Nets, Sean Kilpatrick Close To Two-Year Deal
The Nets are closing in on a two-year contract with shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. The deal will include a guarantee for next season, sources added to Wojnarowski.
Kilpatrick, who is making $49,709 on his second 10-day deal, also played eight games with the Nuggets this season and 28 games with the Sixers’ D-League affiliate. Kilpatrick has reached double digits in five of his last six outings, including a trio of 19-point performances. He had 19 apiece against the Bucks and Sixers in the Nets’ last two games despite averaging just 22.5 minutes in those games. He’s shooting 50% from the field and 48.4% on 3-point tries in seven games this month.
Brooklyn has the ability to take on Kilpatrick without making any other roster moves. It has only 13 other contracts that run through season’s end and newfound financial leeway beneath the tax in the wake of buyouts with Joe Johnson and Andrea Bargnani.
Prior to this season, the 26-year-old Kilpatrick had only appeared in four NBA games, all with the Timberwolves last season.
The University of Cincinnati product recently told ESPN.com’s Mike Mazzeo that he was tired of trying to find an NBA home. “I’ve been living out of a suitcase I would say for the past six months. It’s crazy, man,” Kilpatrick said. “That’s why when you ask, ‘Do I want to be here?’ Like, I’m tired of living out of a suitcase.”
Nets Sign Henry Sims To 10-Day Deal
THURSDAY, 8:22am: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.
TUESDAY, 2:11pm: The Nets plan to sign Henry Sims to a 10-day contract, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The former Cavs and Sixers big man has been out of the NBA since the Suns cut him in the preseason, having joined the D-League affiliate of the Pistons this year. The contract will pay $57,726, with the Nets responsible for $55,722 while the league office picks up the rest for the three-year veteran.
Brooklyn already has Sean Kilpatrick on a 10-day contract, which expires at the end of Saturday, but he’s one of just 14 players on the Nets roster, so the team can make Sims its 15th man without offloading anybody. New Nets GM Sean Marks has said he wants to use 10-day contracts to discover players who can be a part of next season’s roster, and like Kilpatrick, Sims holds promise. The 25-year-old started 32 games for the Sixers last season, averaging 8.0 points and 4.9 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per contest across 73 appearances overall.
Sims put up 15.7 points and 8.9 rebounds in 30.0 minutes per game for D-League Grand Rapids this season after limited preseason court time with Phoenix. It was somewhat surprising to see him linger in free agency this summer before he signed his non-guaranteed training camp contract with the Suns in September, and while he drew attention as one of the top prospects in the D-League, it was just as perplexing to see him without an NBA job for most of the season.
Atlantic Notes: Durant, Vaulet, Roberts
The Celtics, who are among many teams dreaming of signing Kevin Durant this summer, would have taken the Texas product first overall in the 2007 draft if the pingpong balls had bounced their way, writes Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com. Instead, Portland landed the top pick and selected Ohio State center Greg Oden, with Durant falling to the Thunder at No. 2. “I was in the draft room, and they would have taken Durant,” said Austin Ainge, son of Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge. “I did have some inside information there.” Team co-owner Wyc Grousbeck has verified that claim, according to Forsberg.
Boston may be able to make its pitch to Durant more appealing by acquiring another high-level talent first. Forsberg suggested the Celtics may pursue Hawks free agent center/power forward Al Horford, who is also headed toward free agency and whom they reportedly targeted prior to last month’s trade deadline. Boston will have about $34MM in guaranteed salary for next season if it elects not to hang on to Amir Johnson and Jonas Jerebko. If the salary cap tops $90MM, as some estimates have suggested, the Celtics could have enough room for two elite free agents.
There’s more on the Atlantic Division:
- Durant, who will face the Celtics in Boston tonight for the first time since 2012, had plenty of good things to say about the city, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. “I like the city a lot,” Durant told reporters this morning. “It’s cold, but they love sports here. It’s a family atmosphere I feel when I walk around the city, so yeah, I like it a lot.”
