Sixers Acquire Andrei Kirilenko
12:40pm: The Sixers also receive cash, as Philadelphia announced in its press release. The 2018 second-rounder that the Sixers would send to Brooklyn if the teams swapped second-round picks that year would be Cleveland’s pick, the Sixers also note.
THURSDAY, 12:28pm: The trade is official, the Nets announced via press release. The Sixers get Kirilenko, Gutierrez, Brooklyn’s 2020 second-round pick and the right to swap 2018 second-rounders. The Nets receive Davies, and Brooklyn’s statement also confirms the creation of a pair of trade exceptions. The statement values them at $3.4MM and $916K, respectively, but it would appear as though they’re actually worth precisely $3,326,235 and $816,482, the equivalents of the salaries for Kirilenko and Gutierrez, respectively. The Nets can use them to trade for players with salaries of up to $100K more than those amounts any time between now and a year from today.
WEDNESDAY, 8:18pm: The Sixers and Nets have agreed to a trade that would send Andrei Kirilenko to Philadelphia, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports. Also heading to the Sixers is the Nets’ 2020 second round pick, the right to swap second-rounders in 2018, and cash. In return the Nets will receive Brandon Davies. The deal is expected to be finalized on Thursday, and Brooklyn is also likely to send another minor player to the Sixers as well, Wojnarowski notes in a separate tweet. That player might be Jorge Gutierrez, Robert Windrem of NetsDaily reports (Twitter link).
Philadelphia is expected to waive Kirilenko and his guaranteed salary, worth more than $3.3MM. The Nets will save themselves nearly $12MM in salary and tax payments as a result of the deal, not counting Davies’ non-guaranteed salary of $816,482. Brooklyn isn’t planning on waiving him immediately, and will give Davies a look, reports Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News (Twitter links). The Nets are also working on signing a free agent wing player in addition to this trade, Bondy adds.
The 33-year-old Russian’s future is unclear, since Kirilenko has been dealing with undisclosed family issues that kept him away from the Nets, as well as clouded the trade talk surrounding him since it was unclear if he would be willing and able to report to any team that acquired him. The Jazz have been mentioned as potential suitors, though today’s signing of Patrick Christopher increased Utah’s roster count to the league-maximum fifteen players, which means the team would need to make a roster move to accommodate Kirilenko if it was still interested in his services. Wojnarowski’s article also lists the Cavs and the Clippers as teams that may be interested in signing Kirilenko.
In 12 NBA seasons, Kirilenko has averaged 11.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. His career slash line is .474/.310/.754. He appeared in just seven games for Brooklyn this season, logging just 0.4 points in 5.1 minutes per contest.
The 23-year-old Davies is in his second season in the NBA after going undrafted out of BYU in 2013. His career numbers are 3.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 0.8 assists per game. His shooting numbers are .417/.225/.640.
And-Ones: Raduljica, Draft, O’Quinn
With the recent signing of Earl Clark, the Shandong Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association are considering releasing former NBA player Miroslav Raduljica, Enea Trapani of Sportando reports (Twitter link). The 26-year-old Raduljica appeared in 48 games for the Bucks last season, averaging 3.8 points and 2.3 rebounds in 9.7 minutes per contest.
Here’s more from around the NBA:
- Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports ran down the top 10 international prospects for the 2015 NBA draft. Topping Spears’ list are Kristaps Porzingis, Emmanuel Mudiay, and Mario Hezonja.
- The Magic have already bested their 2013/14 season total of four road wins, and the improved play of Kyle O’Quinn is a big reason, Ken Hornack of FOX Sports.com writes. O’Quinn has been starting in the place of the injured Nikola Vucevic, and he is improving as a player while he works his way back from his own injury woes, notes Hornack. “We’ll continue to get him [O’Quinn] in condition where he can play more than 18 minutes,” coach Jacque Vaughn said. “We’ll continue to address his ability to do his work early so he can stay out of foul trouble. And he’ll continue to help us on the floor. He can play both positions [center and power forward], but he’s got a lot of room to grow.”
- Chris Mannix of SI.com released his initial player rankings for the 2015 NBA draft. The top three players on Mannix’s big board are Jahlil Okafor, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Mudiay.
