Grizzlies Claim Josh Akognon Off Waivers
The Grizzlies have claimed Josh Akognon off waivers from the Mavericks, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Memphis assumes Akognon's minimum-salary contract as a result. Dallas decided this weekend to let go of Akognon to accomodate their deal with free agent Monta Ellis, whose three-year, $25.08MM deal became official yesterday, Stein also tweets. The team also has an outstanding agreement with Wayne Ellington, but presumably that will become official soon, too.
The same cap crunch also forced the team to waive Bernard James, but he went unclaimed and the Mavs re-signed him. Akognon originally joined the Mavs on a 10-day contract in April after putting up impressive scoring numbers in China. He put up 29.0 points per game this past season in the Chinese league and 28.2 in 2011/12, and while he was drawing heavy interest from China following the Mavs' decision to waive him, it appears he'll get his wish to remain in the NBA.
The Alpha Basketball Agency client was the Mavs' leading scorer in the Las Vegas Summer League at 17.5 PPG, and he shot 39.1% on 46 total attempts from behind the arc. The 5'11" guard may provide another outside shooter for the Grizzlies in case they miss out on their pursuit of Mike Miller. The claim probably won't affect the team's plans to chase Miller or another free agent, since the Grizzlies can absorb him using the minimum-salary exception. Indeed, Stein tweets that Akognon's pickup doesn't affect their pursuit of the former Heat sharpshooter, whom Memphis is pushing hard to sign.
Mavericks Sign Ricky Ledo
The Mavericks have signed 43rd overall pick Ricky Ledo, the team announced via press release. Dallas acquired the rights to Ledo from the Bucks, via the Sixers, as our rundown of offseason trades shows.
Ledo attended Providence University, but he never played for their team after the NCAA ruled him academically ineligible. Still, the shooting guard impressed teams during pre-draft workouts. He averaged 7.3 points and 3.8 rebounds this month on the Mavs summer league team.
Agent Seth Cohen of the Verus Management Team first tweeted news of the deal this afternoon. The Mavs haven't yet reached an agreement with their other draft pick, 18th overall selection Shane Larkin, who suffered a broken ankle in summer league.
Southwest Rumors: Neal, Jackson, Ellis, Dalembert
Yesterday, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported that the Spurs were in the "process of" withdrawing their qualifying offer to Gary Neal. The RealGM transactions log indicates that the move indeed took place, and if that's so, the timing is key. Yesterday was the deadline for teams to unilaterally withdraw qualifying offers without having to get the player's consent. Teams that pull QOs after the deadline also automatically lose Bird rights to those players. So, the Spurs have not only saved themselves the trouble of getting Neal's permission by presumably withdrawing his QO yesterday, but they've also given themselves more flexibility to re-sign him, if they choose. Here's more on Neal and other notes involving Southwest Division clubs:
- It's been a couple weeks since Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times mentioned that the Bucks were among the teams interested in Gary Neal, but today Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio indicates that Milwaukee remains in the running (Twitter link).
- It appears that this year's 42nd overall pick will play in France. Pierre Jackson, whom the Pelicans acquired as part of the Jrue Holiday/Nerlens Noel trade, has agreed to sign with ASVEL Villeurbanne of France, according to Gabriel Pantel-Jouve of Catch-and-Shoot (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando).
- Now that the Mavs' signings of Monta Ellis and Samuel Dalembert are official, Mark Deeks has provided contract details for them on the Mavs page at ShamSports. Ellis has a three-year, $25.08MM deal with a player option in the final season, and Dalembert gets two years and $7,568,030, with only a $1.8MM guarantee in year two. Dalembert also has a 15% trade kicker.
- Chandler Parsons believes that he had a critical influence on Dwight Howard's decision to sign with the Rockets, as the big man's new teammate tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
Southwest Notes: Mavericks, Miller, Rockets, Grizzlies
Monta Ellis may not be the prized free agent that Mavericks fans wanted this summer, but he already has a spot in club history, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. “Possibly the fastest player ever to wear a Mavs uniform,” coach Rick Carlisle said via text message. “Scores, makes plays and is great in transition. We consider him a unique talent and look forward to integrating him into our team.” Here’s more out of the Southwest..
- The Rockets are inching up towards the Grizzlies and Thunder in the Mike Miller sweepstakes, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
- Brandan Wright decided to re-sign in Dallas in part because he wants to keep up the momentum that he has built with the Mavs, MacMahon writes. Wright will return to the Mavs on a two-year, $10MM deal that could pay an additional $1.1MM in incentives.