- The Nets are hoping they might have “the next Manu Ginobili” in second-round pick Juan Pablo Vaulet, according to NetsDaily. Playing in Argentina, Vaulet missed 19 games with an early-season stress fracture in his ankle, but he is starting to show why Brooklyn and other observers were so high on him during the draft. That includes new Nets GM Sean Marks, who was watching Vaulet closely when he was still with the Spurs’ front office.
- The Raptors‘ D-League affiliate has announced that Ronald Roberts Jr. will miss the rest of the season with a right knee injury, tweets Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor. Three NBA teams had considered signing Roberts to a 10-day contract before the injury, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo (Twitter link).
And-Ones: Lakers, Kilpatrick, Meeks
Point guard D’Angelo Russell has star potential, but rival executives have doubts about power forward Julius Randle’s ceiling, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reports. Polling a dozen front office executives, Berger found that Russell is the more highly regarded of the Lakers’ duo. Randle, their 2014 lottery pick, is viewed more as a piece to the puzzle or an energy guy, Berger continues. It’s conceivable the Lakers deal one or both for a proven star, Berger adds, but a lot of the their decision-making this offseason is contingent on whether they keep their lottery pick. They must convey their pick to the Sixers if they fall out of the top three.
- Nets shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick, who has signed two 10-day contracts, hopes he can stick around for the remainder of the season and beyond, Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com writes. Kilpatrick is averaging 13.6 points in his last five games with the club. “I’ve been living out of a suitcase I would say for the past six months. It’s crazy, man,” Kilpatrick told Mazzeo. “That’s why when you ask, ‘Do I want to be here?’ Like, I’m tired of living out of a suitcase.”
- Shooting guard Jodie Meeks is back in uniform but will have a tough time cracking the Pistons rotation, according to David Mayo of MLive. Meeks broke his right foot in the team’s home opener and required a lengthy recovery. Detroit coach Stan Van Gundy prefers to utilize no more than nine players, and swingman Stanley Johnson and power forward Anthony Tolliver have recently returned to the rotation after recovering from injuries. “I can’t control that,” Meeks told Mayo. “So whenever my number’s called, I’ll be ready.”
- The Celtics recalled rookie power forward Jordan Mickey from their D-League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws, the team tweets. Mickey has made 11 appearances with Boston this season.
- The Thunder assigned small forward Josh Huestis to their D-League team, the Oklahoma City Blue, according to the Thunder’s website. Huestis has already started 19 games for the Blue this season, averaging 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds in 32.5 minutes per contest.
Atlantic Notes: Clarke, Turner, Kilpatrick, D-League
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge stayed away from the buyout market, grabbing D-League star Coty Clarke over some of the bigger names that were available, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Boston, after waiving little-used David Lee, hardly made any pursuit of Joe Johnson, Kevin Martin, Ty Lawson or any of the other veterans who hit the open market. Instead, Ainge opted for Clarke, who has yet to play after signing a 10-day contract Monday. “We thought Coty was the best guy available,” Ainge said. “He’s had a terrific year in Maine. He’s been with our organization all year. He knows our stuff and there’s a little bit of continuity there. There’s some carryover to what our players do in [Maine] and what our players do in Boston. So we thought it was the easiest transition. And we didn’t desperately need someone that was out there. Like, for example, David Lee was a terrific player, but we had too many guys at that position. So Coty is a little bit different in that he can shoot the 3-ball and switch and guard multiple positions.”
There’s more on the Celtics and the rest of the Atlantic Division:
- Ainge is hoping the team can reach a long-term deal to keep Evan Turner in Boston, Washburn writes in the same story. The impending free agent swingman has developed into a reliable reserve, averaging 10 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists while playing about 27 minutes per game. “As you know, I’m a fan of Evan, and I think he’s had a really good year,” Ainge said. “I think he’s had a good two years [with the Celtics]. He won a lot of games for us. Down the stretch of games, he’s a good guy to have on your team. He’s a versatile player. He plays multiple positions.”
