Pistons Acquire Donatas Motiejunas
8:43pm: The Pistons acquired Donatas Motiejunas and Marcus Thornton from the Rockets as part of a three-team trade involving the Sixers, the teams all announced. The Rockets received Detroit’s top-eight protected 2016 first-round pick from the Pistons and the rights to draft-and-stash player Chukwudiebere “Chu” Maduabum from the Sixers. Philadelphia gets Joel Anthony from Detroit and Denver’s 2017 second-round pick from Houston. The Sixers are likely to waive Anthony, a league source told John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com (Twitter link).
Motiejunas projects to be backup for Tobias Harris, whom the Pistons also recently acquired via trade, while Thornton adds depth on the wing. The Pistons paid a steep price in adding pieces to their rotation, particularly given the lingering back issues that have kept Motiejunas from appearing in a game since the calendar flipped to 2016. Still, Pistons executive/coach Stan Van Gundy has a track record of paying heavily for players he likes, as Marc Stein of ESPN tweets. Van Gundy and company will get to match offers in restricted free agency for Motiejunas this summer, while Thornton is heading to unrestricted free agency at the completion of his one-year deal.
“We’re happy to welcome Donatas and Marcus to the Pistons family,” Pistons GM Jeff Bower said. “We like Donatas’ size, his skill level and his ability to play two frontcourt positions. Marcus adds scoring punch to our bench with his ability to create his own shot and make plays. We thank Joel Anthony for his professionalism throughout his time here and we wish him the best going forward.”
It’s no surprise to see Motiejunas depart from Houston, as it was a lock that either he or Terrence Jones would leave the Rockets as restricted free agents this summer, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com reported earlier this week. Stein reported earlier in the day that the Pistons had offered Anthony to the Rockets in exchange for Motiejunas, but instead the Rockets end up with a lightly protected first-rounder. The protection covers the top 10 in 2017 and 2018 if it doesn’t convey with top-eight protection this year, an odd wrinkle. The deal also allows the Rockets to create a trade exception worth $2,288,205, Motiejunas’ salary for this season, and another worth $947,276 as a vestige of Thornton. Maduabum, the other asset Houston gained in the deal, was the 56th overall pick in 2011 and plays for Pyrinto Tampere in Finland, well off pro basketball’s beaten path.
Philadelphia’s end of the move has the hallmarks of GM Sam Hinkie rather than chairman of basketball operations Jerry Colangelo. The Sixers score a second-rounder and use their cap space to absorb a veteran player it seems they’d prefer not to keep. They waived JaKarr Sampson to accommodate the move, since they couldn’t trade for Anthony, even if they intended to release him, without first opening a roster spot. Anthony was fresh off re-signing with the Pistons in July on a two-year deal worth $5MM, but only the first season’s $2.5MM salary was guaranteed.
Will Joseph contributed to this post. Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports first reported Motiejunas and Thornton were headed to Detroit and that the Pistons were giving up Anthony and the protected 2016 first-rounder (Twitter links). Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com revealed the protection involved with the pick (on Twitter). Wojnarowski later relayed the involvement of the Sixers (Twitter link), while Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reported the second-round pick going to Philly (Twitter link). Gonzalez had news of the rights to Maduabum heading to Houston (Twitter links). RealGM provided additional draft pick detail.
Eastern Notes: Horford, Calderon, Harris
The Hawks took center Al Horford off the market at approximately 1pm today, Chris Broussard of ESPN.com relays (Twitter links). Prospective trade partners were wary of Horford’s impending free agency, which made the offers Atlanta received less than enticing, Broussard adds. Point guard Jeff Teague was available until the final minutes of the deadline, with the Bucks and Nets expressing the most interest, the ESPN scribe notes.
Here’s the latest from the East:
- Despite their best efforts, the Raptors were unable to upgrade their power forward position prior to the NBA trade deadline today, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca notes. The lack of a significant deal wasn’t due to the team’s lack of effort, with Toronto checking in on virtually every player rumored to be available, but the team found the asking prices simply too steep to pull the trigger, Lewenberg adds. “There was nothing there good enough for us, we felt,” GM Masai Ujiri said. “Anything that was good enough we felt, we just didn’t want to give up the future of our team for any of the stuff that was out there.”
