Heat Make Roster Moves, Add RJ Hampton On Two-Way Deal
The Heat have waived Jamaree Bouyea and Caleb Daniels in order to sign Jon Elmore and Cheick Diallo, the team announced in a press release. Elmore was immediately released to make room for RJ Hampton, who will take Bouyea’s two-way slot.
It’s probably not a coincidence that Miami had all these moves lined up to be finalized after the team didn’t trade for Damian Lillard. The longtime Trail Blazers star is surprisingly being sent to the Bucks in a three-team blockbuster.
A former first-round pick (24th overall in 2020), Hampton was sent to Orlando from Denver during his rookie season as part of the Aaron Gordon trade. Last fall, the Magic declined their fourth-year team option on the young guard, and his playing time was subsequently reduced.
Orlando wound up waiving Hampton after the February trade deadline and he caught on with the Pistons, but his two-year contract was only guaranteed for the remainder of 2022/23. Detroit released him in late June before his salary for ’23/24 became guaranteed, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Overall, Hampton averaged 6.4 PPG and 1.9 RPG on .430/.353/.750 shooting in 47 games (16.0 MPG) last season. He has appeared in a total of 162 games with the Nuggets, Magic and Pistons over his three NBA seasons.
Still just 22 years old, the Heat will take a flier on Hampton and see if they can turn him into a more consistent player. 2023/24 will be his final season of eligibility for a two-way contract. Hampton’s two-way deal will pay him $559,782 and will make him eligible to appear in up to 50 regular season contest.
As for Diallo, he signed an Exhibit 10 contract and will compete for a roster spot in training camp, reports Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (via Twitter). A native of Mali, Diallo holds five years of NBA experience with the Pelicans, Suns and Pistons, appearing in 183 regular season games with career averages of 5.2 PPG and 4.1 RPG from 2016-22.
Last season, Diallo played in Japan and Puerto Rico. The 27-year-old big man was the 33rd overall pick back in 2016.
As previously mentioned, Bouyea was on a two-way deal. It’s possible that he received a $75K partial guarantee as part of his contract — that’s the maximum protection a two-way player can have in ’23/24. Either way, that figure won’t count against the Heat’s salary cap. The 6’2″ point guard appeared in five NBA games as a rookie last season with Miami and Washington, both on 10-day deals.
Daniels and Elmore also received Exhibit 10 contracts, Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald confirms, which will make them each eligible for a bonus worth up to $75K if they spend at least 60 days with Miami’s NBA G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. Elmore, who holds some international experience, was a rotation regular for the Skyforce last season. Daniels, meanwhile, went undrafted out of Villanova in June.
As our tracker shows, Miami’s roster remains at the offseason maximum of 21 players under contract, with 12 players on guaranteed standard deals and all three two-way slots filled.
Wolves Sign Trevor Keels To Training Camp Deal
SEPTEMBER 26: Minnesota has officially signed Keels, according to RealGM’s transaction log.
SEPTEMBER 25: The Timberwolves plan to sign free agent guard Trevor Keels to a training camp contract, sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The 42nd pick of the 2022 draft after one college season at Duke, Keels spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Knicks, who gave him a qualifying offer in June to make him a restricted free agent. Keels accepted his QO this summer to return to New York on a two-way deal, but his stint only lasted a week, as he was waived to make room for Dylan Windler.
Keels, 20, only appeared in three games for the Knicks in 2022/23 for a total of eight minutes. He was a starter for their G League affiliate in Westchester, however, averaging 13.9 points, 3.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 steal in 25 regular season games (30.2 minutes). He posted a shooting line of .425/.355/.710.
While the terms of the contract were not disclosed, Keels’ agreement with Minnesota likely features an Exhibit 10 clause, which would entitle him to a bonus worth up to $75K if he spends at least 60 days with the team’s G League affiliate, the Iowa Wolves. However, his NBAGL rights are currently held by the Knicks, so Iowa will have to make a trade with the Westchester Knicks — New York’s affiliate — to acquire his returning player rights.
Exhibit 10 contracts can also be converted into two-way deals, and the Timberwolves currently have one two-way opening, though they also have a two-way qualifying offer out to RFA Matt Ryan.
Once Keels is officially under contract, the Timberwolves will have 19 players on their roster, as our tracker shows.
