Hoops Rumors Originals: 9/11/16 – 9/17/16
Here’s a look back at the original content and analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this past week.
- We asked readers to do over the 2008 NBA Draft. Here’s who you selected for picks No. 21, No. 22, No. 23, No. 24, No. 25 and No.26 overall.
- We ran down the traded first-round picks for the 2017 NBA Draft and the second-rounders that have been dealt as well.
- Will Joseph highlighted some of the better basketball blogs around in his weekly installment of Hoops Links.
- We looked at the 2016/17 Salary Cap figures for the:
- Arthur Hill answered reader questions in our Weekly Mailbag. Here’s how you can submit your own questions for our mailbag feature.
- In our Community Shootarounds this week we discussed:
- Who is the best eligible player not currently in the Hall of Fame?
- Should Kevin Garnett try to play one more season or should he accept some other role in the Wolves organization?
- What changes, if any, should be made to the NCAA’s player transfer rules?
- How long will it take the Nets to make it back to the playoffs?
- How the situation between the Rockets and Donatas Motiejunas will play out.
- Our Free Agent Tracker continues to have up-to-date data on this summer’s contract agreements and signings from around the NBA.
- You can stay up to date on any contract extensions agreed to this season with our tracker.
- If you haven’t already, be sure to download the Trade Rumors app for your iOS or Android device.
Week In Review: 9/11/16 – 9/17/16
With 2016’s offseason winding down and the preseason almost upon us, here’s a look back at all the notable news and events from around the NBA this past week:
Signings/Agreements
NBA
- The Trail Blazers signed Greg Stiemsma.
- The Bucks signed Xavier Henry.
- The Kings signed Jordan Farmar.
- The Cavaliers signed Eric Moreland.
- The Celtics signed Jalen Jones and Damion Lee.
- The Warriors signed Elgin Cook.
- The Suns signed Mike Moser, Shaquille Harrison, and Derrick Jones Jr..
- The Warriors signed Cameron Jones.
- The Warriors signed JaVale McGee.
- The Raptors signed Brady Heslip.
- The Bulls signed D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera.
- The Hawks agreed to a deal with Richard Solomon.
- The Nuggets signed Nate Wolters.
- The Pistons signed Nikola Jovanovic.
- The Hawks signed Ryan Kelly and Will Bynum.
International
- Tibor Pleiss signed with the Turkish team Galatasaray Odeabank Istanbul.
- DeAndre Daniels signed with the Italian team Stings Mantov.
- Malcolm Lee signed with the Turkish club Trabzonspor.
News/Rumors
- Heat swingman Josh Richardson suffered a partially torn MCL in his right knee and will miss six to eight weeks of action.
- The Nuggets named Chuck Hayes as their Associate of Basketball Operations.
- Mario Hezonja signed with Creative Artists Agency for representation.
- The Lakers officially named Coby Karl as the coach of the L.A. D-Fenders, their D-League affiliate.
- LeBron James, James Jones and Chris Paul were served with notices of deposition in former NBA players’ union executive director Billy Hunter’s wrongful termination lawsuit against the NBPA.
- Mitch McGary was suspended an additional 10 games by the league for non-compliance with the NBA’s drug policy. His suspension is now 15 games.
- The Suns hired Mehmet Okur as player development coach.
- The Nuggets hired former Rockets assistant Chris Finch to join their coaching staff.
- Suns forward P.J. Tucker will miss six to eight weeks after undergoing a successful microdiscectomy procedure on his lower back.
- Nate Loenser was named the head coach of the Bulls’ new D-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls.
- The Spurs added former Pelicans head coach Monty Williams to their basketball operations staff and Landry Fields as a college scout.
- Grizzlies center Marc Gasol, who missed the end of the 2015/16 season and the Olympics after breaking his foot in February, has been cleared to return to the court.
