominated much of the coverage during the first two days of NBA free agency, the Warriors’ latest splash signals that they have no intention of giving up control of the Pacific Division – or the Western Conference, or the NBA – anytime soon.
Luke Adams contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cavs Sign Billy Preston To Two-Way Contract
The Cavaliers have signed power forward Billy Preston to a two-way contract, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets.
The 6’10” Preston did not play college basketball last season. The McDonald’s All-American committed to Kansas but was the subject of an NCAA investigation into his eligibility. He wound up signing with a Bosnian team but only played three games there due to a shoulder injury.
Preston went undrafted before agreeing to join the Cavs’ summer-league team. He’ll fill one of Cleveland’s two-way slots, with John Holland currently penciled in for the other.
Zach LaVine Signs Kings’ Offer Sheet; Bulls To Match
9:10pm: The Bulls plan to match the offer sheet, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. The cap hit for the Bulls will be $19.5MM annually, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.
7:04pm: Bulls shooting guard Zach LaVine has agreed a four-year, $80MM offer sheet from the Kings, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets. Chicago has 48 hours to match the offer for the restricted free agent.
The offer includes a full guarantee with no options, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets.
The Bulls made LaVine an offer, but not nearly for the amount Sacramento placed on the table, according to ESPN’s Marc Spears.
“I’m disappointed that I had to get an offer sheet from another team. But Sacramento stepped up and made a strong impression,” LaVine told Spears. “It appears that Sacramento wants me more than Chicago.”
Spears reports the offer as $78MM. In any case, Chicago will have to pony up to retain the talented wing.
LaVine averaged 16.7 PPG in 24 games last season after returning from a torn left ACL. He was traded last offseason by the Timberwolves in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster.
The Kings are the first rival suitor to make a concrete offer to a restricted free agent this summer.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Lakers Sign Rookie Forward Isaac Bonga
The Lakers have signed second-round pick Isaac Bonga, according to a team press release. Bonga received a three-year contract, Michael Scotto of The Athletic tweets.
The Lakers acquired the No. 39 overall selection in a trade with the Sixers and used that pick on Bonga. When the selection was made, there was some speculation Bonga was a draft-and-stash prospect. The signing confirms that Bonga will at least be competing for a roster spot.
Bonga, 18, joins the Lakers from Fraport Skyliners in Germany. The 6’9” forward has played for the German National Team in qualifying rounds of the 2019 FIBA World Cup. He is expected to join the Lakers’ summer league team in Las Vegas.
Dwight Howard Finalizes Buyout, Headed To Wizards
The Nets have finalized their buyout of Dwight Howard‘s contract, paving the way for the veteran center to join the Wizards, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. Howard will sign a two-year, $11MM contract that will include a player option for the second year, Wojnarowski adds.
Howard had one year and $23,819,725 remaining on his contract when he was dealt by the Hornets to the Nets, who had no intention of keeping him. The trade was agreed to last month but wasn’t officially announced until Friday.
By adding Howard, the Wizards now have 14 players with guaranteed contracts. Their projected luxury tax bill has increased from $11.5MM to $18.3MM, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets.
Howard will be worth any tax penalties if Washington can advance deeper in the postseason. The Wizards were bounced by the top-seeded Raptors in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs this past season.
The Wizards will make Howard their starting center after dealing Marcin Gortat to the Clippers for guard Austin Rivers. Howard averaged 16.6 PPG and 12.5 RPG in his lone season with the Hornets.
The buyout gives the Nets a projected $9-$11MM in cap space, Marks adds.
Mavericks Release Guard Kyle Collinsworth
The Mavericks have released guard Kyle Collinsworth, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets.
Collinsworth had two non-guaranteed years remaining on his contract. He was due to make $1,378,242 if he had stayed on the roster through January 10th. The first $100K of the contract would have guaranteed had he remained on the roster through Friday.
Collinsworth, who is on Dallas’ summer league team, appeared in 32 games last season. He averaged 3.2 PPG and 1.8 APG in 15.0 MPG.
The draft-night trade for Luka Doncic made Collinsworth expendable. The Mavs also have Dennis Smith Jr. and J.J. Barea as options at point guard.
Jared Terrell Signs Two-Way Deal With T-Wolves
JULY 5, 12:19pm: Terrell’s contract is official, the Wolves announced on Twitter.
JUNE 23, 8:55am: Rhode Island guard Jared Terrell has agreed to a two-way deal with the Timberwolves, the school’s men’s basketball team tweets.
Despite getting passed over on Thursday night, Terrell had attracted Minnesota’s attention during the pre-draft process. Terrell worked out twice for the club.
Terrell was a four-year starter for the Rams and his senior season was his best. The 6’3” Terrell averaged 16.8 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 2.4 APG and 1.5 SPG. His shooting also improved, as he drained 41.4% of his 3-point tries.
Terrell led Rhode Island to the NCAA Tournament, where it defeated Oklahoma and Trae Young in overtime during the first round of the Midwest Region before succumbing to Duke.
Jazz Sign First-Round Pick Grayson Allen
Guard Grayson Allen has signed his rookie contract with the Jazz, the team tweets.
The 6’6” Duke star was the 21st pick of the draft. Allen will receive approximately $2.07MM in the first year of the deal.
Allen averaged 15.5 PPG and 4.7 APG in his senior year and made 38% of his 3-point attempts during his college career.
Primarily a shooting guard, he will compete for minutes at both guard spots behind Ricky Rubio and Donovan Mitchell and perhaps get some playing time at small forward in smaller lineups.