- Knicks point guard Jose Calderon noted that one reason his numbers have taken a hit is New York’s triangle offense, a system not conducive to gaudy stats from playmakers, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News relays. “It doesn’t matter how I play,” Calderon said. “Sometimes when you maybe get off on the wrong foot or people don’t know you as a player and expect something else. It’s tough to change those minds. So I’m pretty good with the way I am, the way I do stuff, the way I work. Like I said, if we go position by position, or player by player, I lost every battle in that situation. I’m not going to score more points than other point guards in this league. I’m a different kind of player. It’s not fun when you want to win for the Knicks and people want you out of the Knicks.”
- The Knicks may cut the playing time of rookie point guard Jerian Grant because his lack of playing experience is hurting him and the team, according to interim coach Kurt Rambis, Marc Berman of The New York Post relays.
- Courtney Lee says being dealt to the Hornets “threw him off” because he was told the previous day by the Grizzlies he wasn’t being shopped, Steve Reed of The Associated Press writes. The swingman did add that the presence of coach Steve Clifford, who was an assistant in Orlando during Lee’s rookie season, would help him adjust more quickly, Reed adds. “It helps a lot,” Lee said of Clifford. “I have a feel for him and his coaching style. He knows my capabilities and I think he’s comfortable with me in that sense. It’s just a matter of picking up the plays.”
- The Pistons did extremely well in the trade that landed them Tobias Harris, David Mayo of MLive.com opines. Detroit netted a still-improving combo forward who provides exactly what the team lacked in its frontcourt and Harris’ salary will likely look like a bargain in the coming season, Mayo adds.
Central Notes: Rubio, Forman, Harris
The Bulls held off on making any major trade deadline moves because no offers significant enough to improve the team materialized, according to GM Gar Forman, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune relays. “We understand the frustrations. Up to this point, it has been a disappointing year,” Forman said. “We all realize — from ownership to the front office to the players to the coaching staff — we haven’t done as well as we thought we would do. We hold ourselves accountable that we haven’t met expectations. With that said, we certainly were not in any type of panic mode. We looked at the big picture. Obviously, the injuries that we’ve had have hurt. But that’s not the only reason. … We explored heavily and were very, very active with talks with a lot of teams. There wasn’t something we felt … significant enough to do something right now.”
Here’s the latest from the Central Division:
- The Pistons believe that Tobias Harris is still on the rise as a player and that he will be able to help the franchise in a variety of ways, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. “The interesting thing is being able to look at what he was doing this season but going back to our free-agent preparation for the summer and the review of last year’s performance,” GM Jeff Bower told Langlois. “We feel that showed us a player with a variety of skills that can help a team in numerous ways. We also think that his play and the projection of his performance over the next five years is on a steady incline based on what we’re seeing and think he has a lot of room to grow as a player. We really like that this is a move that can be looked at as a long-term move as well as one that will fit with our core group of players and we’ll be able to keep them together due to contract certainty. Those are all pieces that were pretty important.”
- The protected first round pick the Cavaliers sent to the Trail Blazers as part of the Channing Frye trade will become two second round picks if it is not conveyed in 2018 or 2019, Erik Gunderson of The Columbian relays (on Twitter).
- The Bulls never attempted to trade power forward Pau Gasol, though the team did receive numerous inquiries about his availability, Forman insists, as Nick Friedell of ESPN.com notes (Twitter links). Forman also indicated that the team still hopes to re-sign center Joakim Noah, who will become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, Friedell adds.
- Cavs GM David Griffin noted that the team had a deal in place with Frye when he was a free agent in 2014, but Cleveland couldn’t make the numbers work because it needed all of its cap space to sign LeBron James, Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal tweets.
- The Bucks made several attempts to pry point guard Ricky Rubio away from the Wolves but balked when Minnesota requested shooting guard Khris Middleton in return, Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reports (Twitter link).
Eastern Rumors: Teague, Gasol, Nets
- The Nets never wound up interviewing Wizards senior VP of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard despite asking Washington’s permission to do so, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post.
- Knicks GM Steve Mills spoke with the Timberwolves about Ricky Rubio, but the Knicks believe Minnesota won’t deal him, and while New York contacted the Rockets about Ty Lawson, neither dialogue is active, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- The Celtics have thus far been unwilling to pay a premium for Al Horford or Dwight Howard, sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
- The Bucks have reached out to the Sixers about Kendall Marshall but haven’t made progress on that front, reports Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
- Pau Gasol confirmed today the Bulls are in the lead to re-sign him when he opts out, as expected, this summer, tweets K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. An earlier report indicated he preferred to join forces with Marc Gasol on the Grizzlies.
