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Eastern Notes: Cherry, Pistons, Wittman

September 1st, 2015 at 8:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Unrestricted free agent Will Cherry has officially signed with the German club Alba Berlin, the team announced (translation by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). International journalist David Pick first reported the team’s interest and Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports was the first to relay that a signing was imminent. Cherry played in Lithuania last season after he was waived by the Cavaliers. The point guard saw action in eight games while with Cleveland and averaged 1.9 points, 1.0 assist and 0.8 steals in 8.6 minutes per contest.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Stan Van Gundy wanted to hire a shooting coach for his first season with the Pistons, but he didn’t get around to it until this summer, when he brought on Dave Hopla, who’s wasted no time getting to work, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Hopla is working with extension candidate Andre Drummond and others and using analytics to enhance their strokes, as Langlois chronicles.
  • Justise Winslow, who was selected No. 10 overall by the Heat in this year’s draft, blew away team executives during the predraft interview process, Zach Lowe of Grantland relays. The swingman was projected by a number of mock drafts to be a potential top five selection, but he surprisingly fell to Miami with the final pick in the top 10 this past June.
  • The Wizards will have to make a tough decision regarding whether or not coach Randy Wittman is the right man to continue leading the franchise on the court, J. Michael of CSNMid-Atlantic writes. Wittman, who owns a 137-158 record overall with Washington, is entering the second season of his three-year pact, and his contract is only partially guaranteed for the 2016/17 campaign, Michael notes.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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The Beat: Chris Haynes On The Cavs

September 1st, 2015 at 12:29pm CST by Chuck Myron
chrishaynes

Chris Haynes

Nobody knows NBA teams better than beat writers, save for those who draw paychecks with an NBA owner’s signature on them. The reporters who are with the teams they cover every day gain an intimate knowledge of the players, coaches and executives they write about and develop sources who help them break news and stay on top of rumors.

We at Hoops Rumors will be chatting with beat writers from around the league and sharing their responses to give you a better perspective on how and why teams make some of their most significant moves. Last time, we spoke with Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic about the Suns. Click here to see all of the previous editions of this series.

Today, we gain insight on the Cavaliers from Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. You can follow Chris on Twitter at @ChrisBHaynes, and click here to check out his stories on Cleveland.com.

Hoops Rumors: Just about everyone around the league seems to be wondering how Tristan Thompson‘s free agency ultimately gets resolved. What do you think Thompson’s ideal outcome is, and what do you think is the ideal outcome for the Cavs?

Chris Haynes: I’m not really sure what the outcome will be, but all I know is Rich Paul is asking for five years and $94MM and the Cavaliers are $14MM short of that figure. That’s Randy Moss-type separation. There’s limited to zero communication because of that tremendous gap. If Tristan takes the qualifying offer, according to Paul, his client is gone after the 2015/16 season. And if he takes a hike, the Cavaliers won’t have the resources to replace him. The Cavaliers believe they’ve presented a more-than-generous offer for a player who figures to be a backup for them. I suspect a long-term deal is reached closer to camp. Paul has shown he’s more than willing to play the waiting game.

Hoops Rumors: How much longer do you think LeBron James will carry on merely with year-to-year commitments to the Cavs before he finally signs another long-term deal?

Chris Haynes: LeBron is the only player capable of continuing the year-to-year deals due to his durability and lucrative off-the-court ventures. Flexibility is extremely important to him. The structure of his deal ensures the Cavaliers continue to place quality players around him to compete for championships year after year. He could go the long-term route next summer, but he’ll likely shoot for the summer of 2017 when the cap rises to well over $100MM. Again, no other player can go down this path.

Hoops Rumors: Do you think it’s more likely that the Cavs wait until next summer to use the $10,522,500 Brendan Haywood trade exception, when they might not be facing such a steep tax bill? Or do you think the Cavs feel a need to add as much talent as possible for this season and use the exception before the trade deadline in February?

