And-Ones: Hansbrough, Bogut, Jennings
Tyler Hansbrough has signed a contract with the D-League, Chris Reichert of The Step Back reports (Twitter link). Now 31 years old, Hansbrough played 44 games with the Hornets last season, receiving a career-worst 7.8 MPG. Hansbrough went unsigned as an unrestricted free agent over the offseason, but expressed interest in returning to Charlotte after 2015/16.
“Personally, when I was called, I felt like I went out there and helped the team in the ways that I could. I’d be glad to be back,” Hansbrough told Sam Perley of Hornets.com.
Other goings-on around the game…
- The Rockets are unlikely to sign Andrew Bogut, sources tell Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The Rockets would like to add Bogut as insurance in case of a Clint Capela or Nene Hilario injury, but the big man may be looking for a bigger role.
- The Pistons don’t appear to be interested in a reunion with Brandon Jennings, Rod Beards of The Detroit News relays. “With Ish here, I don’t think [Jennings] would be a fit. From Brandon’s standpoint, my guess is he wants to go somewhere he can play,” Van Gundy said. “In a contract year, especially, he needs to get playing time and get seen. I hope it works for him. I really like him and he’s able to land something good this summer.”
- The BIG3 announced five additional players will register for its draft pool: James White, Andre Owens, Pops Mensah-Bonsu, Lawrence Moten, and Ndudi Ebi (press release). In April, BIG3 will hold a player combine for all players in the draft pool. While all five players have NBA experience, White most recently appeared in an NBA game- scoring 25 points over 57 games with the 2012/13 Knicks.
- The Cavaliers could be the winner of the Nerlens Noel trade if Bogut decides to join the defending champs, John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Rumors linked Bogut to Cleveland over the weekend, but it was reported today that the big man has “strong interest” in joining the Celtics.
Chris Crouse contributed to this post
Andrew Bogut Has “Strong Interest” In Joining Celtics
Initial reports that Andrew Bogut would sign with the Cavs may have been overblown. According to a report from Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe, the Celtics are “very much” in contention for Bogut’s services (article link). Per Himmelsbach, Bogut is looking to speak to a few Celtics players over the phone on Tuesday to get an idea of his potential fit under Brad Stevens.
For what it’s worth, Danny Ainge wouldn’t divulge the team’s interest in Bogut during a phone interview with the Globe on Monday. “I like our team right now,” Ainge said, “and unless something really jumps out to us where I feel like we can get significantly better, I’d just assume keep our team intact.”
Jay King of MassLive.com acknowledged that of all the buyout free agents, Bogut makes the most sense for the Celtics. Sam Amico of Amico Hoops noted that if Bogut signs with Cleveland, Deron Williams will have had something to do with it. Former teammates in Dallas, Williams announced that he’s “been in contact” with Bogut since his buyout.
Knicks Notes: Rose, Jennings, Randle, Ndour
The Knicks appear to be done with buyouts after parting ways with Brandon Jennings today. While there was some speculation about Derrick Rose being cut by the club, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN suggests the Knicks probably won’t complete any more buyouts unless “a player they like becomes available.” (Twitter link)
Despite Jeff Hornacek‘s words to the contrary, the Knicks appear to be in full-on tank mode at this point. Sporting a 24-35 record, the Knicks are four games behind Detroit for the eighth seed of the Eastern Conference.
More from The Garden…
- Hornacek has been a fan of Chasson Randle‘s game, Mike Vorkunov of the New York Times writes. The Knicks always viewed Jennings as a stopgap, Vorkunov writes, whose absence will now allow Randle to receive NBA minutes over the next several weeks. “We loved Chasson, his ability, how he can play,” Hornacek said. “He’s a smart player, knows how to play the game, shoot the ball. Chasson can play.”
- Frank Isola of the Daily News commended the team for cutting Jennings, as Brandon “was never going to be a part of the Knicks future.” Jennings wasn’t happy with the Knicks, as he’d begun to lose minutes to rookie Ron Baker. Isola speculates the reason Jennings was released before Sasha Vujacic was Vujacic’s willingness to run the triangle offense. Additionally, the Knicks attempted to trade Jennings prior to the deadline, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders writes, but no team was interested in giving up an asset for him.
- Isola is skeptical that the Knicks will cut Rose (link above). The Knicks still view themselves as a playoff-caliber team, and waiving Rose would be an admission of a “colossal mistake” from Phil Jackson. Had the Knicks dealt Rose for Ricky Rubio, Isola observes, Jackson essentially would have traded Rose, Jerian Grant, and Robin Lopez for Rubio. Isola suggested the team look to the future; “acquiring as many lottery balls as possible” rather than playing for the eighth seed. Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis‘ minutes should be limited, and Ndour appears to be a release candidate.
- In trade deadline negotiations, the Timberwolves wanted Mindaugas Kuzminskas in addition to Rose, according to David Aldridge of NBA.com. The Knicks and Wolves couldn’t get on the same page for a deadline swap, as we’d previously heard the Knicks insist Minnesota include Nemanja Bjelica alongside Rubio.
Cavs Announce Deron Williams Signing
The Cavs have made their signing of Deron Williams official, announcing the deal through a press release (link). Williams cleared waivers on Saturday, and is likely to debut Wednesday against the Celtics. The signing will cost Cleveland $908,431, bringing the team’s payroll to over $126.9MM.
According to Darren Rovell of ESPN, Williams will wear the number 31 (Twitter link). Williams discussed the signing with media outlets, saying “At the end of the day I felt like this was the best team for me. I felt like I would have a significant role here” (Source).
Our original story on the Cavs’ agreement with Williams can be found right here.
