And-Ones: Holmes, D-League, Butler
Kings coach George Karl says that he had spoken with small forward Caron Butler weeks ago about his decreased playing time, and he cited the solid play of Omri Casspi as the primary reason for the change, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee relays in a series of tweets. The coach thinks of Butler as insurance at small forward, and he is aware that the veteran has spoken to team executive Vlade Divac about the situation, Jones notes. Jones also relays that all indications still point to the team trading Butler, as was reported by Marc Stein of ESPN.com earlier this week.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Lakers camp cut Jonathan Holmes underwent surgery today to repair a torn labrum and he is expected to require approximately five months of recovery time, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays in a series of tweets. Holmes had suffered a dislocated right shoulder during the preseason and as a result Los Angeles will be on the hook for his entire salary of $525,093 for the 2015/16 campaign, not just his partial guarantee of $100K, Pincus notes. The combo forward is expected to be ready for action in time for summer league play, the Basketball Insiders scribe adds.
- Front office officials have been unusually reluctant to talk trades recently because so many teams are so close together in the standings, giving rise to playoff hopes around the league, an NBA GM said to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
- The Mavericks have reassigned center Salah Mejri and swingman Justin Anderson to the Texas Legends, their D-League affiliate, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com relays (on Twitter). This will be the fourth jaunt to the D-League on the season for both players.
2016/17 Salary Cap Projection: Phoenix Suns
The NBA’s salary cap for 2015/16 has been set at $70MM, which is an 11% increase from last season, and the luxury tax line is fixed at $84.74MM. The last cap projection from the league prior to the official numbers being announced had been $67.1MM, and the projection for the tax line had been $81.6MM. Many league executives and agents believe that the salary cap will escalate to a whopping $95MM for 2016/17, a higher figure than the league’s last projection of $89MM. This significant bump is a result of the league’s new $24 billion TV deal that kicks in just in time for next season.
The increase in the salary cap will almost assuredly set off a flurry of activity in the free agent market next summer, and it will also make it easier than ever for teams to deal away their higher-priced stars. Prudent executives are acutely aware of exactly how much cap room they have to play with, not just for the current campaign, but for next season and beyond as well. While the exact amount of 2016/17’s salary cap won’t be announced until next summer, it always pays to know just how much salary is on the books for each franchise. With this in mind, we at Hoops Rumors will be breaking down the projected 2016/17 financial commitments for each franchise, and we’ll continue onward with a look at the Phoenix Suns:
- Fully Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $58,469,257*
- Partially Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $1,500,000
- Non Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $6,740,630
- Total Projected Salary Cap Commitments: $66,709,887
*Note: This amount includes the $777,777 due Michael Beasley, who was waived via the stretch provision.
If the salary cap were to fall in line with the projection of $89MM, Phoenix would have approximately $22,290,113 in cap space, or $28,290,113 if the cap were to be set at the higher mark of $95MM. Again, these are merely predictions until the exact cap amounts are announced, and they are not meant to illustrate the exact amount that the team will have available to spend this coming offseason.
Phoenix will also need to make decisions regarding Cory Jefferson and Bryce Cotton, both of whom are eligible to become restricted free agents next summer. If the Suns wish to retain the right to match any offer sheets the duo were to receive the team would need to submit qualifying offers, with Jefferson’s worth $1,147,276 and Cotton’s valued at $1,180,431. This would increase the team’s projected cap commitments by a total of $2,327,707, though that number would merely be a placeholder until the players either inked new deals or signed their qualifying offers, which would then set them up for unrestricted free agency the following offseason.