Warriors To Sign Rodney McGruder
The Warriors are signing free agent wing Rodney McGruder, sources tell Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). The veteran guard/forward will be competing for a standard roster spot in training camp, Charania adds.
McGruder, 32, is a seven-year NBA veteran, appearing in 317 regular season games with the Heat, Clippers and Pistons over that span. He has spent the past three seasons with Detroit.
McGruder’s on-court time has been limited in recent seasons — he appeared in 99 games for an average of 14.9 MPG during his Pistons tenure. However, he had solid production when he did play, averaging 5.5 PPG and 2.1 RPG on a .441/.412/.768 shooting line from 2020-23.
A former Kansas State Wildcat, McGruder was reportedly a highly respected locker-room leader for the Pistons, which is part of the reason why they kept bringing him back. Detroit renounced his rights this summer in order to maximize its cap space.
Slater previously reported the Warriors were prioritizing another wing (instead of a big man) to add to their roster ahead of training camp. McGruder will be part of that equation for now.
At a press conference on Monday, GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. said the team was still exploring its options with the final standard roster spots, which suggests McGruder might be on a non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed deal.
“We’re open and I think that’s a great position to be in where we have flexibility and can evaluate … We don’t have our sights set on one thing,” Dunleavy said, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews (Twitter link).
The Warriors currently have 13 players on standard contracts and a pair of players — Lester Quinones and Usman Garuba — on two-way deals. McGruder will fill the 14th spot once his deal is official.
Hawks Sign Chris Silva
The Hawks have signed free agent big man Chris Silva, the team announced in a press release.
Silva, 27, has appeared in 70 NBA games over four seasons with the Heat, Kings, Timberwolves and Mavericks, holding career averages of 2.8 PPG and 2.7 RPG in 7.6 MPG.
A 6’8″ power forward/center, Silva went undrafted out of South Carolina in 2019. He has spent most of his professional career with Miami, appearing in 64 games with the club.
Prior to 2022/23, Silva signed a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contract with the Hawks and was waived before the season started. That made him eligible for a bonus — on top of his G League salary — after he spent 60-plus days with Atlanta’s NBAGL affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks.
Silva signed a pair of 10-day deals with the Mavericks last season, marking his lone NBA action. His second 10-day deal with Dallas was cut short due to the addition of Justin Holiday, though Silva still received his full 10-day salary.
Atlanta currently has 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts and Silva is ineligible for a two-way deal. While the terms of his current agreement were not disclosed, he likely signed another Exhibit 10 contract to play for the Skyhawks again in 2023/24.
The Hawks now have 19 players on their roster, as our tracker shows.
Knicks Promote Gersson Rosas To Senior VP Of Basketball Operations
Knicks advisor Gersson Rosas has received a promotion, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Rosas now holds the title of senior vice president of basketball operations.
The news was expected, as a couple of reports had indicated that Rosas could be in line for a promotion following the departure of former general manager Scott Perry this summer.
Rosas has plenty of experience as an executive. He spent 16 years in the Rockets’ front office, had a three-month stint as GM of the Mavericks, and was the Timberwolves’ president of basketball operations for two years.
Minnesota unexpectedly fired Rosas right before the start of the 2021 preseason, reportedly due in part to concerns about his consensual relationship with a staff member, as well as his deteriorating partnership with Wolves executive VP of basketball operations Sachin Gupta.
The Colombian-born Rosas, 45, has been active in New York’s front office for quite a while. For example, last year Rosas was reportedly the point of contact in Donovan Mitchell trade negotiations with the Jazz. Mitchell was ultimately dealt to Cleveland instead.
Damian Lillard Rumors: Raptors, Little, Magic, Simmons
Multiple reporters have linked the Raptors to Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard over the past handful of days. Sources confirm to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca that Toronto is “very much in the mix” for the seven-time All-NBA guard.
Grange cautions that there’s still work to be done on completing a potential deal, but the two sides have made progress in negotiations.
In an appearance on the Five On The Floor podcast hosted by Ethan Skolnick and Greg Sylvander, Matt Moore of Action Network said the Raptors came close to trading for Lillard on Thursday, but downplayed their current interest.
“The Toronto stuff is just leveraging… I heard things were red hot on Thursday and again (Raptors vice chairman) Masai (Ujiri) walked away and then came back… I wouldn’t worry about the Raptors,” Moore said, per NBA Central (Twitter link).