- The Nets are happy with the production they’ve gotten from Sean Kilpatrick, who signed a second 10-day contract with the team Wednesday, according to NetsDaily. Part of the youth movement new GM Sean Marks has instituted, the 26-year-old shooting guard has averaged 9.4 points per game while shooting 50% from 3-point range during his time with Brooklyn.
- The Celtics recalled James Young from their D-League affiliate in Maine and sent Jordan Mickey to the Red Claws, the team tweeted today.
- The Raptors recalled Bruno Caboclo from Raptors 905 in the D-League, according to a tweet from the organization.
Atlantic Notes: Hollis-Jefferson, Turner, D-League
One bright spot during the Nets‘ dismal 2015/16 campaign was the early season play of rookie Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, who has been sidelined since December after undergoing surgery to repair his fractured right ankle. The initial estimate was that Hollis-Jefferson would miss three months of action and the player appears to be on schedule to make that prognosis a reality, though no firm date has been established for the swingman to return to game action yet, Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes. “Not [a rush] at all. Not at all. Whenever I’m ready and they call my name, that’s how it’ll go,” Hollis-Jefferson told reporters on Friday.
Interim coach Tony Brown was pleased with the rookie’s progress and was impressed with Hollis-Jefferson’s work ethic, Lewis relays. “Whenever that is. I’m not sure when that’s going to be, but he’s putting in the work and he’s obviously trying to get himself in better conditioning so that we can put him out there on the floor,” Brown said. “But he’s doing all the necessary work. Even though he hasn’t played in the games, he’s doing all the work to get himself ready. He’s doing what’s been asked of him. He’s come in and worked on his shot, he’s getting extra work in practice on the days that we do practice, and on the days that we don’t, he’s coming in.”
Here’s the latest regarding the teams of the Atlantic Division:
- Celtics coach Brad Stevens is a fan of Evan Turner and the versatility he brings to the team’s roster, Mike Petraglia of WEEI 93.7 FM relays. “I think Evan Turner’s been really good since he’s been here,” Stevens said. “The thing I’ve said all along is he’s a jack of all trades. He does a lot of good things for our team. The other thing is he just loves the game, and I really appreciate that about him. I appreciate a guy that every single day practice or game is really into it, really into improving, really into watching it, really into talking about it. It’s just important to him. He’s done a great job. I’m really happy for him. We really value what he brings to the table.” It remains to be seen whether the high praise from Stevens indicates that Boston plans to make a push to re-sign Turner, who’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer after earning $3,425,510 in 2015/16.
- The Raptors have recalled center Lucas Nogueira and combo guard Delon Wright from their D-League affiliate, the team announced. Bruno Caboclo remains on assignment with the Raptors 905.
And-Ones: Anderson, Howard, Ellis
Southeast Missouri State freshman Tony Anderson intends to enter the 2016 NBA Draft, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com reports. “This was the plan before I got to college,” Anderson told Goodman. “I don’t plan on playing college basketball again. I know it’s a rare situation, but my goal is to play in the NBA.” The league’s new rules allow underclassmen to again “test the waters” and take part in the NBA combine while still maintaining their college eligibility should they decide to withdraw from the draft. But it appears Anderson is set on leaving school, telling Goodman he has already withdrawn from classes and intends to hire an agent. The power forward did note that he hasn’t spoken with any potential representatives yet, the scribe adds. “I’m taking the process slow of getting an agent,” Anderson said. “I’m letting God lead me in that.”
If Anderson does hire an agent he won’t have the option to return to school, which could prove problematic if he goes undrafted in June, an outcome that is a distinct possibility, according to several NBA executives Goodman spoke with about the player. “He needs to go back to school,” one executive told Goodman. “With his numbers — on that team — he doesn’t have a chance.” The 18-year-old only notched 4.8 points and 2.3 rebounds in 14.9 minutes per contest this season.