- The Pistons are still deliberating on their point guard situation, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press hears (Twitter link).
- The Magic are expected to make a big push this summer for Horford, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com tweets.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Pistons Offer Anthony To Rockets For Motiejunas
The Pistons have offered center Joel Anthony to the Rockets in exchange for power forward Donatas Motiejunas, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). The teams discussed this swap on draft night and at that time the talks involved picks as well, according to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter links).
It’s a “lock” that either Terrence Jones or Motiejunas will leave the Rockets as restricted free agents this summer, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com reported earlier this week.
And-Ones: Johnson, Celtics, Pelicans, Lee
The Cavaliers think would-be post-buyout target Joe Johnson wants to stay in Brooklyn and that he’ll seek to sign an extension with the Nets, a source told Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. People around Johnson say he won’t take a buyout, tweets Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.
- The Celtics are willing to trade the unprotected 2016 first-round pick they have coming their way from the Nets if it would shake Blake Griffin loose from the Clippers, sources tell Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. However, Boston wouldn’t deal the pick for either Kevin Love or Al Horford, Bulpett hears.
- The Pelicans shopped Eric Gordon and Omer Asik, but they haven’t found much interest, sources tell John Reid of The Times Picayune. New Orleans reportedly offered Gordon and Alonzo Gee to the Kings for Rudy Gay earlier this season, and the Pelicans apparently had talks with the Cavs that involved Asik after making him available in December.
- The Grizzlies shipped $542,714 cash to the Hornets as part of the Courtney Lee trade, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reveals.
- Jameer Nelson is running out of alternatives to season-ending surgery on a severely sprained left wrist, but he’ll continue to try to play for the time being after receiving an injection meant to ease the pain he’s feeling, as Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post details. He missed the Nuggets‘ last six games before the All-Star break.
- The Bulls were interested in Trevor Ariza and Corey Brewer earlier this season, but the Rockets rebuffed their entreaties, reports Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com (Twitter link).
- The Pistons would love to make one more move before the trade deadline, GM Jeff Bower said today in an appearance on WDFN-AM radio, notes Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter link). The team is reportedly scanning the market for veteran guards, but Bower said the Pistons are looking at the options available at every position and added that coach/executive Stan Van Gundy has confidence in Steve Blake as the team’s backup point guard, Beard also relays (on Twitter).
- The Grizzlies recalled James Ennis from the team’s D-League affiliate in Iowa, the team announced today. Ennis has appeared in 15 games with the Energy, averaging 16.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per night. He has played in 10 games for Memphis, averaging 1.3 points in 3.6 minutes.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Southeast Notes: Jennings, Payton, Plumlee
The acquisition of Brandon Jennings in Tuesday’s trade with the Pistons doesn’t mean the Magic have wavered in their belief in Elfrid Payton, GM Rob Hennigan said, though coach Scott Skiles has been looking for more lately from Orlando’s incumbent starting point guard, notes Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Still, the trade was about creating flexibility to chase stars in the summer, as Schmitz sees it, suggesting Jennings and Ilyasova will merely be rentals if the right marquee player comes calling. The deal reduced the Magic’s guaranteed salary commitments by $16.8MM for next season, bringing their total down to $44MM. See more from Orlando amid news out of the Southeast Division, where three teams have made trades within the last 24 hours:
- It appears as though the Wizards had talks with the Bucks about Miles Plumlee, as Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports, citing sources, writes that Washington could revisit discussions about the big man if Milwaukee isn’t hung up on other business.
- The Wizards see the return of Alan Anderson as a de facto trade deadline acquisition, and a decent chance exists that he’ll be playing by week’s end, reports Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. The Wizards signed him to a one-year, $4MM deal this past summer thinking he’d be ready for the start of the regular season following ankle surgery in May, but a follow-up procedure has kept the swingman on the shelf all season so far, as Castillo details.
- Heat team president Pat Riley pointed to the importance of upgrading Miami’s point guard position in the wake of Tyler Johnson‘s injury as he addressed Tuesday’s trade to acquire Brian Roberts, according to his remarks in the team’s statement. Johnson has said there’s no guarantee he returns to play this season.