Salary Cap Snapshot: Toronto Raptors
Here’s a breakdown of where the Raptors currently stand financially:
Guaranteed Salary
- DeMar DeRozan —$26,540,100
- Jonas Valanciunas —$14,382,023
- DeMarre Carroll —$14,200,000
- Serge Ibaka —$12,250,000
- Kyle Lowry —$12,000,000
- Cory Joseph —$7,315,000
- Patrick Patterson —$6,050,000
- P.J. Tucker —$5,300,000
- Jakob Poeltl —$2,703,960
- Lucas Nogueira —$1,921,320
- Bruno Caboclo —$1,589,640
- Delon Wright —$1,577,280
- Pascal Siakam —$1,196,040
- Norman Powell —$874,636
- Fred VanVleet —$543,471
- Brady Heslip — $56,500 [Waived by team]
- Yanick Moreira —$50,000 [Waived by team]
- E.J. Singler —$50,000 [Waived by team]
- Jarrod Uthoff —$50,000 [Waived by team]
Total Guaranteed Salary= $108,649,970
Cash Sent Out Via Trade: $1MM sent to Suns in P.J. Tucker trade [Amount Remaining $2.5MM]
Cash Received Via Trade: $0 [Amount Remaining $3.5MM]
Payroll Exceptions Available
- Bi-Annual Exception — $2,203,000
- Trade Exception — $328,000 (Jared Sullinger trade) — Expires on 2/23/18
- Mid-Level Exception — $0 [Used to sign Jared Sullinger]
Total Projected Payroll: $108,649,970
Salary Cap: $94,143,000
Estimated Available Cap Space: –$14,506,970
Luxury Tax Threshold: $113,287,000
Total Projected Payroll For Tax Purposes: $109,086,930
Amount Below Luxury Tax: $4,200,070
Latest Update: 2/24/17
The Basketball Insiders salary pages and The Vertical’s salary database were used in the creation of this post.
And-Ones: Roberson, Babcock, Ujiri
Raptors executive Masai Ujiri noted that the decision to sign a multiyear extension with the team this offseason was an easy one, given his love for the city of Toronto, Lauren La Rose of The Toronto Star writes. “I love it here. I really do. Toronto is home for me,” Ujiri said. “We don’t go to another home in the States or somewhere else. This is our home. And I love the organization, I think they’ve treated me well. They’ve given it their all. It’s humbling for me for them to come to me and say: ‘Hey, let’s do this.’ And then the city, the fans, everybody — what else can you ask for?”
Here’s more from around the league:
- With the offseason addition of guard Victor Oladipo, Andre Roberson, who is a natural shooting guard, will likely see extended time at small forward for the Thunder this season, Erik Horne of The Oklahoman writes. The potential shift doesn’t trouble Roberson because coach Billy Donovan’s offensive scheme, Horne adds. “With our offense, the way we want to run it, it doesn’t really matter what position you’re in,” Roberson said. “We all kinda work together, jell together and have the offense cutting, moving and just sharing the ball more. It’s definitely going to be a fun year and more ball-oriented stuff, so it should be fun.”
- Former Raptors and Wolves executive Rob Babcock is currently doing some consulting work to pass the time, with the former executive hoping to land another NBA post in the future, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets. Minnesota fired Babcock, who was the team’s Vice President of Basketball Operations, back in May.
- Warriors guard Stephen Curry, who is from North Carolina, has mixed emotions regarding all the events that have pulled from the state due to a controversial bill that many say will lead to discrimination for LGBT people, The Associated Press relays. “I think it’s unfortunate for our city and our state to be under the microscope with HB2 and how it’s unfolded,” Curry said. “I’m all for equal and fair rights and treatment for everybody. Until it gets addressed, until some changes are made, this could be a recurring theme in North Carolina. I don’t want that happen.“
Poll: 2008 NBA Draft Take Two (Pick No. 26)
Scouting players and predicting how their skills will translate to the NBA is one of the more difficult tasks front offices have on their plates. Looking back over past drafts and how many lottery picks never evolved into stars, or even made a significant impact in the league, illustrates just how often stats, combine numbers and pure gut instinct often come up short.
Of course, we get the opportunity to critique these moves with the benefit of hindsight — a luxury that GMs don’t have on draft night. Having said that, it’s still fun to go back in time and take a theoretical look at how these drafts should have/could have gone.
We’ve been revisiting 2008 draft, which had a number of players who have gone on to post big numbers in the league. This was the year of Derrick Rose (No. 1 overall), Russell Westbrook (No. 4), Kevin Love (No. 5), Brook Lopez (No. 10) and Nicolas Batum (No. 25). Over the next few weeks, we’ll be posting a series of polls asking readers to vote on whom teams should have selected in each spot.
We’ve arrived at the No. 26 overall pick, which was held by San Antonio. In the “real world” draft, the Spurs nabbed George Hill, who was selected with pick No. 12 by the Kings in our re-draft. So cast your vote for who the Spurs select and check back on Saturday to see the results, as well as to vote on whom the Hornets/Pelicans take with the No. 27 pick.
