And-Ones: TV Deal, Okafor, Taylor, Powell
The NBA’s new TV deal has prompted the league to increase the amount of money that franchises may borrow from the league to $250MM apiece, an increase of greater than 40%, reports Daniel Kaplan of the SportsBusiness Journal. The league is seeking to add about $1.5 billion to its coffers for the purposes of lending, which would bring that reserve close to $4 billion, Kaplan also writes.
Here’s more from around the Association:
- The increase in the allowable debt level to $250MM for NBA teams is a sign of two things: the impact of the league’s $24 billion broadcast deal and the increasing valuations of teams, Nick Zobel of USA Today writes. The increase in the debt limit also makes purchases of franchises more attractive for potential owners because they are more readily able to secure financing from the league, notes Zobel.
- Josh Powell has officially joined the Rockets coaching staff, Mark Berman of Fox 26 tweets. Powell had turned down multiple offers to play overseas to pursue this opportunity, and he received a one-year deal from the team, Berman adds.
- There is strong support from NBA front office types across the board for Duke center Jahlil Okafor as the front-runner to become the No. 1 overall pick, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com writes in a chat with readers.
- Jeff Taylor‘s 24 game suspension for domestic violence isn’t setting a precedent for such cases, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). The league intends to handle these situations on a case-by-case basis, notes Stein.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
League Suspends Jeff Taylor 24 Games
The NBA has suspended Hornets forward Jeff Taylor for 24 games, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). This suspension is in response to Taylor pleading guilty on charges of domestic violence and malicious destruction of property. Taylor will be able to return to action no sooner than December 17th when the Hornets take on the Suns in Charlotte.
Taylor has already missed 11 games while the legal process played out so he will be mandated to miss another 13 contests before he is allowed to return, but he will be docked for a total of 24 games of pay, notes Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). All told this suspension will cost Taylor $199,689 of his $915,243 salary for the 2014/15 season.
The 25-year-old forward has spent two years in the NBA, both with Charlotte, after being selected in the second round of the 2012 NBA Draft. His career averages through 103 contests are 6.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in 20.7 minutes per game. His slash line is .412/.321/.673.
And-Ones: Kobe, Wolves, Extensions, D’Antoni
A work stoppage cost two months of the season the last time players and owners negotiated a new collective bargaining agreement, but union executive director Michele Roberts wants to avoid a repeat come 2017, as she tells Michael Lee of The Washington Post.
“I don’t want a lockout. I don’t want a strike. What I want is anything any reasonable person would want — and that is labor peace,” Roberts said. “That’s what I hope for, but I’ve got to be prepared for a lockout.”
The specter of the next labor negotiations will continue to grow as they creep closer and as Roberts continues to settle into her role. However, with Roberts and Adam Silver replacing Billy Hunter and David Stern in their respective roles on opposite sides, there’s reason to expect the talks will proceed differently this time around. Here’s more from around the NBA:
- Kobe Bryant reiterated to USA Today’s Sam Amick that he can’t envision playing past the end of his contract in 2015/16, and he was even more definitive in his declaration that he won’t ask for a trade, no matter how often the Lakers lose this season. “It’s not going to happen,” Bryant said. “It’s not going to happen. You go through the good times, you’ve got to go through the bad times.”
- Timberwolves executive/coach Flip Saunders has no plans to add another point guard in absence of Ricky Rubio, who’s out up to eight weeks with a sprained left ankle, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. Rookie Zach LaVine is starting in Rubio’s place while Mo Williams remains on the bench.
- Saunders and Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau are among many who believe the league should have an earlier deadline for rookie scale extensions so that negotiations don’t spill into the season, observes Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press.
- Mike D’Antoni has been hanging around Hornets practices and games and giving feedback to Charlotte coach Steve Clifford, notes Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. “I know this: He was in Charlotte for three days, and we had a great time. We talked basketball, like, two or three hours a day,” Clifford said. “He still has a real passion for coaching. I know that.”
- The Grizzlies have recalled rookies Jordan Adams and Jarnell Stokes from the D-League, the team announced via press release. Memphis assigned the pair on Saturday, in time for Adams to score 20 and Stokes to put up 13 points and 13 rebounds in a preseason game for the Iowa Energy.
Offseason In Review: Charlotte Hornets
Hoops Rumors is in the process of looking back at each team’s offseason, from the end of the playoffs in June right up until opening night. Trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more will be covered, as we examine the moves each franchise made over the last several months.
