Khem Birch Waived By Magic, Eyeing Raptors
2:49pm: The Magic have officially released Birch, the team announced in a press release. He’ll clear waivers on Saturday afternoon if no team places a claim.
9:15am: The Magic intend to waive center Khem Birch in order to give him an opportunity to play more elsewhere, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link), who reports – with Shams Charania – that Birch is a good bet to end up with the Raptors.
Birch, 28, was a key part of the Magic’s rotation earlier in the season, serving as Nikola Vucevic‘s primary backup and averaging 6.9 PPG and 6.0 RPG in 22.0 minutes per game through his first 28 contests.
However, his role has been reduced since then, partly due to a dip in production (3.1 PPG, 3.7 RPG, .314 FG% in his last 20 games) and also because Orlando is focused on developing former lottery picks Wendell Carter and Mohamed Bamba.
Assuming he’s officially released today or tomorrow, Birch will retain his postseason eligibility for a new club. Teams with $3MM in cap room or a trade exception worth at least $3MM would have the opportunity to nab the big man off waivers, but if he goes unclaimed, it sounds like Toronto would be his top choice.
While the Raptors aren’t a title contender, the fit would make sense for a couple reasons. For one, Birch is a Canadian, having been born in Montreal and attended high school in Ontario, so – even though they’re playing in Tampa this season – the Raptors are essentially his hometown team.
Additionally, Toronto has been on the lookout for help at the five since losing Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka in free agency last fall, so Birch would have the opportunity to play right away. The Raptors are also still just two games back of the No. 10 seed in the East, so Birch could help them push for a spot in the play-in tournament.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Warriors’ Rick Welts Stepping Down As Team President
Warriors president and chief operating officer Rick Welts will step away from his role with the franchise at the end of the 2020/21 season, he and the team announced today in a press release. The news was first reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Welts, who worked for the SuperSonics, the Suns, and the NBA league office before arriving in Golden State, oversaw the organization’s business operations while Bob Myers served as the president of basketball operations. A Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, Welts became the highest-ranking executive in men’s professional team sports to publicly acknowledge he was gay when he did so in 2011.
“Simply put, Rick Welts played a transformational role in creating the modern NBA during his more than 40 years as a pioneering league and team executive,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “His extraordinary vision, leadership and humanity have defined his Hall of Fame career, which has set the standard of excellence in the sports industry. I had the tremendous good fortune to learn about the business of the NBA and its teams directly from Rick in my early years at the league office and have always appreciated his friendship and generosity.”
The plan is for Welts to remain with the Warriors in an advisory role. The club expects to name a new president within the next week or so.
Here’s more out of Golden State:
- The Warriors announced today that they’re on track to begin welcoming fans back to Chase Center on April 23. They’ll be able to fill the arena up to 35% of its total capacity for the final nine home games of the season.
- Anthony Slater and Sam Vecenie of The Athletic teamed up to break down a handful of draft options for a Warriors squad that could end up with two lottery picks in 2021. Slater and Vecenie wonder if Golden State might prioritize players who can contribute right away, assuming the team doesn’t trade away one or both picks. The Athletic’s duo identifies Davion Mitchell and Corey Kispert as a couple lottery prospects who might fit that bill.
- In case you missed it, the Warriors are getting back up to the required minimum of 14 players (not counting two-ways) by signing Gary Payton II to a 10-day contract.
Erie BayHawks Will Cease Operations
The Erie BayHawks of the NBA G League won’t return for the 2021/22 season, announcing today in a press release that they’ll cease operations in the coming weeks.
Technically, the franchise now known as the Erie BayHawks will be relocated by the Pelicans for the ’21/22 season to Birmingham, Alabama, where it will be rebranded.
That has happened to two iterations of the BayHawks in the past, as the original team became the Lakeland Magic in 2017 and the second version became the College Park Skyhawks in 2019. In each instance, an expansion team – also known as the BayHawks – continued to play in Erie, having established a new NBA affiliation.
However, the Pelicans turned down their 2021/22 option with Erie as they prepare to move their G League operations to Birmingham. As a result, the BayHawks don’t have an NBA partner lined up for next season, resulting in the decision to halt operations.