Trades and long-term free agent signings made during the season will also have a significant impact on the figures above, and we’ll be updating these posts to reflect the new numbers after any signings and trades have been made official.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Los Angeles Notes: Randle, Wilcox, Brown
Despite being a major part of the Lakers‘ future, coach Byron Scott has been utilizing Julius Randle primarily as a reserve, a strategy that the second year player has had to come to accept, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “I don’t make decisions with playing time,” said Randle. “The thing that I always tell you guys is I control what I can and I go out there and play hard. I let our coaches decide who’s in and who’s not.” The shift to the bench has yielded mixed results for the power forward, with Randle struggling to find the basket with his shots, but he insists he won’t be discouraged by his recent difficulties, Medina adds. “You guys [media members] were asking if I was discouraged about the shots I was missing,” Randle said regarding his recent slump. “I’m getting those same shots I’m making. I’m never going to get discouraged.”
Here’s more from L.A.:
- When the Clippers want to assign C.J. Wilcox to the D-League, they start down the list of teams with affiliates and place calls to see whether any of them will promise to give him enough minutes while on assignment, and whoever says “yes” first gets him, Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said, according to Rowan Kavner of NBA.com. The Clippers, who don’t have an affiliate, have sent Wilcox to the D-League teams of the Suns and Cavs so far this season.
- Despite only appearing in five games thus far this season, Lakers small forward Anthony Brown is encouraged by what he is able to glean sitting on the sideline, Janis Carr of The Orange County Register writes. “It’s encouraging,” Brown said. “You can learn a lot, not only sitting, but when guys come off the bench, you can talk to them, pick their brain. It’s pretty good. It’s one thing to be behind the bench, but it’s another to be able to see everything that’s going on. In some ways you’re kind of an assistant coach in terms of being able to watch and learn what to do and what not to do.“
- The Lakers have assigned Ryan Kelly and Tarik Black to their D-League affiliate, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (on Twitter). This will be the second assignment to the D-Fenders for both players this season.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Atlantic Notes: Yormark, Grant, Crowder
Nets CEO Brett Yormark admits that the franchise is having attendance issues with fans in the Barclays Center, particularly with no-shows, but said he expects that the franchise will rebound and be a “major player” in free agency next summer, NetsDaily.com relays. Yormark is banking on free agents being drawn to the team’s youthful core and believes that its $50MM Sunset Park training facility, scheduled to open in February, will attract top players, NetsDaily notes. Brooklyn is currently projected to have approximately $32MM-$38MM in free cap space next summer, depending on the amount of next year’s salary cap.
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Knicks rookie Jerian Grant has been struggling mightily this season, and the point guard chalks much of his woes up to his failure to adapt to the triangle offense, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News relays (via Twitter). Grant is averaging 5.5 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 17.2 minutes per contest on the season.
- Jae Crowder‘s grit, defense and wide-ranging skillset have come to embody the current Celtics team philosophy, despite the small forward being considered a throw in when he was acquired as part of last season’s Rajon Rondo trade with the Mavericks, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes in his look back at the swap.
- The Sixers have assigned power forward Christian Wood to their D-League affiliate in Delaware, the team announced via a press release. This marks Wood’s third stint with the 87ers on the season.
Submit Your Questions For Hoops Rumors Mailbag
In addition to our regular weekly chat, which Chuck Myron facilitates every Wednesday, we have a second opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in our weekly mailbag feature, which is posted every Saturday.
Have a question regarding player movement, free agent rumors, the salary cap, the NBA draft, or the top storylines of the week? You can e-mail them here: hoopsrumorsmailbag@gmail.com. Feel free to send emails throughout the week, but please be mindful that we may receive a sizable number of questions and might not get to all of them.
If you missed out on any past mailbags and would like to catch up, you can view the full archives here.
2016/17 Salary Cap Projection: Orlando Magic
The NBA’s salary cap for 2015/16 has been set at $70MM, which is an 11% increase from last season, and the luxury tax line is fixed at $84.74MM. The last cap projection from the league prior to the official numbers being announced had been $67.1MM, and the projection for the tax line had been $81.6MM. Many league executives and agents believe that the salary cap will escalate to a whopping $95MM for 2016/17, a higher figure than the league’s last projection of $89MM. This significant bump is a result of the league’s new $24 billion TV deal that kicks in just in time for next season.