Signings
- Lance Stephenson: Three years, $27.405MM. Signed via cap room. Third year is team option.
- Marvin Williams: Two years, $14MM. Signed via cap room.
- Brian Roberts: Two years, $5.587MM. Signed via cap room.
- Jannero Pargo: One year, $1.448MM. Signed via cap room.
- Jason Maxiell: One year, $1.317MM. Signed via minimum salary exception. Non-guaranteed.
Extensions
Trades
- Acquired 2014 pick No. 26, 2014 pick No. 55, Miami’s 2019 second-round pick and cash from the Heat in exchange for 2014 pick No. 24.
- Acquired cash from the Thunder in exchange for 2014 pick No. 55.
- Acquired Scotty Hopson and cash from the Cavaliers in exchange for Brendan Haywood and the rights to Dwight Powell.
- Acquired cash from the Pelicans in exchange for Scotty Hopson.
Waiver Claims
- None
Draft Picks
- Noah Vonleh (Round 1, 9th overall). Signed via rookie exception to rookie scale contract.
- P.J. Hairston (Round 1, 26th overall). Signed via rookie exception to rookie scale contract.
- Dwight Powell (Round 2, 45th overall). Subsequently traded.
Camp Invitees
- Justin Cobbs
- Dallas Lauderdale
- Brian Qvale
Departing Players
Rookie Contract Option Decisions
- Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (fourth year, $6,331,404) — Exercised
- Cody Zeller (third year, $4,204,200) — Exercised
The Sixers made the 1977 Finals four years after they set the record for the league’s worst winning percentage in the 1972/73 season. The Hornets would have to reach the Finals in 2016 if they were to duplicate Philly’s feat after finishing with a winning percentage that was even worse in the lockout-shortened 2011/12 season. Such a turnaround will be difficult for Charlotte to pull off, but the Hornets made significant progress toward that end this past offseason.
It was the first for GM Rich Cho as the sole head of the front office after Rod Higgins resigned from his job as president of basketball operations in mid-June. Owner Michael Jordan had envisioned transferring some of Higgins’ responsibilities to Cho, but it’s clear that Jordan exerts his power in the recruiting department when necessary. The presence of His Airness in a pitch meeting with Lance Stephenson was key in convincing the volatile shooting guard to come to the Queen City. The Pacers turned off the Alberto Ebanks client with their hard-line negotiations, and the Mavs surprisingly watched the Rockets fail to match their offer sheet to Chandler Parsons, derailing the handshake agreement Dallas had with Stephenson. The Pistons, Bucks, Lakers and Bulls all reportedly spoke with the Stephenson camp, but the Hornets, with their MVP-turned-owner in tow, swooped in and closed on a deal in fairly short order.
It’s demonstrative of the sort of sway that Jordan still holds over the players who followed him into the NBA, as well as just how important the 2013 Al Jefferson signing was for the franchise. Jefferson’s three-year, $40.5MM deal seemed somewhat of an overpay last summer, but he lived up to his salary last season, and his presence, together with the team’s up-and-coming talent, is helping make the roster attractive to free agents. The Hornets also appeared to overpay for Gordon Hayward when they signed him to a maximum-salary offer sheet this summer, and though the Jazz matched, it still represented a coup of sorts for a team that was the laughingstock of the league such a short time ago. Jordan helped influence Hayward, too, and it seems that Jordan is finally learning how to leverage his accomplishments as a player to help the team that he owns.
Part of Jordan’s formula for ownership success involves the team’s former lottery picks, and none of them is more important to the Hornets than Kemba Walker. The team made that clear with its four-year, $48MM rookie scale extension for the point guard that keeps him from restricted free agency next summer, when a team could have inflated Walker’s price point the way the Hornets maximized Hayward’s. Hoops Rumors readers dubbed it the second most team-friendly among the nine rookie scale extensions signed around the league this summer, but $12MM is still a lot to pay for a point guard with a suspect shot who’s never won a playoff game. Still, Walker is improving as a ball-distributor, and his three-point accuracy has gone up each of his years in the league, including an increase to 39.3% so far in the small sample size of this season. In an NBA with few certainties about its salary structure in the years to come, with $24 billion of TV revenue poised to flood the league’s coffers, the Hornets achieved cost certainty with a promising 24-year-old, which is no insignificant accomplishment.