- LeBron James has nothing but praise for Matthew Dellavedova, his Cavs teammate, Chris Fedor of The Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. “I had Norris Cole on my team in Miami,” James said. “He was the same type of guy. We called him the pit bull. You just put him out there on anybody and he’s always going to be successful and know you can never discredit how he goes about the game and how hard he plays. You put him out there for 20 seconds and it will be the hardest 20 seconds he ever played, like he’ll never play again. Everything they do won’t show up in the box score but teammates and people that know the game know he made an impact.” James’ comments regarding Cole are potentially noteworthy considering that Cole is set to become a restricted free agent next summer, is originally from Ohio, and is represented by Klutch Sports, the agency that represents James.
Western Notes: Christopher, D-League, Mavs
One area that the Jazz are always looking to improve upon is their outside shooting, which is the primary reason that Utah signed Patrick Christopher earlier today, Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune writes. “That’s an area we want to continually upgrade at the guards, wings, bigs,” Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said. “If you can shoot the ball, there’s a good chance we’re going to take a look at you. He’s [Christopher] someone that [coach Quin Snyder] knew from his overseas experience. There was some familiarity there. He made it to our open gym and mini camp so there was some corporate knowledge. And we notched that he’s been shooting the ball very consistently over the last three years.”
Here’s more from out west:
- Christopher’s deal with the Jazz is a two-year, non-guaranteed minimum salary arrangement, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets. The player is scheduled to make $379,010 for this season, and $845,059 during the 2015/16 campaign, Pincus adds.
- The Thunder have re-assigned Mitch McGary and Grant Jerrett to the Oklahoma City Blue, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Jerrett’s fourth trip of the season to the D-League, and McGary’s third.
- Tuesday night’s loss to Memphis exposed the Mavs‘ most glaring weakness, which is a lack of interior depth behind Tyson Chandler, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. While no move to add another big man is imminent, Dallas is considering its options, notes Sefko.
- If the Wolves change their focus this season from retooling to rebuilding, it would open up permanent playing time for the team’s younger players like Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, Anthony Bennett, Shabazz Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng, which could benefit Minnesota’s outlook for next season, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes.
Southeast Notes: Hawks, Bosh, Heat
The Hawks and Philips Arena have named Nzinga Shaw as the organization’s new Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer (CDIO), the team announced. Shaw will be responsible for developing and embedding diversity and inclusion best practices throughout the organization. “I am excited to be a member of the Atlanta Hawks and Philips Arena organization at such a pivotal time. My goal as the CDIO is to help our organization rebuild trust and partnership in the Atlanta community, emphasizing civility, sportsmanship, and human decency in an effort to ensure that everyone can be a fan of the team, attend home games, and so that we can serve as a model for inclusion in the NBA,” Shaw said. “More specifically, I will lead the charge of creating a strategic framework to help shift the culture so that we can create greater inclusion and engagement with all of our fans and stakeholders.”
Here’s more from the Southeast Division:
- In an interview with Grantland’s Zach Lowe, Chris Bosh discussed a number of topics, including the teams that were courting him before he decided to re-sign with the Heat. When Bosh was asked if the offers he received from the Rockets, Suns, Lakers, and Nuggets had interested him, Bosh said, “It was just interesting to be wanted, after all that time of bashing, bashing, bashing. You kind of bask in it just a little bit. Like, ‘Hey, I’m still valuable. I can still play this game.'”
- When Bosh was asked by Lowe about whether any other team besides Houston truly tempted him to sign with them, Bosh replied, “Yeah. They make you think for a minute. But I was interested in staying put. But at the time, it’s like, OK, wow. I never imagined this. You just think about it. But for the most part, I was focused on staying with Miami.”
- With the Heat now third-worst in the NBA in field-goal percentage defense, some outsiders have questioned coach Erik Spoelstra’s defensive philosophy, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald writes. But one Miami player said privately that a huge problem is the inability of the team’s wing players (guards especially) to consistently prevent penetration, which then exposes the team’s lack of size on the interior. This defensive weakness on the wing is the primary reason that the Heat have been mentioned as being interested in acquiring Corey Brewer from the Wolves, who is known as a strong perimeter defender.
Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Nets, Celtics, Knicks
A number of experts around the NBA opine that the Sixers have a brighter future than the Knicks, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv writes. When Zagoria asked an NBA executive which franchise is in a better position to improve, the executive said, “If [Joel] Embiid is Hakeem Olajuwon instead of Greg Oden, the answer is Philly. The Knicks have one first-round pick in the next two years, zero second-round picks and zero worthwhile International Rights guys. Philly has two first-round picks this year, four second-round picks in the next two and the rights to [Dario] Saric and [Vasilije] Micic. Carmelo Anthony is better than any current 76er but Philly has a far better coach [Brett Brown] and more talented young players. The Knicks need to start building a roster and stop waiting for a miracle free agent. There are too many destination markets with cap room and better rosters and a weak ’15 free agent class.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Despite the recent reports that the Nets are willing to trade Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, and Joe Johnson, Williams isn’t concerned he might be dealt, Tim Bontemps of The New York Post writes. “I’m not worried about it, man,” Williams said. “I’m a Net until they tell me otherwise. It is what it is. It’s a business, so stuff like [trade rumors] happens. I don’t see any problem [dealing with it]. Brook [Lopez] has dealt with it, so I don’t see it being a problem for him, and I don’t think Joe [Johnson] is too worried about it. No matter what’s being written or whatever, I’m still here. I’m still a Net. My priority is to play for this organization.”
- Celtics coach Brad Stevens has been using Marcus Smart during the fourth quarters of recent games at the expense of playing time for Rajon Rondo. But no matter how well Smart plays, the idea of him replacing Rondo as a starter this season would be crazy, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com opines. If things ever get to the point where that becomes a serious consideration, Boston would just as soon trade Rondo rather than have him become Smart’s backup, but the rookie’s steady progression can do nothing but hurt Rondo’s trade value in the eyes of potential suitors, Blakely adds.
- After a horrendous 4-19 start to the season, the Knicks could be looking at even more difficulties ahead. Anthony has been playing in pain all season courtesy of a sore left knee, and now he may require surgery to correct the problem, which would keep him out of action indefinitely, Frank Isola of The New York Daily News reports.
Western Notes: McGrady, Carter, Mavs
Tracy McGrady thinks the Lakers would be the ideal team for him if he were to return to play in the NBA, as he told Bleacher Report’s Les Carpenter (hat tip to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports). McGrady was contemplating a comeback this fall, as Wojnarowski wrote in September, but a commitment to a basketball showcase that would have him in China during October got in the way. McGrady doesn’t want to play for an NBA team unless he attends training camp with that club, Carpenter writes, so that presumably means he won’t return to the league this season.
Here’s more from out west:
- Vince Carter will be 40 years old when his contract with the Grizzlies expires in 2017, and the veteran has every intention of playing until then, Dwain Price of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports (Twitter links). “My intentions are to play it out for sure. I have no intentions of backing down until the body says so,” Carter said. “Right now I just take it day by day and year by year and go from there.”
- The Mavs are finding their point guard-by-committee approach to be successful thus far this season, Steve Aschburner of NBA.com writes. Instead of having a true star at the point, Dallas has instead opted for a quartet of “heady decision-makers” that have all been acquired since June, and who don’t take up a large amount of cap space, Aschburner notes. “The guards we have now, everyone brings a little something different,” Dirk Nowitzki said. “Jameer [Nelson] is probably the best shooter, Devin [Harris] is a great driver. I think Raymond [Felton] has the in-between game. I don’t even know what J.J. [Barea] does. We just give him the ball and he just goes wild out there. We run a couple pick-and-rolls for him, he keeps circling and circling. So I think all four guards bring something to the table, which we need.”
- Former Warriors coach Mark Jackson briefly addressed the negative comments made against him by Golden State’s co-owner Joe Lacob, Carl Steward of The San Jose Mercury News reports. Speaking at his weekly sermon, Jackson said, “[Lacob] said I was good for nothing, an owner that knew me for three years and spent a couple of minutes around me, an owner that had the audacity to say that 200 folks don’t like me in the business.”
- The remaining $620,794 of the $2,316,429 trade exception the Kings created from the Rudy Gay trade is set to expire tonight. Sacramento had previously used $1,695,635 of this exception when they acquired Reggie Evans from the Nets.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Eastern Notes: Payne, Nets, Raptors
The Hawks re-assigned Adreian Payne to the D-League on Sunday night, but instead of heading to Fort Wayne, the rookie was sent to the Austin Toros, the Spurs’ affiliate instead, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. This was due to the maximum allowance of four NBA players already being on assignment to the Mad Ants at the time, though three of those players were recalled Monday, Vivlamore notes. In his two previous stints with Fort Wayne, Payne has appeared in a total of six games, averaging 13.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 31.3 minutes per contest.
Here’s more from the East:
- This flexible assignment to Austin for Payne actually works in his and Atlanta’s favor since Austin runs a very similar system to the one the Hawks use, Vivlamore adds. “It’s not the same system that we run here [Atlanta],” Payne said of his previous assignments in Fort Wayne. “It’s different. It’s just like coming from college when you learn a different system.”
