Mavs Sign John Jenkins
FRIDAY, 2:33pm: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.
MONDAY, 7:03pm: Unrestricted free agent guard John Jenkins has reached agreement on a three-year deal with the Mavs, reports RealGM’s Shams Charania (on Twitter). The contract is partially guaranteed in the final two seasons and is at minimum salaries, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com tweets.
The Hawks renounced their rights to Jenkins to clear cap space earlier this month. Jenkins was previously tied to the Spurs and Timberwolves. With Jenkins, the Mavs add a solid wing defender.
Jenkins, 24, a former first round pick, struggled for playing time in each of his three seasons in Atlanta, never averaging more than the 14.8 minutes per game he saw as a rookie in 2012/13. The Hawks declined their fourth-year option on his rookie scale contract this past fall, setting him up for unrestricted free agency this summer.
Kings Sign Quincy Acy
WEDNESDAY, 8:08pm: The deal is official, the Kings announced.
10:19pm: Acy’s deal calls for the minimum salary, notes former Nets executive Bobby Marks (Twitter link).
MONDAY, 6:52pm: Unrestricted free agent forward Quincy Acy has agreed to a two-year deal with the Kings, reports RealGM’s Shams Charania, who cites league sources (Twitter link). The second year has a player option, Charania adds.
The Magic, Pelicans, Hawks and Spurs were teams who had shown interest in Acy, who became an unrestricted free agent after the Knicks declined to extend the qualifying offer of $1.181MM to the forward. The big man should add some front-court depth.
Acy, in his best season in the league, averaged 5.9 points per game and 4.4 rebounds per game last year with the Knicks. Acy played for the Kings previously. He appeared in 56 games with Sacramento in the 2013/14 season.
Kings Sign Duje Dukan
WEDNESDAY, 8:00pm: The signing is official, the team announced.
MONDAY, 5:33pm: The Kings have agreed to a deal with undrafted Wisconsin forward Duje Dukan, reports RealGM’s Shams Charania, who cites league sources (Twitter link). Dukan’s deal with the Kings will contain guarantees, Charania adds in a full story, but it is not clear what they are yet.
Dukan, a big man who can create some floor spacing, averaged 4.7 points and 2.6 rebounds per game during the 2014/15 season. He has been playing in summer league with the Kings. Dukan was a solid shooter and ball-handler in college.
Wizards, Bradley Beal Talk Extension
JULY 22ND, 12:31pm: The Wizards and Beal’s camp have talked and continue to do so, but no deal is close, sources with knowledge of both sides tell Michael. Washington wants any long-term deal to include some kind of escape hatch for the team, while Beal, too, would want a chance to opt out if he were to take less than the max, Michael writes.
JULY 12TH, 7:24pm: The Wizards will begin serious talks with Bradley Beal, who is entering the final year of his rookie scale contract that pays him $4.7MM, regarding a contract extension, J. Michael of CSNWashington.com reports citing two sources with knowledge of the situation.
Beal’s agent Mark Bartelstein told Michael early on Sunday that actual negotiations with Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld will start as early as this upcoming week. “We had to get past that first nine or 10 days of free agency. With that chaotic period over, Ernie and I will talk and see where we are,” Bartelstein said.
It was reported in May that the Wizards have made it clear that they’re committed to paying Beal the maximum salary. Giving Beal the max would be a bold move for Washington because the deal would kick in just as the salary cap jumps to a projected $89MM for 2016/17. Michael reported back in October that the club was planning an extension for the promising shooting guard.
Raptors Sign Ronald Roberts
JULY 21ST, 10:54am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release. It’s a multiyear contract, according to the team. Thus, it would appear that it’s a two-year minimum-salary arrangement, since the Raptors used up their cap space and spent their room exception on Bismack Biyombo.
JULY 12TH, 7:18pm: The Raptors are finalizing a partially-guaranteed deal with forward Ronald Roberts, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com, who cites a source (Twitter link).
Roberts, 23, played for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippines last season after inking a deal in January. Prior to signing overseas, he played in the D-League after the Sixers released him. Pick tweets that Roberts averaged 23 points per game overseas.
He spent less than a week on Philadelphia’s NBA roster in December, having been signed to replace Jorge Gutierrez and let go to accommodate Furkan Aldemir. The Adam Pensack client was also with the Sixers during the preseason, and he played for Philly’s summer league team after going undrafted out of St. Joseph’s last summer.
Pacific Notes: Pierce, Clippers, Suns
Paul Pierce, a native of California, is happy to be back home after signing with the Clippers, but the Lakers would have never been an option, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe writes. Pierce signed a three-year deal for approximately $10MM.
“It’s a dream come true to be able to come home, finally,” Pierce said. “I grew up a Laker fan but playing on all the Boston Celtic teams . . . there’s no way I could go there — so this was the next best choice. And it’s always been a dream to play in front of my family and friends.”