Charlotte also added to its stable of lottery picks with Noah Vonleh at No. 9 in this year’s draft, a pick the Hornets lucked into thanks to the Pistons’ misfortune following the 2012 Ben Gordon–Corey Maggette trade. Vonleh is raw, having just turned 19 over the summer, and he’s injured to start the season, but he was seemingly in contention to have been the first big man to come off the draft board this past June before slipping to Charlotte. He and Cody Zeller are around seemingly to help the Hornets move on from Jefferson, who can leave as soon as this summer if he opts out. Charlotte surely hopes Jefferson will stay a bit longer, but Cho and company are already planning ahead.
The Hayward offer sheet appeared to indirectly help the Hornets secure a power forward to pair with Jefferson for the time being. It may never be clear whether the Jazz would have pushed harder to re-sign Marvin Williams if they hadn’t needed to pay the max to match the Hayward offer sheet, but giving Utah a complication certainly didn’t hurt Charlotte’s efforts. The two-year length of Williams’ deal seems like a hint that it’s geared toward having Zeller or Vonleh eventually inherit his starting role, and it also allows Williams the chance to hit free agency again precisely when the new TV money is scheduled to start coming in.
Time will tell if Williams proves better at the four than Josh McRoberts, who enjoyed a career year last season, but McRoberts feels the organization didn’t fully embrace him in free agency this summer. Charlotte will surely miss his passing, and Jordan seemed to consider McRoberts a favorite, but continued improvement from Walker and the injection of Stephenson, another ball-handler, into the starting lineup could offset the loss.
Finding the right backup to Walker appeared to be another priority for the team, which signed Brian Roberts and re-signed Jannero Pargo, letting Ramon Sessions walk. The Hornets gave Roberts better money than Sessions wound up with from Sacramento much later in the summer, indicating that Charlotte’s choice was clear. Roberts doesn’t appear to possess the same ability to score that Sessions has shown, but he’s a better outside shooter, which fills a need for the Hornets. Pargo returns as a third point guard and stabilizing force.
The success of the offseason for the Hornets will in many ways come down to the way Stephenson performs, but even if he struggles and the Hornets fail to improve in the standings, the team demonstrated its presence as a legitimate destination for top-tier free agents. That doesn’t guarantee championships or even marquee signings, but it does indicate that the Hornets chapter of the franchise’s story will be much different from the Bobcats one.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Southeast Notes: McRoberts, Harris, Frye
The Wizards haven’t won a division title since 1978/79, but they’re atop the Southeast Division standings today with a 4-1 record. Of course, the season is only nine days old, but Washington is looking strong so far even in the absence of Bradley Beal. Here’s more on the Wizards’ rivals in the Southeast Division:
- Heat power forward Josh McRoberts said it was his intention to re-sign with Charlotte when he opted out of his contract to hit free agency last summer, observes Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Miami made a stronger recruiting effort at the start, even though Hornets owner Michael Jordan doubled back to meet with him later, McRoberts said, adding that while he felt that some within the Hornets organization, including coach Steve Clifford, wanted him back, he didn’t think everyone did. The Hornets didn’t offer him a deal similar to the four-year, $22.652MM contract he signed with the Heat until Miami already had its money on the table, sources tell Bonnell.
- Tobias Harris said the Magic never negotiated on an extension for him before the October 31st deadline, as Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel notes amid a piece examining the year ahead for the forward who’s poised for restricted free agency. GM Rob Hennigan said in September that he had spoken with the Harris camp, and multiple reports indicated that talks indeed took place, if only briefly. Perhaps Harris meant that the Magic didn’t budge from their initial proposals rather than that no discussions took place, though that’s just my speculation.
- A fondness for the city of Orlando, the direction of the Magic‘s youthful roster, a chance for more playing time and a recommendation from Grant Hill helped influence Channing Frye‘s decision to sign with the Magic, as Frye told Steve Aschburner of NBA.com. The presence of Harris, Frye’s cousin, didn’t hurt, either, as Aschburner examines.