- With the Nets reportedly willing to trade Deron Williams, Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson, Bradford Doolittle of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) runs down which teams would be the best fit for each. Doolittle opines that Williams would look good in a Pacers uniform, the Lakers would suit Lopez just fine, and Johnson could fit in with the Pelicans.
- The Raptors have no intention of utilizing the remaining $4,583,432 of the trade exception they created from the Rudy Gay trade, which expires tonight, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets.
- If the Nets do indeed trade Andrei Kirilenko to the Sixers for a player with a non-guaranteed contract, Brooklyn would be able to create a trade exception worth $3.3MM, Robert Windrem of Nets Daily reports (Twitter link).
Offseason In Review Series
Hoops Rumors has spent the past few weeks taking an in-depth look back at how each NBA franchise fared this past offseason. We covered all of the trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more as we examined the moves each team made over the last several months. These posts covered all of the activity that occurred from the end of the playoffs in June right up until the first jump ball on opening night.
Here is a team-by-team recap of the series:
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
Central Division
Southeast Division
Western Conference
Northwest Division
Pacific Division
Southwest Division
Northwest Notes: Faried, Pekovic, Nuggets
Kenneth Faried has had a rough start to the season, something that Nuggets coach Brian Shaw chalks up to inconsistent energy and play on the part of the forward, Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post writes. “It’s really hard to say,” Shaw said. “Obviously, he’s disappointed in the way he’s played up to this point. There hasn’t been a level of consistency. One of the things that I try to remind him all the time is what made him, got him to this level, got him paid recently, is the fact that he’s always brought energy and always rebounded the ball. When you look at his stats up to this point, is the energy always there? I wouldn’t say that it consistently has been. But even before that, is he rebounding the ball the way he is known for rebounding the ball? He’s not doing that either. So no matter what happens, you get back to the basics of what got you here. And I think that’s what he has to do.”
Here’s more from the Northwest Division:
- Shaw also relayed that Faried’s four-year, $50MM extension that the player signed back in October may also be a factor in Faried’s struggles, Dempsey adds. “He’s [Faried] been a little bit beat-up and a little bit sore,” Shaw said. “But what comes when you have the kind of summer that he had, and you get paid for that, there’s a certain responsibility and expectation that go along with that, too. And there’s an adjustment period. Now there’s other guys around the league that maybe think that ‘If I was playing maybe he wouldn’t be on the US team’ or ‘If he’s making this much money, let me show him what I’m worth.’ And that’s all part of it, too. Now, you become the hunted instead of the hunter, and you have to adjust for that and brace for that.“
- Wolves center Nikola Pekovic aggravated his injured ankle while running as a part of his rehab and will most likely be out another month, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune reports (Twitter link). Injured point guard Ricky Rubio is also unlikely to make his return to action until January, Zgoda adds.
- Pekovic’s coach Flip Saunders hinted at the possibility that the big man could see a stint in the NBA D-League prior to returning to action for the Wolves, Andy Greder of The Saint Paul Pioneer Press reports (Twitter link).
Will Cherry To Play In Lithuania
SUNDAY, 2:00pm: Zalgiris Kaunas confirmed the deal via Twitter.
FRIDAY, 4:55pm: Free agent Will Cherry is finalizing a deal to join the Lithuanian team Zalgiris Kaunas, David Pick of Eurobasket reports (Twitter link). Cherry was waived on November 30th by the Cavs in order to clear a roster spot so that Cleveland could claim A.J. Price off waivers. Gino Pilato of D-League Digest reported earlier today that Cherry was headed overseas rather than intending to rejoin the D-League.
Pick also tweets that the deal isn’t likely to be completed until Monday, which is when Cherry would clear D-League waivers, which he is expected to do. The point guard had signed a D-League deal with the affiliate of the Cavs shortly after the Raptors let him go at the end of the preseason and before Cleveland signed him for the big club in the first week of the regular season. The Cavs affiliate rescinded its rights to Cherry so that he wouldn’t have to pay a buyout to head overseas, according to Pilato (Twitter link).
The 6’1″, 23-year-old Cherry appeared in eight games for the Cavs this year, averaging 1.9 points and logging 8.6 minutes per night. Cherry had notched 12.8 PPG and 4.0 RPG while playing 25.3 minutes per contest in five games for the Cavs Summer League team in Las Vegas. He had also played for the Cavs’ D-League affiliate last season, when he provided 11.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, and 4.5 APG in 30.4 MPG.