“We’ve made the determination that we will cease operations in the coming weeks due to not being unable to find another NBA partner, or other adequate opportunity, to keep G League basketball in Erie,” Erie Basketball Management president Owen McCormick said in a statement. “This result is merely a reflection of the changing landscape of the NBA as many teams prefer their G League affiliate be located nearby, and Erie simply is not positioned geographically to provide that.
“While we’re saddened by this for our fans and the Erie community, we are deeply appreciative of the tremendous support the BayHawks received over the past 13 years. The Erie region can be proud of the history the BayHawks made and the role that Erie played for the NBA during our years in the NBA Development League and NBA G League. We are truly grateful for the community’s amazing support and the fond memories made.”
Currently, the Suns and Trail Blazers are the only two NBA teams that don’t have a G League affiliate in place for the 2021/22 campaign. While it’s possible the BayHawks explored a partnership with one of those teams, neither Phoenix nor Portland is located anywhere close to Erie, Pennsylvania, so it wouldn’t have made for a convenient arrangement.
The BayHawks first entered the G League in 2008. Over the years, the team served as the NBAGL affiliate for the Cavaliers, Sixers, Raptors, Knicks, Magic, Hawks, and Pelicans. The Wizards also used Erie as its affiliate during the 2020/21 season, sharing operating costs with the Pels.
VanVleet, Bembry, Horton-Tucker Receive One-Game Suspensions
The NBA has suspended three players – Raptors guards Fred VanVleet and DeAndre’ Bembry, along with Lakers guard Talen Horton-Tucker – for one game apiece, the league announced today in a press release.
The three players left the bench area during an on-court altercation during the Raptors/Lakers game on Tuesday (video link). After Dennis Schröder committed a foul on a OG Anunoby shot attempt, the two players got tangled up and Anunoby grabbed Schroder by the leg, flipping him to the ground. Players from both teams entered the fray at that point.
According to today’s announcement, Anunoby received a $30K fine for initiating the incident, while Lakers big man Montrezl Harrell has been docked $20K for aggressively entering the altercation and shoving Raptors guard Gary Trent Jr.
As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, the one-game suspension will be costliest for VanVleet, who will forfeit $146,552 of his salary. Bembry ($11,980) and Horton-Tucker ($10,469) will also each lose one game’s worth of pay.
Horton-Tucker and Bembry will serve their suspensions tonight, while VanVleet will serve his one-game ban once he’s healthy and ready to return from his hip ailment.
Although they’ll be missing Horton-Tucker, and Kyle Kuzma is listed as questionable with calf tightness, the Lakers will get some reinforcements for Thursday’s contest vs. Miami, as head coach Frank Vogel said today that both Ben McLemore (protocols) and Andre Drummond (toe) will be available (Twitter link via Mike Trudell).
Sixers Waive Ignas Brazdeikis
10:13am: The Sixers have officially waived Brazdeikis, according to the team (Twitter link).
10:04am: The Sixers are waiving forward Ignas Brazdeikis, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The move will create an opening on Philadelphia’s 15-man roster.
The 76ers acquired Brazdeikis at the March 25 trade deadline along with George Hill in a three-team, six-player trade with the Knicks and Thunder. The 22-year-old was included in that deal for roster and salary purposes and wasn’t thought to be a player Philadelphia was specifically targeting, so it doesn’t come as a major surprise that he’s being released.
Brazdeikis was originally selected with the 47th overall pick in 2019 and acquired by the Knicks in a draft-night trade. However, the Lithuanian failed to earn regular playing time in New York, appearing in just 13 games in a season-and-a-half with the team. He did play well in the G League, however, with 20.9 PPG, 8.1 RPG, and 3.3 APG in 36 total appearances (33.7 MPG) for the Westchester Knicks.
Assuming Brazdeikis goes unclaimed on waivers, Philadelphia will remain on the hook for the rest of his $1.52MM salary this season, but won’t owe him any of his $1.78MM team option for 2021/22. If he becomes a free agent, the second-year forward would be eligible to sign with any team except the Knicks.