Also, don’t limit yourself to a simple button click. Take to the comments section below and share your thoughts on the pick and why you voted the way that you did. If we fail to list a player who you think should be selected, feel free to post that in the comments section and we’ll be certain to tally those votes as well.
- Bulls — Russell Westbrook [Actual Pick — Derrick Rose]
- Heat — Kevin Love [Actual Pick — Michael Beasley]
- Wolves — Derrick Rose [Actual Pick — O.J. Mayo]
- Sonics/Thunder — DeAndre Jordan [Actual Pick — Russell Westbrook]
- Grizzlies — Brook Lopez [Actual Pick — Kevin Love]
- Knicks — Serge Ibaka [Actual Pick — Danilo Gallinari]
- Clippers — Nicolas Batum [Actual Pick — Eric Gordon]
- Bucks — Goran Dragic [Actual Pick — Joe Alexander]
- Bobcats/Hornets — Danilo Gallinari [Actual Pick — D.J. Augustin]
- Nets — Ryan Anderson [Actual Pick — Brook Lopez]
- Blazers (from Pacers) — Eric Gordon [Actual Pick — Jerryd Bayless]
- Kings — George Hill [Actual Pick — Jason Thompson]
- Pacers (from Blazers) — Robin Lopez [Actual Pick — Brandon Rush]
- Warriors — Courtney Lee [Actual Pick — Anthony Randolph]
- Suns — Roy Hibbert [Actual Pick — Robin Lopez]
- Sixers— Nikola Pekovic [Actual Pick — Marreese Speights]
- Raptors — O.J. Mayo [Actual Pick — Roy Hibbert]
- Wizards — Mario Chalmers [Actual Pick — JaVale McGee]
- Cavaliers — Timofey Mozgov [Actual Pick — J.J. Hickson]
- Bobcats/Hornets (from Nuggets) — Michael Beasley [Actual Pick — Alexis Ajinca]
- Nets (from Mavs) — Omer Asik [Actual Pick — Ryan Anderson]
- Magic — D.J. Augustin [Actual Pick — Courtney Lee]
- Jazz — Marreese Speights [Actual Pick — Kosta Koufos]
- Sonics/Thunder (from Suns) — Jerryd Bayless [Actual Pick — Serge Ibaka]
- Rockets — Kosta Koufos [Actual Pick — Nicolas Batum]
- Spurs — ?? [Actual Pick — George Hill]
If you’re a Trade Rumors app user, click here to vote.
Celtics Sign Jalen Jones, Damion Lee
SEPTEMBER 16th: The signing is official, according to the RealGM transactions log.
SEPTEMBER 14th: The Celtics have signed undrafted free agents Jalen Jones and Damion Lee, RealGM reports. The exact details of the arrangements are not yet known, but with Boston virtually out of cap room, they are almost assuredly one-year, minimum salary training camp pacts. The duo are far more likely to begin the season as a member of the Maine Red Claws in the D-League than in Boston.
Jones is a 23-year-old shooting guard out of Texas A&M. He appeared in 33 games as a senior, averaging 15.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 27.3 minutes per outing. His slash line on the campaign was .425/.324/.702. Jones participated in the Las Vegas summer league as part of the Raptors’ squad where he averaged 3.2 points on 35.3% shooting.
Lee, who is also 23 and a shooting guard, appeared in 30 games for Louisville in 2015/16, averaging 15.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 33.5 minutes per contest. His shooting line was .428/.341/.843. Lee participated in both the Orlando and Las Vegas summer leagues as a member of Miami’s squad, averaging a combined 7.5 points and 2.0 rebounds on 32.5% shooting.
Brett Brown On New-Look Sixers
Sixers head coach Brett Brown has endured three life-sapping seasons since leaving his assistant post in San Antonio to steward over Philadelphia’s rebuilding efforts. Brown’s teams have lost 63, 64, and 72 games respectively the last three campaigns as the team purposely bottomed-out under former GM Sam Hinkie in an effort to retool via the NBA draft lottery. While no one realistically expects the Sixers to suddenly make the playoffs this season, the franchise has been active in the free agent market for the first time during Brown’s tenure and the team should make strides toward respectability in 2016/17.
Brown spoke with members of the media on Thursday regarding a number of subjects, including his revitalized enthusiasm resulting from the team’s positive offseason, Mike Narducci of The Philadelphia Inquirer relays. “Given our experience together, from where we were to where we are now, how can we all not feel a breath of fresh air, a new bounce, a higher level of hope and an excitement that together we haven’t experienced for awhile?” Brown said.