Here’s more from around the league:
- If LeBron James can return to Cleveland and be embraced by the fans, the possibility exists that the same could happen for Dwight Howard in Orlando, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel posits. The scribe notes that a reunion, while improbable, has the potential to benefit both sides. Returning to a star-hungry Magic squad would allow Howard to be the primary option once again on offense, while Orlando would land itself an upper-tier player who could help attract other free agents, Schmitz adds. Howard’s firing of agent Dan Fegan could also help make a reunion happen, as Fegan’s relationship with the team was a contentious one, Schmitz also notes. The Rockets center is widely expected to turn down his player option and hit free agency this summer.
- The Mavericks believe they will be better off in the long run having allowed Monta Ellis to depart as a free agent and adding Wesley Matthews in his stead, despite Matthews not yet providing the same production Ellis did during his two-year stint in Dallas, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. Coach Rick Carlisle did note that he was pleased with Ellis’ play for the team and added that salary cap constraints factored heavily into the decision to not pursue the shooting guard last summer, Sefko relays.
- The Suns, Nets, Wizards and Pelicans all saw disabled player exceptions expire Thursday, the leaguewide deadline to use them. Phoenix’s was worth $5.464MM to offset Eric Bledsoe‘s injury, Brooklyn had one worth $3.1MM for Jarrett Jack, Washington’s came in at $2,806,750 for Martell Webster, and New Orleans had one for $1,691,012 because of Quincy Pondexter‘s injury.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Financial Impact Of Deadline, Buyouts: Atlantic
The effects of the trade deadline and buyout season are still being felt around the NBA as teams negotiate with new free agents and fill open roster spots. Hoops Rumors is taking a team-by-team look at the financial ramifications of all the movement. We examined the Southwest, Pacific, Central and Northwest divisions earlier, and we’ll continue with the Atlantic Division:
Boston Celtics
It became clear that the Celtics had no use for David Lee, and he didn’t want to spend another season lost on the bench, particularly with his free agency coming this summer. So, the sides engineered what’s been perhaps the most mutually beneficial divorce, at least in financial terms, of buyout season. Lee is averaging 19.6 minutes per game for the Mavericks on a deal that gives him $2,085,671, the prorated remainder of his new team’s room exception. It’s about five times more lucrative than what he could have earned on the standard prorated minimum deal that most players sign for this time of year.
Its size is helpful for the Celtics, too. Teams and players typically agree to waive the right of set off in buyout arrangements, but Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports indicates that didn’t take place here. So, according to the league’s formula for set off, the Celtics get to subtract half the difference between Lee’s new salary and the one-year veteran’s minimum from their remaining obligation to Lee. That’s $2,085,671 minus $845,059 divided by two, or $620,306. That, put together with the $458,575 Lee gave up in the buyout itself, means the Celtics reaped a $1,078,881 benefit from offloading a player who’d only appeared in three games since Christmas.
Boston used some of that savings on a 10-day contract for D-Leaguer Coty Clarke, but it only costs $30,888. They could re-sign him for the rest of the season and it would cost only $86,486, provided he’d take the rookie minimum, which would be expected.
Brooklyn Nets
It was no surprise to see the Nets fail to make a trade last month, since they hired a new GM just hours before the deadline in a strangely timed front office move reminiscent of when the Trail Blazers fired GM Kevin Pritchard just before the 2010 draft. New GM Sean Marks didn’t pull off a quick trade, but he swiftly struck a buyout with Andrea Bargnani and did the same with Joe Johnson shortly thereafter. The Bargnani negotiation was tricky because he had a player option for next season. He wound up forfeiting $323,599 of what had been a $1,362,897 salary for this season and $1,228,060 of his $1,551,659 player option. The combined total of what he gave up was equivalent to the original value of his option, meaning, in essence, he declined it. It’s not entirely clear why the sides didn’t simply arrange for Bargnani to have his full-season salary this year and wipe out the option year, a move that would have helped the Nets clear cap space for this summer’s free agents.