Andrew Bogut, Jose Calderon Finalize Buyouts
Andrew Bogut and Jose Calderon have completed their buyouts, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter links). Per Marc Stein of ESPN, neither player can sign with a team until clearing waivers Wednesday. While Bogut is likely to join the Cavs, he will hold talks with the Spurs, Rockets, and Celtics before reaching a decision (Twitter links).
Both the Lakers and Sixers have announced the transactions via press release. Now presumed to join the Warriors, Calderon and his agent released a statement commending the Lakers’ accommodation.
“I’m very appreciative of the Lakers doing this,” Mark Bartelstein told Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News. “This is something we had gone to them and talked about since Jose wasn’t playing much…I’m very appreciative of Magic [Johnson] doing this. Jose’s got a lot of basketball left in him and can play at a high level. But with the Lakers being in a rebuilding state, it didn’t make sense from a playing perspective.”
Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com discussed obstacles in Bogut’s path to Cleveland, noting Houston’s interest in the Australian big man. Following their signing of Isaiah Taylor, the Rockets should have more than $3MM of cap space to offer Bogut.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 2/27/17
Here are the D-League transactions for Monday:
- The Knicks have recalled Ron Baker, Marshall Plumlee, and Maurice Ndour from Westchester, the team announced via Twitter (link). Including the recently signed Chasson Randle, Jeff Hornacek will have four fresh bodies available for tonight’s match-up against the Raptors.
- The Thunder assigned Josh Huestis to the Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced on its official website (link). Huestis has made just one NBA appearance this season.
- The Cavs recalled Kay Felder from the Canton Charge, the team announced on its official website (link). Felder impressed in his most recent D-League assignment, scoring 30 points on 11-of-22 shooting against the Maine Red Claws.
- The Raptors assigned Bruno Caboclo to Raptors 905, the team announced via Twitter (link). Caboclo has averaged 9.9 points through 26 games with Raptors 905 this season.
Mavs Sign Quinn Cook To 10-Day Contract
FEBRUARY 26: The Mavericks have formally signed Cook to a 10-day deal, the team announced today in a press release. With Ben Bentil‘s signing also official, the club now has a full 15-man roster.
FEBRUARY 24: The Mavericks are expected to sign Quinn Cook to a 10-day contract, Chris Reichert of The Step Back reports. The development was foreshadowed by Eddie Sefko of Dallas News, who reported that Cook was on a list of possible 10-day contract candidates.
Cook, 23, has yet to make his NBA debut but excelled with the Canton Charge this season- averaging 26.1 points on 47.7% shooting through 35 games. The former Blue Devil signed a non-guaranteed contract with the Pelicans entering training camp, and was waived in October despite an impressive preseason.
It remains to be seen when Dallas will formally announce the signing.
Mavs Sign Ben Bentil To 10-Day Contract
FEBRUARY 26: The signing is official, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com.
FEBRUARY 24: The Mavericks have signed Ben Bentil to a 10-day contract, according to Marc Stein of ESPN (Twitter link). Bentil, 21, had recently rejoined the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the D-League after playing 11 games in China.
According to Stein, Dallas plans to have completed deals with Bentil and Quinn Cook by Sunday. Bentil, who can fill in at the 3 or 4, was selected over fellow D-League standouts Manny Harris and Pierre Jackson (Twitter links). Jackson had already signed two 10-day contracts with Dallas this year, and would have needed to be signed through the season.
This has been the second contract agreement with a D-League player today for Dallas, as the team also struck a deal with Cook to a 10-day contract this afternoon.
Warriors Expected To Release Briante Weber, Sign Jose Calderon
The Warriors are expected to sign Jose Calderon following Briante Weber‘s release, Anthony Slater of San Jose Mercury News reports (Twitter link). Coach Steve Kerr discussed the prospect of signing Calderon at Saturday’s postgame press conference.
“It’ll be a point guard,” Kerr told San Jose Mercury News. “We think we have something in place, but it’s not finalized. Got to wait until it’s official.”
Earlier today, Marc Stein of ESPN reported the Lakers’ intent to buy out Calderon’s contract. While the Rockets and Warriors emerged as early favorites to sign the 12th-year veteran, Golden State created a roster vacancy by releasing Weber. Calderon is in the final season of a four-year, $29MM contract.
Weber received two minutes of playing time in Saturday’s match-up with Brooklyn. The 24-year-old played sparingly with Golden State, scoring eight points over six games. Per Slater, the Hornets are a likely landing spot for Weber (Twitter link).
Pelicans Waive Omri Casspi, Sign Reggie Williams
February 25: The Pelicans have now signed Williams to a 10-day contract. The club formally announced the addition in a press release on their official website.
February 24: The Pelicans will waive Omri Casspi and use his roster spot to sign Reggie Williams, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (Twitter link). Casspi, acquired from Sacramento alongside DeMarcus Cousins, suffered a broken thumb in his team debut on Thursday.
Justin Verrier of ESPN initially reported Casspi would miss 4-to-6 weeks with the injury (Twitter link). According to Marc Stein of ESPN, the Pelicans felt Casspi’s absence would leave them short-handed on the wing in midst of a playoff hunt. The decision to cut Casspi wasn’t an easy one, as GM Dell Demps resisted the temptation to flip Casspi leading up to the deadline (Twitter links).
If Casspi doesn’t play another game in 2016/17, he’ll have finished the year averaging 6.1 points through a career-low 23 games. As Bobby Marks of The Vertical points out, the Pelicans are only responsible for $906K of Casspi’s salary, unless he’s claimed on waivers (Twitter link).
The 30-year-old Williams appeared in five games with the Pelicans in December, recording 25 points in that span. A veteran of five NBA teams, Williams averaged 18.2 points this season with the D-League’s Oklahoma City Blue. A lifetime 36.6% 3-point shooter, Williams will supplant Casspi as a long distance threat off New Orleans’ bench.