Chris Haynes: It all depends on how they start the season. If they come out sputtering, regardless of tax implications, that exception will be shopped like crazy. There’s too much at stake. They can’t afford to be too patient with this roster. See answer to question No. 2 for one of the reasons. Ideally, the Cavaliers would love to just cruise through the regular season successfully and use that exception for the offseason. That Haywood chip is truly valuable, but it’s being viewed as merely an excellent insurance policy should things go south.

Hoops Rumors: You reported that Kyrie Irving will likely miss the start of the season, and that the distinct possibility exists that he’ll be out until January. Do you think the Cavs will make a move to bring in another point guard, or are they comfortable with the options they have?

Chris Haynes: I believe they’re just fine with who they have at the moment. The addition of Mo Williams was huge and Matthew Dellavedova is right back in his backup role. And now roster hopefuls in Jared Cunningham and undrafted rookie Quinn Cook have a shot to make the opening day roster as the team’s third point guard. To my knowledge the Cavaliers will work with what they have, believing they have enough to withstand Irving’s early absence.

Hoops Rumors: David Blatt had quite an introduction to the NBA last season. What do you think was the most significant lesson he learned over the course of the year?

Chris Haynes: Managing minutes. He admitted that he never had to focus on minute distribution too much overseas because those teams only played twice a week and three at the most. He improved in that area late in the season, but by then, it took its toll on the players. With a season under his belt, a revamped roster and an understanding of the regular season grind, I expect Blatt to be more cautious with his minute tally on his big guns.

Hoops Rumors: The same question probably applies to David Griffin, too, since he’s coming off his first full season as an NBA GM. What do you think was the most important lesson he gathered from that experience?

Chris Haynes: Probably patience. Not to say he had trouble with it, but when you start off a season struggling and LeBron James is on the roster, panic can set in and cause you to pursue changes prematurely. It seemed like everything went wrong the first couple of months and it was well-documented by several media outlets. His patience was tested as teams called to discuss numerous trade proposals, sensing the Cavaliers were in a vulnerable state. He listened, but ultimately stood pat until pulling off the blockbuster trades that acquired J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Timofey Mozgov in January. Griff learned on the fly of what it’s like to be the general manager of a LeBron James-team. It has its rewards, but it’s far from easy. It takes patience and he proved he has that.

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Latest On Tristan Thompson

August 31st, 2015 at 1:34pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Restricted free agent Tristan Thompson, who has reportedly rejected a five-year, $80MM contract offer from the Cavaliers, will not put pen to paper on a new pact unless it is a maximum salary deal, Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report (video link) relays (hat tip to Dan Feldman of ProBasketballTalk). Thompson’s agent, Rich Paul, has already made it clear to the Cavs’ front office that his client is prepared to sign his one-year qualifying offer worth $6,777,589 if a deal can’t be worked out between the two sides, Bucher notes.

By signing the qualifying offer, Thompson would set himself up to become an unrestricted free agent next Summer, just in time for the salary cap to increase significantly. One reason that Thompson would be willing to roll the dice and play out the 2015/16 campaign without the comfort and security of a long-term pact is that Paul believes he can wrangle a max deal out of the Raptors next offseason, Bucher adds. Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops had previously broached the possibility of Thompson, a Canadian native, joining the Raptors in 2016/17. One Eastern Conference GM had told Scotto that he thought Thompson would end up in Toronto this summer. Thompson is friends with Raptors signee Cory Joseph, who’s also from Toronto.

Raptors GM Masai Ujiri has stated that he considers it a priority to add Canadian born players to the team, which makes Thompson a natural target for the franchise. “We are studying it. I even considered last year hiring somebody to concentrate just on Canadian players and I think I’m going to go through with it because the growth of the game here is so big,” Ujiri said. “It’s the fit. We can maybe take our time and study it a little bit so it is the right fit and not do it just to do it. It’s going to come, there is no doubt in my mind. It’s an obligation that I think we have to fulfil. We are a Canadian team and I think to have Canadian players, I think will be phenomenal.”