Regardless, Brooklyn added to its savings when Joe Johnson gave up an even $3MM, allowing the Nets to pocket $4,551,659, a savings that, added to the $16MM they reaped in their summer buyout with Deron Williams, underscored the sober financial decision-making of the Nets in the wake of their failed high-dollar ventures of years past. They spent a $99,418 pittance of that savings on two 10-day contracts for Sean Kilpatrick.
New York Knicks
The Knicks didn’t pull off a trade or buyout, but that didn’t stop them from making noise on the market the past couple of weeks. They invited all sorts of attention with their 10-day contract for Jimmer Fredette, but the former BYU’s enduring popularity from his college days does a much better job of explaining the hubbub than does the $55,722 the Knicks spent on his contract.
More interesting and impactful from a financial standpoint is the pending two-year deal with Tony Wroten. He’s been adamant about not signing a 10-day contract, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link), which helps to explain his absence from the NBA since the Sixers waived him on Christmas Eve. So, too, do apparent concerns about his injury that make it highly unlikely he’d actually play in a game for the Knicks this season even if he does indeed sign. Thus, New York seems to be poised to spend the prorated minimum of about $200K simply for the privilege of an up-close look at him to help them decide whether to keep him for next season, when the deal reportedly wouldn’t include a fully guaranteed salary. It’s by no means a staggering outlay, but it’s nonetheless one more way a large-market team like the Knicks can throw its financial weight around.
Philadelphia 76ers
The Sixers irked other teams with some of their moves during their unconventional rebuilding project, so it’s worth wondering if a degree of schadenfreude existed in front offices around the league when Philly essentially became an innocent victim in the voided Donatas Motiejunas trade. The deal caused them to lose JaKarr Sampson for nothing when they waived him to accommodate the arrival of Joel Anthony via trade. Sampson signed with the Nuggets while the trade remained in limbo, a period when the Sixers couldn’t waive Anthony to reopen the roster spot that had been Sampson’s because it wasn’t clear whether they’d be getting Anthony in the first place.
They weren’t going to keep Anthony anyway, but losing the ability to take on his $2.5MM cap hit and draw closer to the salary floor left the Sixers at the mercy of the buyout market. The presence of Anthony’s salary wouldn’t have taken the Sixers all the way to the $63MM floor, but it would have brought them to just $130,651 short, an amount the team easily could have made up with a prorated minimum contract for a free agent who’d go into Anthony’s roster spot, preferably Sampson.
The Sixers took a pass when Beno Udrih and his $2,170,465 salary were on waivers, as that would have left them $460,186 shy of the floor, a gap larger than they could make up with a prorated minimum-salary deal for someone else. Phoenix’s decision to waive Sonny Weems was a stroke of luck for the Sixers, who pounced with a claim on him and his $2.814MM salary. That put the Sixers over the salary floor. They’re obligated to pay Weems only a fraction of his $2.814MM, since the Suns already gave him the majority of his paychecks, even though his entire salary counts toward the floor.