- Chandler Parsons is confident that the Rockets can contend after adding Dwight Howard in the middle and believes that the team is a perfect fit for the big man, writes Jabari Davis of HoopsWorld.
- Grizzlies guard Mike Conley is working hard to recruit Miller to Memphis and he went so far as to call the veteran and offer “golf on [him] every day”, tweets Stein.
Greg Oden Decision Expected Next Week
6:44pm: Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, Kings GM Pete D'Alessandro, and representatives from the Pelicans watched Oden workout today, sources close to the situation told Jeff Goodman and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Oden will put his skills on display again Thursday for Hawks officials before a private meeting with the Pelicans later this week in Las Vegas. One source close to the process told the ESPN.com duo that teams in the Oden hunt are still in the information-gathering stage and no offer has been made yet.
4:14pm: Greg Oden is expected to make a decision next week on where he'll sign for the coming season, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. According to Spears (via Twitter), the former first overall pick will be choosing from a list of suitors that includes the Heat, Spurs, Pelicans, Kings, Mavericks, and Hawks.
Oden was said to be working out today for a group of teams, including the Pelicans, Kings, and Heat. New Orleans' interest in Oden has seemingly ramped up lately, as multiple reports have indicated the team plans to make him an offer in the $3MM range. It appears as if the Pelicans are out of cap room, so perhaps the offer would be for the $2.65MM room exception, which could be used to hand out about $5.42MM over two years.
Despite the Pelicans' interest, reports continue to suggest that the Heat and Spurs remain the frontrunners for Oden. San Antonio has already used its mid-level exception, and doesn't have its bi-annual exception available this summer, so anything more than a minimum-salary offer is unlikely. Miami, on the other hand, could offer part or all of its taxpayer mid-level exception.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Mavericks Sign Monta Ellis
JULY 23RD, 2:45pm: The Mavericks have finally made the Ellis signing official, announcing the deal today in a press release.
JULY 12TH, 3:36pm: The deal is expected to be in the $28MM range, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today.
2:47pm: The Mavericks and Monta Ellis have reached an agreement that will land the free agent guard in Dallas, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein. Ellis will receive a three-year deal that figures to be worth between $25-30MM overall, depending on how the Mavs' cap situation shakes out.
It was just two days ago that GM Donnie Nelson told reporters that the Mavs likely wouldn't be too involved in the Ellis sweepstakes, but it appears that was just a smoke screen. The Kings, Hawks, and Bobcats were cited as other potential suitors for the free agent guard.
Ellis reportedly parted ways with longtime agent Jeff Fried recently, after being disappointed by the lack of interest he was receiving on the open market. Dan Fegan of Relativity Sports was expected to replace Fried as Ellis' rep, though players typically have to wait 15 days before hiring a new agent, so it's not clear if Fegan negotiated the deal with the Mavs.
Even if Ellis receives $30MM from the Mavs for three years, he'll be earning a lesser annual salary than he could have received from the Bucks. The 27-year-old turned down an $11MM player option to hit the open market, and reportedly turned down a three-year, $36MM extension offer from Milwaukee last season.
According to Stein, the Mavericks continue to negotiate with Samuel Dalembert, and could pursue other bigs as well, but Dallas may be capped out after Ellis' deal, leaving just the $2.65MM room exception to offer non-minimum players.
Western Notes: Wolves, Gomes, Mavs, Clark
Grantland's Zach Lowe wrote earlier today that there's about a "99.9999%" chance that the Timberwolves work out a deal to bring back Nikola Pekovic. Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune also suggests that it's just a matter of time, tweeting that he thinks a deal will be completed next week. Whether or not the Wolves re-sign Pekovic, and it seems like a lock that they will, don't expect the team to have any interest in Greg Oden, says Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (via Twitter). According to Wolfson, David Kahn had interest in Oden, but Flip Saunders is passing on the former first overall pick.
Here are a few more items from out of the Western Conference:
- Ryan Gomes, who says he hopes to be a coach one day, has worked out for the Thunder and Spurs as he weighs his options for the upcoming season, he tells Nick Greene of the Hartford Courant.
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban appeared on KESN-FM in Dallas to follow up on his comments about the team potentially being better off without Dwight Howard, and the Dallas Morning News has the details.
- Undrafted free agent guard Ian Clark put up 33 points in the Warriors' championship win at the Las Vegas Summer League, and is drawing interest from NBA teams, as Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today writes. Zillgitt names the Warriors, Trail Blazers, and Jazz as clubs eyeing Clark.