Wizards Waive Jerome Robinson, Expected To Re-Sign Jordan Bell
9:29am: The Wizards have officially waived Robinson, the team announced today in a press release.
6:34am: The Wizards are making a change at the back of their 15-man roster, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links), who reports that the club is waiving fourth-year wing Jerome Robinson and is expected to fill the newly-opened roster spot soon by re-signing big man Jordan Bell to a 10-day contract.
The 13th overall pick in the 2018 draft, Robinson spent his first season-and-a-half with the Clippers before being sent to Washington in the three-team Marcus Morris/Maurice Harkless trade at the 2020 deadline. In 38 games (21.3 MPG) for the Wizards, he averaged 7.4 PPG and 2.8 RPG with a .361/.320/.776 shooting line.
Back in December, the Wizards opted to pass on Robinson’s fourth-year option for 2021/22, which would’ve been worth $5.34MM. That was a sign that he wasn’t in Washington’s long-term plans, as was a report last month that he was among the players the team was shopping at the trade deadline.
Robinson will become an unrestricted free agent once he clears waivers, free to sign with any team, while the Wizards remain on the hook for the rest of his $3.74MM salary for 2020/21.
As for Bell, the 26-year-old inked a 10-day contract with the Wizards in January, then played for the team’s temporary NBA G League affiliate, the Erie BayHawks, at the Walt Disney World bubble. He averaged 17.6 PPG, 9.1 RPG, and 2.1 BPG in seven NBAGL contests (27.4 MPG).
A report last month suggested the Wizards were eyeing Bell for a possible two-way deal if Garrison Mathews was promoted to the 15-man roster, but it appears it’ll be Bell who ends up on the 15-man squad, albeit just on a 10-day deal for now.
If and when the Wizards and Bell make it official, the 10-day contract will pay him $114,990, with a cap hit of $110,998. Since it will be Bell’s second 10-day deal with the franchise this season, Washington will have to either let him walk or sign him for the rest of ’20/21 once it expires.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Central Notes: Nance, Bey, Vucevic, Bulls
Cavaliers big man Larry Nance Jr. hasn’t suited up for the team since March 27, but he’s starting to feel better after having dealt with an undetermined illness that caused rapid weight loss and left him bedridden, sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
None of the tests that Nance was administered in an attempt to identify his illness have come back positive, including COVID-19 tests, writes Fedor. A source tells Cleveland.com that the 28-year-old lost nearly 20 pounds and had a hard time keeping food down while he battled the illness.
Although Nance is improving, he’ll miss Thursday’s game and may not play on Saturday or Sunday either, according to Fedor, who says the training staff wants him to regain some of his lost weight and build his stamina back up before he returns to game action.
Here’s more from around the Central:
- Following Saddiq Bey‘s 25-point showing on Tuesday in Denver, Pistons head coach Dwane Casey reiterated a point that he and GM Troy Weaver have made before, referring to the rookie as a long-term keeper. “He’s an NBA starter for us and part of our building blocks,” Casey said of the young forward (Twitter link via Rod Beard of The Detroit News). Detroit gave up Luke Kennard and several second-round picks to land Bey in the 2020 draft.
- In his early days with the Bulls, Nikola Vucevic is looking like the sidekick that Zach LaVine and the club have long needed, writes Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic.
- While he’s not particularly high on the team’s playoff chances this season, Michael Pina of SI.com makes the case for why the Bulls‘ future looks bright. Meanwhile, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago fields a number of questions on the Bulls’ future in his latest mailbag, suggesting that Coby White still looks like part of the long-term core, even if the club is likely to pursue a point guard in the offseason.
One New COVID-19 Case Among Players Since March 31
The NBA and NBPA have formally announced that of the 483 players tested for the coronavirus within the last week, one has returned a confirmed positive test.
This is the third consecutive week with just one positive COVID-19 test among players, as the NBA has managed to avoid any major outbreaks in the second half thus far.
As a result, no games have been postponed for reasons related to coronavirus in over a month — the most recent postponement occurred on March 2.