Cleveland is in a difficult position regarding its negotiations with the forward, since LeBron James, also a client of Paul’s, has publicly stated that he wants Thompson to remain with the Cavs, and James is able to opt out of his contract next Summer. Thompson and the Cavs were reportedly close to an agreement on the first day of free agency, but talks stalled when Thompson reportedly asked for $85MM over five years, after it was reported that Draymond Green received that much from Golden State. Green’s actual deal was for $82MM, contrary to those initial leaked figures.

Thompson had also turned down a four-year, $52MM extension offer this past fall, betting on the odds that he could do better this summer, despite the Cavs adding Kevin Love to the roster prior to the start of the 2014/15 season. The Cavs do hold Thompson’s Bird rights, meaning that they could outbid other teams for the 24-year-old’s services next offseason.

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Sir’Dominic Pointer To Join Canton Charge

August 31st, 2015 at 10:05am CST by Eddie Scarito

Sir’Dominic Pointer, the No. 53 overall selection in the 2015 NBA Draft, will join the Canton Charge for the 2015/16 season, Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group reports. Canton is Cleveland’s one-to-one D-League affiliate. The 23-year-old will not attend training camp with the Cavs and instead will report to Canton once its training camp commences, Haynes’ source informs him.

It’s a wise move for the young guard, with the Cavs already possessing 13 players with fully guaranteed deals. It would be a long shot for Pointer to make the final cut and stick on the NBA roster for the regular season. Cleveland is reportedly intrigued with Pointer’s size (6’5″) and defensive skills, and the franchise sees him potentially developing into a lockdown defender who can guard multiple positions, according to Haynes. Bypassing the NBA for the D-League next season is viewed as the most logical path for both the player and the team given the Cavs’ perimeter depth and Pointer’s need to improve his shooting, the Northeast Ohio Media Group scribe adds.

Pointer averaged 13.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.9 steals, and 2.4 blocks as a senior for the Red Storm during the 2014/15 campaign. His career NCAA numbers are 8.3 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.5 SPG, and 1.3 BPG to accompany his shooting numbers of .477/.193/.681. In five summer league games for Cleveland’s squad he averaged 5.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.4 blocks and 1.0 steal in 18.4 minutes per game.

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Central Notes: Williams, Irving, Hilliard, Vaughn

August 28th, 2015 at 2:45pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers mostly stood pat this summer, but they spent the majority of their taxpayer’s mid-level exception on Mo Williams, and with Kyrie Irving‘s broken kneecap a threat to keep him out as late as January, that move looks wise, writes Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders in his NBA AM piece. The Cavs, with Williams in place, aren’t rushing Irving back, and that’s wise, considering a growing history of injuries for the former No. 1 overall pick, Greene adds. See more from around the Central Division:

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Eastern Notes: Kidd-Gilchrist, Beasley, Thompson

August 27th, 2015 at 6:50pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Steve Clifford believes the reasons were numerous for the Hornets to sign Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to his four-year, $52MM extension, but chief among them is Charlotte’s performance with him in the lineup as opposed to without, the coach said Wednesday, according to Steve Reed of The Associated Press. The Hornets went 62-55 when he played and 14-33 when he didn’t the last two season, Reed notes. “As much as anybody that we have had in the two years I’ve been here, he’s been the guy that we can’t play well without for any long period of time,” Clifford said.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Several executives around the league can envision Toronto native Tristan Thompson signing with the Raptors next summer if he signs his qualifying offer with the Cavaliers this year, reports Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops. Agent Rich Paul has said Thompson won’t re-sign with Cleveland in 2016 if he takes the qualifying offer. One Eastern Conference GM said he’d thought Thompson would end up in Toronto this summer. Thompson is friends with Raptors signee Cory Joseph, who’s also from Toronto, Scotto notes.
  • One Eastern Conference GM who spoke with Scotto estimated Thompson’s worth at $15MM a year, regardless of the expected spike in the salary cap over the next few years. That would put him beneath the max-level salaries he’s believed to be seeking in negotiations with the Cavs.
  • In a response to a reader question, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel opines that one reason the Heat haven’t re-signed Michael Beasley is that the team is looking to keep its 15th roster slot open for a developmental player who can be shuttled between the main club and the D-League. Miami currently has 12 fully guaranteed pacts on its roster