The timing wasn’t perfect, since the Sixers had just signed Christian Wood to a 10-day contract worth $30,888 three days prior to the claim. So they had to waive a rookie they’re clearly fond of for a second time this season and eat the entire 10-day salary. Still, they avoided shelling out $2,599,763, which was the amount of the team’s shortfall beneath the cap before Weems claim, at the cost of just $660K, which is the amount of Weems’ salary that the Sixers will pay, according to Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors entered the deadline and buyout season on a roll, so it’s no surprise they were relatively inactive. The release of Anthony Bennett had more of a historical impact than a financial one given his status as the No. 1 overall pick less than three years ago. Bennett remains unsigned and seems unlikely to make more than a prorated minimum salary if he does join another NBA team, so his $947,276 salary remains glued to Toronto’s books with little hope of a set off. The Raptors added the prorated minimum of $245,177 for Jason Thompson, who’ll receive an additional $83,778 from the league because he is a seven-year veteran, but they’re still more than $2MM shy of the tax line. The team owes neither Thompson nor Bennett any money beyond the end of the season, so the Raptors haven’t meddled with their long-term flexibility.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Atlantic Notes: Anthony, Kilpatrick, Thompson
Knicks small forward Carmelo Anthony holds the real power in the organization thanks to the no-trade clause the team included in his contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of the Vertical on Yahoo Sports notes (video link). The no-trade clause is also why Anthony is likely to outlast team president Phil Jackson in New York, Wojnarowski believes, with the scribe also opining that the executive has failed to elevate the franchise far more than the small forward. Jackson’s biggest missteps as an executive are not ridding the organization of personnel who are negative influences on the overall culture and his steadfast insistence on the team running the triangle offense, according to Wojnarowski. Anthony’s comments about being a free agent recruiter this offseason indicate he doesn’t intend to waive his no-trade clause anytime soon, and even if he did, it wouldn’t be easy to deal the veteran because he would not accept a trade to a small-market team, severely limiting the Knicks’ options, Wojnarowski contends.
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick, whom the Nets signed today to a second 10-day contract, shows the promise necessary to become GM Sean Marks‘ first success as an executive, Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes. Marks previously expressed his desire to find players for next season via 10-day contracts, and Kilpatrick has delivered in his brief run with the team, averaging 9.4 points and shooting 41% from the field while connecting on 50% of his 3-pointers.
- Jason Thompson is finding his comfort zone with the Raptors, and the power forward praised his new teammates for helping make his midseason transition to a new organization a smooth one, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca relays. “It was good to just be back on the court, man. I appreciate these guys bringing me in with open arms, knowing that I’m not coming in here and trying to do too much. I’m just trying to fit in,” Thompson said. “Ever since I landed, teammates have been there to try and help me out and ease my way into the situation. It’s been really good so far.”
- Former Nets power forward Andrea Bargnani, whom the team waived as part of a buyout arrangement, has been turning down overseas offers, a hint that he’ll wait until next season to sign with a new team, NetsDaily relays (Twitter link). Bargnani reportedly received contract offers from the Italian club Olimpia Milano and Turkey’s Galatasaray, among others.
- The Celtics have recalled James Young from their D-League affiliate in Maine, the team announced.
Nets Sign Sean Kilpatrick To Second 10-Day
The Nets have signed Sean Kilpatrick to a second 10-day contract, the team announced via press release. The first expired overnight, as we noted minutes ago. The latest pact between Brooklyn and the 26-year-old shooting guard covers four games, against the Sixers (twice), Bucks and Bulls. It’ll cost $49,709.
The team could have waited to re-sign Kilpatrick until its next game, which isn’t until Friday, as many clubs do with 10-day signees, but the benefits of an immediate signing, which allows him to take part in practice and keeps him from slipping away to another team that might offer a better deal, apparently outweigh the alternative. He’s played a fairly prominent role in five Nets games so far, averaging 9.4 points in 16.6 minutes per contest, including a 19-point outburst Saturday against the Timberwolves. Perhaps most encouraging is his 3-point shooting, as he’s stuck nine of 18 attempts, carrying over the 42.6% form he displayed this season in 28 games for the Sixers D-League affiliate this season.
Brooklyn has no shortage of flexibility, with only 13 contracts that run through season’s end and newfound financial leeway beneath the tax in the wake of buyouts with Joe Johnson and Andrea Bargnani. The Nets still have an open roster spot even with Kilpatrick’s continued presence. NetsDaily hears new GM Sean Marks plans more moves soon, though it’s unclear if that applies directly to the roster in the wake of Tuesday’s hiring of assistant GM Trajan Langdon. In any case, the Nets and Kilpatrick will have to either commit to each other through season’s end or part ways at the end of their latest 10-day deal.