Since the league and the players’ union don’t release any specifics about COVID-19 testing, we don’t know the identity of the player who tested positive.
Free Agency Notes: Cap Room, Kawhi, DeRozan, Paul
In an early look at the NBA’s 2021 free agent period, Sam Amick and John Hollinger of The Athletic write that three NBA teams – the Knicks, Thunder, and Spurs – project to have more than enough cap room for a maximum-salary contract this offseason, even if they were to win the draft lottery.
Besides those clubs, the Mavericks and Hornets should be among the clubs with the most space, according to Amick and Hollinger. The Athletic’s duo projects Dallas to be about $35MM below the cap if Josh Richardson opts out, while Charlotte will have about $26MM of room.
Other teams could create cap room, but that will hinge on one or two major roster decisions. For instance, the Raptors could get up to about $25MM in space, but not if they intend to re-sign Kyle Lowry. The Suns (Chris Paul) are in a similar position, with the Heat, Grizzlies, Pelicans, Hawks, Cavaliers, Bulls, and Pistons among the other teams whose cap space – or lack thereof – will depend on what happens with certain free agents.
Here’s more from Amick and Hollinger on 2021 free agency:
- Although Kawhi Leonard projects to be the top free agent on the market this summer, team sources and rival executives widely expect him to re-sign with the Clippers, per The Athletic. It’s possible that could change if Los Angeles exits the postseason early, but there’s no indication at this point that Leonard’s free agency will be as dramatic as it was in 2019.
- A source with knowledge of DeMar DeRozan‘s outlook tells The Athletic he’ll take a “wide open” approach to free agency. That doesn’t necessarily rule out a new deal with the Spurs, though a March report suggested DeRozan has interest in playing elsewhere next season and perhaps returning to the Eastern Conference.
- Amick and Hollinger believe both DeRozan and Paul will keep Jrue Holiday‘s new four-year deal ($135MM guaranteed, $25MM in incentives) very much in mind when they negotiate their next contracts. However, it’s not a perfect comparable for either player, since Paul is five years older than Holiday and DeRozan isn’t the defender that Holiday is.
Draft Updates: Mitchell, Jones, Cisse, Bacot, Minaya
On the heels of winning a national championship, Baylor guard Davion Mitchell has decided to hire an agent and declare for the 2021 NBA draft, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year this season, Mitchell enjoyed a career year as a junior, boosting his averages to 14.1 PPG and 5.5 APG in 30 games (33.0 MPG), while shooting an impressive 51.1% from the floor, including 44.7% on three-pointers. He played a team-high 36 minutes in Baylor’s championship win over Gonzaga.
Mitchell’s strong showing in the NCAA tournament bumped him up several spots on ESPN’s big board — he now projects to be a potential lottery pick, coming in as this year’s No. 12 prospect.
Here are a few more draft updates from around college basketball:
- Sun Belt Player of the Year DeVante’ Jones has declared for the 2021 NBA draft while retaining his college eligibility, he announced on Twitter. As a junior at Coastal Carolina this season, the 6’1″ guard averaged 19.3 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 2.9 APG, and 2.8 SPG on .487/.368/.862 shooting line in 26 games (32.8 MPG).
- Memphis freshman center Moussa Cisse is testing the draft waters, he announced Tuesday on Twitter. Cisse was the AAC Rookie of the Year in 2020/21, averaging 6.6 PPG, 6.3 RPG, and 1.6 BPG in 28 games (18.6 MPG).
- North Carolina sophomore forward Armando Bacot will go through the draft process while retaining his NCAA eligibility, he said in a Tuesday announcement (Twitter link). Bacot was UNC’s leading scorer and rebounder this season, with 12.3 PPG and 7.8 RPG in 29 games (22.7 MPG)
- South Carolina redshirt junior forward Justin Minaya has decided to test the draft waters while entering the transfer portal, he announced on Instagram. Minaya averaged just 7.0 PPG on 38.4% shooting in 20 games (30.2 MPG) in 2020/21, though he did chip in 6.3 RPG.
- Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report updated his board of this year’s top 50 prospects following the NCAA tournament.