However, Grange has heard differently, writing that from the information he has gathered, the Raptors are “very interested.”
As has been reported ad nauseam, Lillard hopes to land with the Heat, though Miami hadn’t been involved in trade talks with Portland as of a few days ago. The Magic are an under-the-radar team that could “make themselves heard” in the Lillard sweepstakes, sources tell Grange.
A Raptors deal centered around OG Anunoby, Gary Trent Jr., Thaddeus Young and draft picks would work from a financial standpoint, Grange observes. Toronto has also expressed interest in Blazers forward Nassir Little in the past, Grange notes.
That said, there are complications on a trade coming together. For starters, Lillard’s agent is Aaron Goodwin, who also represents DeMar DeRozan. Ujiri famously traded DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard in 2018, which led to Toronto’s first championship, but there was a fallout between Goodwin and Ujiri. Granges writes that the two men are believed to be on better terms now, but it’s still noteworthy.
Sam Amick of The Athletic also recently suggested Lillard might hold out if he were traded to the Raptors, writing that the 33-year-old “clearly doesn’t want to be” in Toronto. Raptors players tried to recruit Lillard a few years ago following Leonard’s departure, according to Grange, and were “instantly rebuffed.”
Still, Grange is skeptical Lillard would actually go the nuclear route, since it would tarnish his reputation and he would also lose a significant chunk of money. For example, when Ben Simmons held out for several months ahead of a trade in 2021/22, he lost about $20MM of his $33MM salary in the settlement with the Sixers, sources tell Grange. The NBA has also made clear with the player participation policy and awards tied to games played that it expects players to actually show up and perform, Grange notes.
While it’s easy to draw parallels between Toronto’s interest in Lillard and the team’s trade for Leonard, the situations are also markedly different. The Raptors had won 59 games in 2017/18 versus 41 last season — even with Lillard, the current group doesn’t seem like it’s close to contention. Lillard also has four years left on his contract and he’ll make a combined $121MM at ages 35 and 36, which carries far more risk than Leonard’s expiring deal did back in 2018.
The possible downside seems to outweigh the upside, which is why both Grange and Eric Koreen of The Athletic argue the Raptors should not trade for Lillard, even if they may have the assets to make it happen.
Jazz, Bulls, Hornets, Nets Interested In Tyler Herro
Add the Jazz to the list of teams that could be involved on the periphery of a Damian Lillard trade, writes Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
In particular, if the Trail Blazers eventually trade Lillard to the Heat, the Jazz, Bulls, Hornets and Nets are all thought to be interested in acquiring Tyler Herro in a multi-team trade, sources tell Fischer. Portland is reportedly unenthusiastic about Herro, in part because the team already has a trio of young guards in Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons.
League personnel also expect the Blazers to ask the Heat for Jaime Jaquez in a possible deal, according to Fischer. A small forward out of UCLA, Jaquez was selected 18th overall by Miami in June’s draft.
Brooklyn has long been considered a team with a level of interest in Herro. The other three teams are new possible landing spots for the 23-year-old, however, from what we’ve seen reported in recent months.
Trade talks for Lillard have picked up steam ahead of training camp, though a deal isn’t considered imminent. The Bulls and Raptors are reportedly among Lillard’s other suitors, despite the veteran guard making it clear (via his agent) that he wants to land in Miami.
Multiple sources tell Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports that the Pacers are another team that could potentially help facilitate a Lillard trade, along with the Suns.
Indiana is looking to move Buddy Hield after extension talks fizzled. It’s unclear where Hield would be headed in that scenario — or if he’d even be involved. Dallas, Philadelphia and Milwaukee are rumored to be interested in the veteran sharpshooter.
Raptors Considered Legitimate Suitor For Damian Lillard
The Heat have long been viewed as the frontrunner to land Damian Lillard, in large part because Miami is his preferred destination.
However, outside of the Heat, the Raptors are one of the top contenders – “if not the most viable threat” – to trade for the Trail Blazers star, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Fischer draws a comparison to the Donovan Mitchell deal last year, when the Knicks were long viewed as the favorite to land the All-NBA guard but the Cavaliers surprisingly traded for him instead.
A couple different reporters have cited the Raptors as a possible Lillard suitor, and Fischer suggests their interest is more than just cursory. Still, despite being involved in plenty of rumors over the past year, Toronto’s lack of actual moves has created skepticism around the league that the team will actually acquire Lillard, Fischer writes.