Southeast Notes: Magic, Hawks, Cobbs
It was an active year for extensions around the league as a whole, but the only two Eastern Conference players to sign rookie scale extensions in October reside in the Southeast Division, where Nikola Vucevic and Kemba Walker each wound up with four-year, $48MM deals. The Cavs were active, too, but their extension with Kyrie Irving happened back in July and the Anderson Varejao extension isn’t of the rookie scale variety. Time will tell if Vucevic and Walker prove wise investments for a pair of clubs that had the NBA’s worst records just two seasons ago, but in the meantime, here’s more news from around the Southeast Division.
- The passage of the extension deadline left the Magic with some cap flexibility for next summer after they failed to reach a deal with Tobias Harris, but the free agent market doesn’t give them much chance to capitalize on it, as Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel examines.
- Hawks executive and prospective owner Dominique Wilkins doesn’t believe the team’s racism scandal will affect its ability to attract top free agent stars, as he tells USA Today correspondent Ray Glier. “I don’t buy that,” Wilkins said. “Do they want to come in with the negativity? Of course not. But this is a great town to live in. This franchise has been to the playoffs seven straight years. This is a healing process. If it’s genuine, guys will come.”
- Hornets training camp invitee Justin Cobbs is headed to play for Latvia’s VEF Riga, the team announced (Twitter link; translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). Cobbs spent camp with both the Hornets and Spain’s Laboral Kuxta in an unusual arrangement, but he failed to earn a spot with either club.
Hornets Notes: Walker, Taylor, Jefferson
The start of the season has gone just about as well as could be scripted for Kemba Walker and the Hornets, who reached a deal on a four-year, $48MM extension Tuesday and formally announced it today. In between, Walker hit the game-winning shot to give Charlotte an overtime victory Wednesday in its first regular season game since reclaiming the Hornets nickname. Here’s more from The Hive:
- Hornets GM Rich Cho didn’t hide his enthusiasm about the Walker extension, and Walker is excited, too, as Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer notes (Twitter links). “I would love to be here as long as I can,” Walker said. “I love the city of Charlotte.”
- Jeff Taylor received 18 months of probation and was ordered to pay $1,840 today after pleading guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor domestic assault and property destruction charges, reports Kevin Grasha of the Lansing State Journal. Taylor remains on paid leave from the Hornets, and Cho said today that the team will take its cues from the league, noting that the NBA has yet to finish its investigation of the matter, Bonnell observes (Twitter links).
- Al Jefferson can hit free agency in the summer if he turns down his $13.5MM player option, but Michael Jordan made it clear earlier this week that he has no intention of letting the center get away, as the owner told Bonnell. “Al is a straight shooter. We love him,” Jordan said. “He took a gamble on us. That obviously plays into our thinking.”
Hornets Sign Kemba Walker To Extension
Kemba Walker and the Hornets have officially signed a rookie-scale extension, the team acknowledged in a formal announcement. Marc Stein of ESPN.com first reported on Tuesday that the sides had agreed to terms on what is a four-year, $48MM deal. It contains no options or incentive clauses, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link) confirms. Earlier Tuesday, Hornets owner Michael Jordan made it known that he intended to work out a new deal with Walker.
“Today is a great day for the Charlotte Hornets,” Hornets GM Rich Cho said in the team’s statement. “To be able to retain such an important piece of the core we are building here in Charlotte is exciting. Kemba is an integral part of the culture we’re trying to create within our organization and we are excited that he will continue to be a part of our team for years to come.”
Walker, a Jeff Schwartz client, averaged 17.7 PPG, 6.1 APG, and 4.2 RPG in a career-high 35.8 minutes per contest last season. Walker’s scoring average was identical to his 2012/13 mark and he’s accustomed to being a leading scorer for Charlotte. However, not everyone sees him as a go-to player and his $12MM average annual salary is sure to draw some criticism. About a month ago, Zach Lowe of Grantland wrote that he has heard from executives around the league that the the UConn product is not a “championship point guard.” Walker got his first taste of NBA postseason basketball last season and Charlotte has a good shot at a return trip this year.
As Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors pointed out earlier, the Hornets had about $22.7MM in guaranteed salary on the books for 2015/16 prior to the Walker agreement, though that number increases when factoring in a $13.5MM player option for Al Jefferson, $10MM+ in rookie scale team options that the team has since exercised, and a $6MM player option for Gerald Henderson. With that in mind, the new deal for Walker doesn’t leave the Hornets much room to add an impact free agent next summer. However, if the Hornets didn’t lock up Walker to a new deal before then, they would have risked seeing two top players — Jefferson and Walker — potentially hit the open market.