Here’s more on the Clippers and Pacific Division:
- Despite reports that indicated a rift between Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan played a role in the center agreeing to sign with the Mavericks before ultimately re-signing with the Clippers, Paul said he’s delighted to have the big man back, Justin Verrier of ESPN.com writes. “DeAndre, he’s like my big little brother. We talk a lot more than people realize,” Paul said. “It doesn’t matter; the only thing that matters is we brought in [Pierce], who I’m probably the happiest about because of his championship pedigree, being that voice in our locker room. We brought in [Lance Stephenson], Wesley Johnson, brought Austin [Rivers] back, Josh Smith. Big summer for us.
- Suns president Lon Babby said re-signing Brandon Knight was the team’s most important move, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic tweets. Knight, who signed a five-year, $70MM contract with the Suns, said he did not talk to any other teams, Coro also tweets.
- Warriors coach Steve Kerr expects James McAdoo, who is expected to compete for a reserve spot with the Warriors in training camp in late September, to contribute next season, Monte Poole of CSNBayArea.com writes. McAdoo split time between the Warriors and D-League last season.
J.R. Smith To Meet With Cavs
Unrestricted free agent J.R. Smith will meet with the Cavs this week to talk about a new contract and is aware that there’s a decent chance he will make less than the $6.4MM he left on the table when he declined his player’s option with Cleveland in June, Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group reports.
Smith told Vardon he had discussions with the Blazers, but they did not amount to anything. Smith reiterated that he would like to come back to Cleveland. “I definitely want to come back to Cleveland,” Smith said. “The coaches, the team, everything about the situation, it’s perfect for me.”
The team was unhappy with Smith’s decision to opt out and started looking for a replacement, according to previous reports. At this point, most free agents, at least the top ones, have been signed and the list of teams with cap space is dwindling. Smith, 29, averaged 12.7 points per game and shot 39% from three-point range during the regular season with the Cavs after being acquired from the Knicks.
Eastern Notes: Jackson, Embiid, Raptors
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy, while appearing on SI.com’s Chris Mannix’s radio show (Twitter link), said the fear of Reggie Jackson signing a one-year qualifying offer played a big role in the five-year max contract Detroit offered. The five-year, $80MM deal was officially announced Monday. Jackson said the offseason moves the Pistons made prior to his agreement — Detroit added Ersan Ilyasova, Marcus Morris, Stanley Johnson and Aron Baynes — reinforced his decision, Brendan Savage of MLive.com writes.
“I knew this was the place I wanted to be,” Jackson said. “But definitely some of the pieces that we signed, that made it that much more sweeter.”
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News said on radio station 94-WIP (relayed by CSNPhilly.com) that Joel Embiid‘s navicular bone in his right foot was re-broken. The news comes one month after the Sixers announced that Embiid had suffered a setback and a little more than a week after it was revealed the center needed another surgery.
- Norman Powell, who the Raptors picked in the second round, will make $650,000 as a rookie, then $875,000 guaranteed in the second year and $1MM (not guaranteed) in the final year of a three-year contract, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
- The Raptors used the room exception to sign Bismack Biyombo, Pincus reports (Twitter link).
Pistons Re-Sign Reggie Jackson
JULY 20TH 4:57pm: The deal is official, the team announced in a press release.
JULY 5TH, 8:57pm: The Pistons will re-sign restricted free agent guard Reggie Jackson to a five-year, $80MM deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). ESPN’s Chris Broussard tweets that the deal does not include any options.
The guard was at the Pistons’ summer league opener on Saturday and that turned out to be a good sign, as coach/executive Stan Van Gundy suspected it would be. Van Gundy and GM Jeff Bower negotiated the deal with Jackson’s agent, Aaron Mintz of CAA, over the past 48 hours at the Orlando summer league, reports Wojnarowski in a full story. Jackson hadn’t pursued offer sheets on the market this summer, Wojnarowski adds. The deal also means the Pistons are confident that they can play Jackson and Brandon Jennings together next season, both on and off the ball, NBA.com’s David Aldridge tweets.
In our Free Agent Stock Watch Series, Dana Gauruder wrote about how Jackson emerged as one of the league’s top free agent targets after he was traded from the Thunder to the Pistons, who immediately installed him as their starting point guard. Jackson turned down an offer worth more than $12MM a year in extension talks with the Thunder last year because he wanted out of Oklahoma City and he wanted to be a starter. With his new deal, Jackson is looked at as a cornerstone for the Pistons.
Ty Lawson Gives Up Guarantee On 2016/17 Salary
As part of his trade to the Rockets, Ty Lawson has agreed to make the final season of his contract non-guaranteed, sources tell Grantland’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link). It’s quite a forfeit for Lawson because he had been fully guaranteed $13,213,482 for the 2016/17 season. Lawson’s new guarantee date is the day following the NBA Finals, or the day after the draft — whichever one is later — Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
The non-guaranteed season gives the Rockets some peace of mind with the troubled point guard. Lawson entered a 30-day residential treatment program on Saturday. His latest DUI-related arrest came Tuesday morning in Los Angeles. It was the former Nuggets guard’s second such arrest in six months.
Lawson is due to make more than $12.404MM this season. As Lowe suggests (via Twitter), Lawson likely expects to be able to reel in more money with the salary cap’s expected rise next season.