As for what Toronto would give up, OG Anunoby is a name worth watching, according to Fischer, but it’s unclear where the defensive stalwart would eventually land in a potential deal. Sources tell Fischer that Scottie Barnes is off limits and Pascal Siakam is unlikely to be involved, but first-rounder Gradey Dick could be included.
The Trail Blazers are focused on finding the “greatest possible return” for Lillard, sources tell Fischer, and have “strongly considered” the possibility of acquiring Suns center Deandre Ayton as part of a multi-team framework. Ayton’s potential involvement was first reported by John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 on Thursday night.
The Bulls are also interested in Lillard, Fischer confirms, but teams around the league — including Portland — aren’t excited about acquiring Zach LaVine, who has been available for a few months now, as Fischer has reported multiple times.
And-Ones: Extension Predictions, Overtime Elite, Hines, Streaming
Of the players eligible for rookie scale extensions in 2023, five have signed new contracts. What will happen with the remaining group?
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report explored that topic today, making predictions on which players will sign extensions and which won’t. The players who don’t sign extensions before the start of the 2023/24 regular season will be eligible for restricted free agency in the summer of 2024.
Let’s start with former No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman, who is now on the Pistons after being traded in February.
“No deal to be done,” sources told Pincus. “He has too much to prove unless he wants an extremely team-friendly extension. This one will wait.”
How about Magic guard Cole Anthony, who is a member of a crowded backcourt in Orlando?
“I think they move Anthony, maybe even before the season. But I don’t think they extend him,” one player agent said.
Ultimately, Pincus believes most of the rookie scale candidates will hit restricted free agency next summer, but a handful could get extensions and a few more have situations worth monitoring.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- The Overtime Elite league has finalized its rosters for the ’23/24 season, tweets Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. A total of 31 players on three teams will compete in OTE during the upcoming campaign. A number of prospects have been drafted from the upstart league over the past couple seasons, including Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson, twin brothers who were back-to-back lottery picks in June (Nos. 4 and 5, respectively).
- ESPN’s Dave McMenamin takes an in-depth look at the competitive summer pickup games at UCLA’s student center, which are run by former Bruins guard and current Sixers assistant Rico Hines. Multiple NBA players and teams are in attendance every year, McMenamin writes, including Warriors star Stephen Curry last offseason. “For me, it’s how can somebody get from being a two-way player or just a subpar player to then getting, ‘Man, he’s made it. He’s a real NBA player,'” Hines said. “That’s what it’s about for me.”
- Some NBA games will be streamed on Max this season, according to Richard Deitsch and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. The games will be part of an add-on package in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery Sports, and will cost $9.99 per month.
Windhorst Says Heat Aren’t “Desperate” For Damian Lillard
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported on Friday that trade talks for Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard have “intensified” but no deal is imminent. Wojnarowski also said the Heat — Lillard’s preferred landing spot — haven’t been involved in recent trade talks with Portland, though he did caution that could change at a moment’s notice.
In addition to confirming Wojnarowski’s report, his ESPN colleague Brian Windhorst says Miami hasn’t been acting like a team that’s prepared to go all-in to land Lillard.
“I don’t think the Heat are desperate at all to trade for Damian Lillard,” Windhorst said on NBA Today (YouTube link). “I think they want to trade for him, but I don’t think that it’s something that if they don’t get it done that it wrecks their season.
“They were in the Finals last year. They have young players that are getting better. They have assets that they can trade for other deals. And as we talked about earlier on the show, Dame Lillard isn’t potentially the only star player that could be on the market. Maybe not today, but certainly in the next six-to-12-to-18 months.
“I don’t think the Heat have ever approached it like it’s the be-all, end-all,” Windhorst added. “… Like Woj reported, and I have heard the same thing … I don’t think that the Heat and the Trail Blazers have been engaged in talks at all, on almost any level, for quite some time.
“That could change very quickly. Dame Lillard could be a member of the Heat in the short-term future. But I think that there has been a misjudgment in sort of the way it’s all viewed, that this is something that the Heat have absolutely got to get done, and I just don’t think they view it that way.”
For what it’s worth, when Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link) sent Windhorst’s explanation of the Heat’s thinking to an “involved source,” Jackson was told that it was “100 percent right.”