The increase in the salary cap will almost assuredly set off a flurry of activity in the free agent market next summer, and it will also make it easier than ever for teams to deal away their higher-priced stars. Prudent executives are acutely aware of exactly how much cap room they have to play with, not just for the current campaign, but for next season and beyond as well. While the exact amount of 2016/17’s salary cap won’t be announced until next summer, it always pays to know just how much salary is on the books for each franchise. With this in mind, we at Hoops Rumors will be breaking down the projected 2016/17 financial commitments for each franchise, and we’ll continue onward with a look at the Orlando Magic:
- Fully Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $60,534,811
- Partially Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $0
- Non Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $980,431
- Total Projected Salary Cap Commitments: $61,515,242
If the salary cap were to fall in line with the projection of $89MM, Orlando would have approximately $27,484,758 in cap space, or $33,484,758 if the cap were to be set at the higher mark of $95MM. Again, these are merely predictions until the exact cap amounts are announced, and they are not meant to illustrate the exact amount that the team will have available to spend this coming offseason.
Orlando will also need to make decisions regarding Andrew Nicholson, Evan Fournier and Dewayne Dedmon, all of whom are eligible to become restricted free agents next summer. If the Magic wish to retain the right to match any offer sheets the trio were to receive the team would need to submit qualifying offers, with Nicholson’s being worth $3,394,726, $3,278,998 for Fournier and $1,215,696 for Dedmon. This would increase the team’s projected cap commitments by a total of $7,889,420, though that number would merely be a placeholder until the players either inked new deals or signed their qualifying offers, which would then set them up for unrestricted free agency the following offseason.
Trades and long-term free agent signings made during the season will also have a significant impact on the figures above, and we’ll be updating these posts to reflect the new numbers after any signings and trades have been made official.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 12/17/15
A report made by Chris Sheridan of SheridanHoops this week relayed that Dwight Howard is “extremely unhappy” being a secondary option to James Harden on the Rockets. Though Howard refuted the report, this is not the first time rumblings of discontent have surfaced regarding the pair, with Fran Blinebury of NBA.com relaying that members of each player’s camp went into the 2014 offseason “whispering” about their desire to get rid of the other.
Houston entered the 2015/16 season with its eyes firmly set on contending for a title, but the team hasn’t meshed, and that cost Kevin McHale his job as coach. There’s no denying that both Harden and Howard are extremely talented players, but neither has the reputation of making their teammates around them better, which is likely part of the Rockets’ woes this campaign. Howard can opt out of his deal at the end of this season and become an unrestricted free agent, while Harden still has two more seasons remaining on his pact beyond this one.
This brings me to the topic for today: Can James Harden and Dwight Howard form an effective tandem for the long term, or should the Rockets consider dealing one or both players?
Do you think Houston should continue to build around the duo, or is it time to tear down the roster and begin anew? If you believe that keeping the two players together is not the answer, which one should the franchise look to retain? Who do you believe is more to blame for the discord? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the matter. We look forward to what you have to say.
D-League Notes: Martin, Mickey, Harris
The Grizzlies assigned Jarell Martin, James Ennis and Russ Smith to the Iowa Energy, their D-League affiliate, and later recalled all three, the team announced. This was the first D-League assignment of the season for both Martin and Smith, and it was Ennis’ fourth. Martin is still recovering from a fractured left foot he suffered back in September, and he is likely a few weeks away from seeing any game action, Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal tweets.
Here’s more from the NBA’s D-League:
- The Celtics have assigned Jordan Mickey to their D-League affiliate in Maine, the team announced. This marks Mickey’s seventh stint with the Red Claws on the season.
- Joe Harris has been recalled from the Canton Charge by the Cavaliers, the team announced. Harris has appeared in nine games for the Charge this season, averaging 17.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 33.9 minutes per game.
- The Hawks have assigned Edy Tavares to the D-League, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays. As part of the league’s flexible assignment program, Tavares will report to the Spurs‘ affiliate in Austin, Vivlamore adds.