The coach noted that there are numerous reasons for him to be optimistic, including the highly anticipated debut of former lottery pick Joel Embiid, who sat out his first two NBA campaigns following foot surgeries, the addition of No. 1 overall pick Ben Simmons and the arrival of 2014 draftee Dario Saric from overseas, Narducci notes. Brown did acknowledge that Embiid’s health is a wild card, telling reporters, “He will play and everybody understands there will be parameters, restrictions.” The coach noted that what those restrictions will be should be determined during the preseason.
The frontcourt rotation remains a bit of a mystery, with Brown acknowledging that the pairing of Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor last season wasn’t a successful one, Narducci relays. Brown did offer high praise for Noel, telling reporters, “Nerlens has elite gifts. He is athletic, quick off the floor, and as quick to the rim as anybody I have coached, as any big man in the league.” The coach refused to indulge any speculation as to which of the big men, if any, are likely to be dealt this season. “I will coach them until they are not [here],” Brown said.
The Sixers should also benefit greatly from the free agent additions of veterans Jerryd Bayless, Gerald Henderson, and Sergio Rodriguez, Brown told the media. The coach is especially excited about Philly upgrading the point guard position, Narducci adds. “If the season started today, you give Jerryd Bayless the ball and go from there,” Brown said. “I feel there will be times you will see Ben Simmons with the ball as the traditional point guard.” Brown also noted that shooting guard Nik Stauskas, who averaged 8.5 points in his first season with the Sixers, worked hard in the weight room this offseason and should benefit from that.
Do you think Brown has a reason to be optimistic at the Sixers’ chances this season? Which addition to the roster are you most excited about? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions.
Pistons Sign Trey Freeman
SEPTEMBER 16: Freeman has officially signed with the Pistons, per RealGM’s transactions log. Terms of the agreement still haven’t been reported, but it will likely be a one-year, minimum-salary summer contract.
AUGUST 29: The Pistons have agreed to a deal with unrestricted free agent guard Trey Freeman, Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops reports (on Twitter). The exact details of the arrangement are unknown, but it does include a partial guarantee, according to Scotto. The addition of Freeman will give Detroit a preseason roster count of 17.
Freeman played for the Rockets summer league squad in Las Vegas this year, appearing in five games and averaging 5.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 18.4 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .265/.200/.750.
The 23-year-old went undrafted after completing his senior campaign at Old Dominion. Freeman’s numbers for the 2015/16 season were 22.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 35.1 minutes per night. His shooting numbers on the year were .429/.349/.829.
Nuggets Sign D.J. Kennedy
SEPTEMBER 15: Nearly a month after agreeing to terms with him, the Nuggets have officially confirmed their deal with Kennedy, issuing a press release announcing the signing.
AUGUST 16: The Nuggets and unrestricted free agent shooting guard D.J. Kennedy have agreed to a deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (via Twitter). The pact will be for three years and includes a partial guarantee, Charania notes.
The 26-year-old originally went undrafted out of St. John’s back in 2011. His NBA regular season experience consists of two games with the Cavaliers during the 2011/12 campaign where he averaged 6.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 29.5 minutes per outing.
Kennedy has split the remainder of his playing career thus far between the NBA D-League and overseas. He spent the 2015/16 campaign with the Russian club Enisey Krasnoyarsk, appearing in 40 games and averaging 14.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists. Kennedy’s shooting line on the year was .451/.287/.809.
Warriors Sign JaVale McGee To Camp Deal
SEPTEMBER 15: The Warriors continue to finalize their deals for training-camp invitees, having formally signed McGee this week, per RealGM’s transactions log.
JULY 29: The Warriors have agreed to a “make-good” training camp deal with JaVale McGee, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). The arrangement, based on Stein’s wording, is more than likely a one-year, minimum salary pact that includes no guaranteed money.
Golden State is in search of a rim protector and will give McGee the opportunity during the preseason to fill that role, Stein adds. McGee will compete with 2016 first-rounder Damian Jones and Anderson Varejao for a shot to back up projected starter Zaza Pachulia.
Dallas waived the center earlier this month after they were reportedly unable to find a trade partner for McGee, whose salary of $1,403,611 for 2016/17 was scheduled to become fully guaranteed on July 12th. McGee, 28, appeared in 34 games for the Mavs this past season and averaged 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in 10.9 minutes per outing. The center shot .575/.000/.500 on the year.