- A strong Summer League performance also has NBA teams eyeing Dionte Christmas, according to Shams Charania of RealGM.com. The Suns are among the clubs with interest.
Lowe’s Latest: Clippers, Gay, Pekovic, Heat
In his latest lengthy piece for Grantland.com, Zach Lowe evaluates the offseason so far for all 30 NBA teams, writing that the Rockets stand alone as the only club to significantly improve without sacrificing future assets or flexibility. It's worth reading Lowe's entire piece, especially if you're curious to find out what he had to say about your favorite team. But here are a few notable tidbits from the story:
- The Clippers recognize that even after adding free agents Ryan Hollins and Byron Mullens, the team needs another big man, and will likely sign one soon.
- Lowe notes that the Raptors could be in position to clear a chunk of cap space next summer, when Rudy Gay's and Kyle Lowry's contracts could expire. According to Lowe, the Raps privately expressed a belief when they traded for Gay last season that he'd likely opt out next summer in search of a longer-term deal, rather than exercising his 2014/15 player option.
- While the Jazz have taken some criticism for letting Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap walk rather than trying to flip them at the trade deadline for something of value, Lowe says Utah would have been willing to move either player last February if the club could have landed a first-round pick and avoided taking on long-term money.
- There's some confusion among rival executives about why the Lakers are bothering with players like Chris Kaman and Nick Young, rather than going into full-blown tank mode, says Lowe.
- Among the executives Lowe spoke to in Las Vegas, a couple of the most common questions involved what the Mavericks' and Bucks' plans are, since neither team seems to have a clear-cut direction.
- The Timberwolves are a "99.9999% bet" to re-sign Nikola Pekovic at a fair number, according to Lowe.
- Don't expect the Heat to be passive about LeBron James' potential 2014 free agency, says Lowe, adding that Pat Riley and the front office "won't promise him the same aging and top-heavy roster."
- The Spurs are likely one of the teams unhappy about Andrei Kirilenko's new deal with the Nets, since San Antonio tried to acquire the Russian via sign-and-trade after being told he wouldn't sign for mid-level money.
Southwest Notes: Amundson, Mavs, Leuer
Here's a look at the Southwest Division..
- Former Pelicans forward Louis Amundson is talking to several teams, but he doesn't have an offer yet, a source tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com (via Twitter). Amundson had his rights renounced by New Orleans earlier this month. The UNLV product averaged 1.9 PPG in 9.5 minutes per contest for three teams last season.
- Mark Cuban's hiring of Gersson Rosas as the team's next GM is more than a change in the Mavericks' organization, it's an experiment in the world of bio-analytics, writes Jeff Caplan of NBA.com.
- ShamSports has the exact year-by-year breakdown on Jon Leuer's contract with the Grizzlies. The big man will make $900K in year one, $968K in 2014/15, and $1.035MM (non-guaranteed) in the final season.
Free Agent Rumors: Miller, Oden, Camby, Blair
Free agent rumors and rumblings have slowed down since the start of July, as most of the bigger names have come off the board. Still, even though not a ton of teams have significant cap space or exception money remaining, plenty of intriguing players remain on the market. We're entering the point in the summer where teams are hunting for bargains and value signings, so here's the latest on a few players who could fit that bill:
- Mike Miller is meeting face-to-face for a second time with both the Thunder and Grizzlies, who appear to be the two favorites for him, says Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Rockets and Nuggets aren't out of the running yet, but Miller's choice will likely come down to OKC or Memphis (Twitter links).
- The Heat, Pelicans, and Kings will observe Greg Oden in person as he works out this week, according to Stein and Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com, though Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports says (via Twitter) it'll just be the Pelicans and Kings. The Spurs and Mavericks are still in the hunt as well, with Miami and San Antonio still viewed as the frontrunners for the former first overall pick.
- Marcus Camby is expected to make a decision on his next team within the next week, with the Rockets, Bulls, and Heat among the finalists, tweets Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
- According to Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com, DeJuan Blair's asking price is in the $3MM range, Lamar Odom is only interested in playing for a Los Angeles team, and Josh Akognon is drawing heavy interest from Chinese teams.
- Zwerling adds (via Twitter) that the Knicks have some interest in Ivan Johnson, but the big man is still seeking a mini mid-level deal.
- Prior to reaching an agreement with the Nuggets, Nate Robinson received serious interest from the Wizards, according to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (via Twitter). Washington had already used its mid-level and bi-annual exceptions, so making a competitive offer would have been tricky.
- Free agent point guard Delonte West spoke to Tzvi Twersky of SlamOnline.com about his desire to return to an NBA roster.