2016/17 Salary Cap Projection: Philadelphia 76ers
The NBA’s salary cap for 2015/16 has been set at $70MM, which is an 11% increase from last season, and the luxury tax line is fixed at $84.74MM. The last cap projection from the league prior to the official numbers being announced had been $67.1MM, and the projection for the tax line had been $81.6MM. Many league executives and agents believe that the salary cap will escalate to a whopping $95MM for 2016/17, a higher figure than the league’s last projection of $89MM. This significant bump is a result of the league’s new $24 billion TV deal that kicks in just in time for next season.
The increase in the salary cap will almost assuredly set off a flurry of activity in the free agent market next summer, and it will also make it easier than ever for teams to deal away their higher-priced stars. Prudent executives are acutely aware of exactly how much cap room they have to play with, not just for the current campaign, but for next season and beyond as well. While the exact amount of 2016/17’s salary cap won’t be announced until next summer, it always pays to know just how much salary is on the books for each franchise. With this in mind, we at Hoops Rumors will be breaking down the projected 2016/17 financial commitments for each franchise, and we’ll continue onward with a look at the Philadelphia 76ers:
- Fully Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $25.534.057
- Partially Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $0
- Non Guaranteed Salary Commitments: $6,774,087
- Total Projected Salary Cap Commitments: $32,308,144
If the salary cap were to fall in line with the projection of $89MM, Philadelphia would have approximately $56,691,856 in cap space, or $62,691,856 if the cap were to be set at the higher mark of $95MM. Again, these are merely predictions until the exact cap amounts are announced, and they are not meant to illustrate the exact amount that the team will have available to spend this coming offseason.
Philly will also need to make decisions regarding Tony Wroten and Isaiah Canaan, both of whom are eligible to become restricted free agents next summer. If the Sixers wish to retain the right to match any offer sheets the two players were to receive the team would need to submit qualifying offers, with Wroten’s being worth $3,201,470 and Canaan’s valued at $1,215,696.This would increase the team’s projected cap commitments by a total of $4,417,166, though that number would merely be a place holder until the players either inked new deals or signed their qualifying offers, which would then set them up for unrestricted free agency the following offseason.
Trades and long-term free agent signings made during the season will also have a significant impact on the figures above, and we’ll be updating these posts to reflect the new numbers after any signings and trades have been made official.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Western Notes: Howard, Harkless, Jones
Despite the reports that he is unhappy playing second-fiddle to James Harden, Rockets center Dwight Howard insists that he’s committed to the team and disputes any notion that he’s projecting negativity that is affecting his teammates, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle relays. “The one thing that I don’t want to happen is people to assume that because things are not going quite well for us that I’ve quit on the team and take away from all the positive things we have done, despite the loss, making the city feel like they’re unwanted,” Howard told Feigen. “There’s a lot of negativity going around. I haven’t caused it. I haven’t said anything negative to anybody about this team or this situation. I’ve just been trying to find ways to make this situation better, trying to grow as a man, as a basketball player. You just try to laugh at it. I don’t want to go out and persecute the people that persecute me. That’s the hardest part. The first reaction is to go back at them. You just have to respond with love.”
Here’s more from out West:
- Wolves rookie point guard Tyus Jones has been assigned to the D-League since December 5th, and he is expected to return to the team after the Idaho Stampede’s game on Saturday, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune relays (Twitter links). The reason that Jones will be recalled this weekend is due to Idaho not having another scheduled contest until after Christmas, Zgoda adds.
- Maurice Harkless has been struggling thus far this season, his first with the Blazers, but coach Terry Stotts thinks it would be unfair to make any judgments on the young swingman with so much of the 2015/16 campaign left to play, Joe Freeman of The Oregonian writes. “It takes time,” Stotts said. “That’s why this season is a season of growth for everybody. I think it’s difficult to assess [his play] a third of the way in as far as road blocks and things like that. I think it’ll come and I think too many times players are evaluated by their box score. I think he’s doing his best to fit in the best he can.“
- The Kings have assigned power forward Duje Dukan to the Reno Bighorns, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Dukan’s fourth jaunt to Reno on the season.