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Kyrie Irving Likely To Miss Start Of Season

August 27th, 2015 at 2:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

The distinct possibility exists that Kyrie Irving won’t play until January because of the left kneecap fracture he suffered in Game 1 of the Finals, a source told Chris Haynes of Cleveland.com. He’s unlikely to be ready for opening night even though his rehab remains on track, Haynes hears from multiple sources.

The Cavs spent more on Mo Williams than any other outside free agent this summer, signing him to a two-year deal that will pay him $2.1MM this season. He’ll ostensibly become the starter in Irving’s place, though Cleveland retained Matthew Dellavedova, who stepped in and performed admirably for Irving during the Finals, at the value of his qualifying offer. Iman Shumpert, who re-signed for four years and $40MM, has also seen time at the point, and LeBron James has plenty of experience as a ball-distributor, too.

Still, the Cavs face a challenge to replace Irving’s elite all-around offensive game, one that earned him a max extension that kicks in for this coming season. Cleveland has 13 fully guaranteed deals, leaving two openings for the regular season, though one of those is likely earmarked for Tristan Thompson, who lingers in restricted free agency. They have only $1.276MM on the taxpayer’s mid-level exception to give free agents more than the minimum salary, and because Irving’s injury isn’t thought to be season-ending, they don’t qualify for a disabled player exception. They do have a trade exception worth more than $10.5MM as a vestige of Brendan Haywood‘s contract. The team is encouraging a slow approach for Irving’s rehab, with the goal that he be 100% come the postseason, Haynes writes.

What do you think the Cavs should do, if anything, to offset the loss of Irving for the start of the season?

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Central Notes: Kaun, Henson, Landry, Dinwiddie

August 25th, 2015 at 11:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Former Cavaliers GM Danny Ferry knew patience would be necessary when he traded $300K in cash for the draft rights to Sasha Kaun in 2008, as he tells Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer. Still, Ferry had watched similar draft-and-stash prospects pay off when he was with the Spurs, and he sees Kaun, who’s finally coming to the Cavs, as a strong defender whose professional experience overseas has made him ready for the NBA.

“He will really help the Cavs,” Ferry said to Pluto. “He was a three-time Academic All-American at Kansas. He’s like a sponge. He soaks up everything the coaches tell him. The best thing he did was go and play for CSKA Moscow. It’s the elite level in Europe.”

Cleveland’s deal with Kaun reunites the center with Timofey Mozgov and coach David Blatt from the 2012 Russian Olympic team, Pluto notes. See more from around the Central Division:

  • The Bucks are ready to do a deal on a rookie scale extension for John Henson, but the sense from Henson’s camp is that they want to see what the market yields for other extension-eligible players, sources tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders for his NBA AM piece. We looked at Henson’s extension candidacy in depth earlier this month.
  • Recent Bucks signee Marcus Landry, a Milwaukee native, has long been a fan of the team, as he explains to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We still have so many things from Ray Allen and guys before Ray Allen,” Landry said. “We have a sign that my mom held onto. I have a pair of shoes I got from Ray Allen personally. We have a lot of memorabilia from coming to a Bucks game at a young age. It’s an overwhelming moment for me at times when I really sit back and think about it. It’s definitely going to be a great experience.”
  • The Pistons traded for Steve Blake after watching Spencer Dinwiddie struggle with turnovers in the summer league, but while a healthy Brandon Jennings would threaten to knock Dinwiddie further down the depth chart, last year’s 38th overall pick remains confident, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Dinwiddie is entering the final guaranteed season of his contract, one of 17 on the Pistons that includes a full guarantee for this year.
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Central Notes: Smith, Cavaliers, Pistons, Johnson