Even though Walker’s scoring average stayed the same from 2012/13 to 2013/14, his shooting percentage dipped from 42.3% to 39.3% as his uptick in long two-point attempts cost him some accuracy. That slide was also reflected in his PER as it declined from 18.8 in 2012/13 to 16.8 this past season. Walker’s PER score in 2013/14 put him 17th amongst all qualified point guards.
Kyrie Irving, Kenneth Faried, Markieff Morris, and Marcus Morris have also taken advantage of the extension window that opened on July 1st.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
And-Ones: Hornets, Celtics, D-League
The contracts of Alonzo Gee (Nuggets) and James Ennis (Heat) both became fully guaranteed today, and a partial guarantee of $250K has kicked in for Dewayne Dedmon (Magic), since both Dedmon and Ennis were on their teams’ respective rosters come opening night, and Gee was still on his team’s roster past October 29th, as is shown on our schedule of contract guarantee dates.
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Celtics look to improve upon their 25-win season of a year ago, and began their quest at home tonight with a 121-105 victory over the Nets. In his season preview, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com believes Boston’s outlook has improved, and Rajon Rondo will have a strong season as he looks to silence his doubters and maximize his value heading into next summer.
- In a separate article, Blakely looks at the top five players who changed teams and donned new uniforms this summer. Blakely also examined the five best rookies making their debuts this season, including Elfrid Payton, Jabari Parker, and Marcus Smart.
- Hornets owner Michael Jordan believes that the addition of Lance Stephenson gives his team a legitimate shot to contend in the Eastern Conference, the Associated Press reports. Jordan especially likes Stephenson’s “fight,” saying, “One of the reasons why I admire his game is he takes on challenges. For us to get any place in the East, we need someone to challenge LeBron. He challenged LeBron.”
- Former Sixers coach Larry Brown slammed the organization’s rebuilding through “tanking” plan, John N. Mitchell of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I hate what’s going on in Philly,” Brown said. “They don’t have a basketball person in the organization. It makes me sick to my stomach.”
- Malcolm Turner of Wasserman Media Group has been hired as the president of the NBA D-League, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link).
- Roger Mason has been hired as the NBPA’s director of player relations, Howard Beck of Bleacher Report tweets. It is unclear if accepting this position would prevent Mason from continuing his playing career. The 34-year-old Mason made 25 appearances for the Heat last season, averaging 3.0 PPG in 10.4 minutes-per-game.
Lakers Notes: Randle, Bryant, Roster
The Lakers have already suffered some significant blows to their roster with both Steve Nash and Julius Randle being lost for the season with injuries. Even if the franchise is approved for Disabled Player Exceptions, they will still have two of their maximum 15 roster spots occupied by injured personnel. If Los Angeles loses another player to injury the team could apply for a temporary hardship increase that would allow the franchise to carry up to 16 players, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter links). This scenario could help the team maintain its depth in the wake of another player loss, but once one of the injured players was able to return to action, the 15 player max would resume, Pincus notes.
Here’s more from Los Angeles:
- The only bright side to the Lakers losing Randle for the season is that the team will be in contention for a top-five lottery pick next summer, J.A. Adande of ESPN.com opines. Los Angeles’ 2015 first-rounder is owed to the Suns but is protected for picks one-through-five, notes Adande.
- The Lakers should take a page out of the Sixers’ playbook and try to hit bottom this season, Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) writes. This includes trying to convince Kobe Bryant to waive his no trade clause and dealing the future Hall-of Famer, Ford opines. Ford lists the Knicks, Nets, Mavs, and Hornets as teams that would potentially be interested in obtaining Bryant.
- The loss of Randle will hurt the Lakers much more than losing Nash, Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders opines. Los Angeles wasn’t expecting much from Nash, and had Jeremy Lin and Ronnie Price on board to make up for any time that Nash would have missed. With Randle, this season was important for his development, and the team was planning to run a large portion of their offense through him, Koutroupis notes.
- The Lakers and Bryant have faced criticism for the two year, $48.5MM contract extension he signed back in 2013. Hornets owner and former NBA great Michael Jordan defended Bryant for inking the pact, DeAntae Prince of The Sporting News writes. “Can I criticize him for maximizing his opportunity from a financial standpoint? No,” Jordan said. “Does his decision have an effect on how the team will structure certain things? Maybe.”