August 22nd, 2015 at 7:44pm CST by Arthur Hill

This week’s agreement with J.R. Smith was the last step for the Cavaliers in keeping together the core of last season’s Eastern Conference champs, writes Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer. Smith opted out of a $6.4MM deal for next season, against the advice of the team, before settling for a new contract that will pay him $5MM for 2015/16 with a $5MM player option for the following season. Pluto noted that the Cavs had “tremendous leverage” in negotiations once Smith failed to get a significant offer in free agency. In addition to bringing back Smith, Cleveland was able to re-sign LeBron James, James Jones and Matthew Dellavedova, while adding Mo Williams and Richard Jefferson. In addition, center Sasha Kaun struck a deal with the team today. Free agent Tristan Thompson has not reached an agreement, but is expected to remain in Cleveland for at least one more season.

There’s more news from the Central Division:

  • James averaged 36.1 minutes last season — the lowest total of his career — and Pluto writes in the same article that the Cavs hope to cut that figure even further. Smith and Jefferson will both help reduce his workload, Pluto says, and Williams should do the same for Kyrie Irving, who is rehabbing after surgery for a fractured kneecap.
  • Marcus Morris will likely win the Pistons‘ starting small forward job over rookie Stanley Johnson, according to David Mayo of MLive. Detroit acquired Morris from the Suns in a three-player trade last month. Mayo also points out that the addition of Ersan Ilyasova to go with holdover Anthony Tolliver gives the Pistons a three-point threat at the power forward position on both their starting and reserve units.
  • Rookie Stanley Johnson thinks the Pistons selected him because he has a personality similar to coach/executive Stan Van Gundy, writes John Niyo of The Detroit News. That includes a distaste for losing, which Johnson shares with his new coach. “You want to be around people that are like you,” said Johnson. “I don’t think Stan would draft me if he wasn’t looking for the same things.”
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Western Notes: Crawford, Dejean-Jones, Prince

August 22nd, 2015 at 3:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

There are reportedly multiple teams, including the Knicks, Heat, and Cavaliers, that are interested in swinging a deal with the Clippers to acquire sixth man Jamal Crawford. But Los Angeles isn’t currently motivated to give up Crawford without garnering a useful return, Dan Woike of The Orange County Register relays in a series of tweets. It wouldn’t be a wise move to deal Crawford, who is extremely valuable as a bench piece, for a backup caliber point guard or center, Woike opines. The Orange County Register scribe believes that the smarter move for the Clippers would be to hold onto Crawford and see how the team’s roster shakes out in training camp to better assess what the team’s needs are before making a decision.

Here’s what else is happening around the Western Conference:

  • The Pelicans dipped into their mid-level exception to sign undrafted shooting guard Bryce Dejean-Jones, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets. The pact includes a partial guarantee of $50K for the 2015/16 campaign, while the other two seasons of the deal are non-guaranteed, Pincus adds.
  • According to league sources, the Jazz have yet to contact other teams or free agents regarding adding another point guard in the wake of Dante Exum‘s season-ending knee injury, Andy Larsen of KSL.com relays (Twitter links). Utah appears content to begin the season with Trey Burke, Bryce Cotton, and Raul Neto, and will potentially look to acquire additional help later in the season if needed, Larsen adds. There were reports that the Jazz had interest in acquiring Garrett Temple from the Wizards, but Washington reportedly isn’t anxious to to move Temple, and he wouldn’t come cheaply if they were so inclined.
  • Tayshaun Prince‘s minimum salary arrangement with the Timberwolves for the 2015/16 season is fully guaranteed, Pincus tweets. The addition of Prince gives Minnesota 16 fully guaranteed pacts, according to our roster count for the team.
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