- It’s likely that the Hornets will use the roster spot they opened in Wednesday’s Courtney Lee trade to sign a third point guard out of the D-League, GM Rich Cho said, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
- The Magic are down to four cities in the running to play host to their one-to-one D-League affiliate in 2017/18, CEO Alex Martins told Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. All are in Florida: Jacksonville, Kissimmee, Lakeland and an Orlando location not far from where the NBA club plays, as Robbins details.
Pistons Acquire Tobias Harris
2:58pm: The Pistons have acquired Tobias Harris from the Magic for Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova, the teams have formally announced. ESPN’s Chris Broussard first reported it was a done deal shortly after Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops reported the sides were in talks (Twitter links), while Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports, USA Today’s Sam Amick and Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel added detail (All Twitter links).
“We are pleased to welcome Tobias Harris to our organization,” Pistons GM Jeff Bower said in Detroit’s release. “Tobias adds good versatility as a ball-handler and scorer who can play both forward positions. He also has good experience for a young player and will fit well with the young core we have assembled on our roster. We appreciate the contributions made by Brandon and Ersan to our organization and wish them well moving forward.”
The deal represents a nearly even exchange of salaries for this season, with Harris’ $16MM going to the Pistons and $16,244,497 headed to Orlando, but a long-term cost savings for the Magic, since Jennings is on an expiring deal and Ilyasova is guaranteed only $400K for next season. Harris signed a four-year, $64MM deal this past summer.
Detroit appeared to be one of the leading contenders for Harris as free agency got underway in the offseason, but the team hadn’t emerged as a trade suitor this year until today. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported last week that the Magic were open to trading the 23-year-old Harris, cautioning that they weren’t shopping him. However, a serious discussion took place recently between the Magic and Clippers involving Harris, Blake Griffin and other players, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. The Magic had been on the lookout for veterans, according to Stein, and Jennings, who’s 26, and Ilyasova, 28, ostensibly fit that bill.
“Brandon and Ersan are two veterans that will help balance our roster and provide valuable experience to our team,” Magic GM Rob Hennigan said as part of his team’s statement. “Both players bring scoring, competitiveness and added depth to our roster. We want to thank Tobias for his contributions, both on and off the court.”
Power forward has been the unsettled spot for the Pistons, who were high on Ilyasova but saw him instead as a backup, as ESPN’s Zach Lowe reported as he identified the team’s interest in Ryan Anderson. The acquisition of Harris would presumably take the Pistons out of the running for other power forwards the team has been linked to, including Markieff Morris and Al Horford, though Detroit will still have significant cap flexibility for next summer, when only about $64MM in guaranteed salaries will be on the books against a cap that many around the league reportedly believe will surge to $95MM.
The Magic meanwhile reduce their guaranteed salary commitments to only about $44MM for next season, giving them plenty of spending power. They had an open roster spot before the trade, so they didn’t have to offload anyone to make the two-for-one exchange.
Central Notes: Augustin, Carter-Williams, Harris
The Pistons are a bit thin in their backcourt after today’s trade of Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova to the Magic in exchange for combo forward Tobias Harris, Dan Feldman of NBCSports.com writes. As a result of the trade Detroit is now combing the market for a veteran guard it can add to its rotation, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports relays (via Twitter). Some potential targets for the Pistons include Thunder point guard D.J. Augustin, Kings playmaker Darren Collison and Mo Williams of the Cavaliers, Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press notes (Twitter links).
Here’s the latest from the Central Division:
- Bucks point guard Michael Carter-Williams has been told by the team that he will not be traded prior to Thursday’s deadline, Marc J. Spears of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports tweets. The 24-year-old, who is said to be “undeniably gettable,” was also told the same thing by the Sixers last season prior to being shipped to Milwaukee, Spears notes, so he’s likely to take any assurances with a grain of salt.
- Cavs superstar LeBron James believes he and his teammates need to tune out outside distractions and criticism and focus on the task at hand if the team is to make strides during the second half of the season, Marla Ridenour of The Akron Beacon Journal writes. “There’s so much talk about what we should be, we should do this, we shouldn’t do that. The only thing that matters is what we come together and talk about and how we prepare every single night and our coaching staff putting us in position to win,” James told Ridenour.
- The Pistons are excited by the athleticism and versatility that Harris will provide them, David Mayo of MLive relays.
- Orlando likely could have netted a better return if it had waited to deal Harris until this summer, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post opines in his examination of the Harris/Jennings/Ilyasova trade. The scribe notes that the trade was a big win for the Pistons, who now possess a solid core of players who are 25 years of age or younger to build around, and though Orlando did receive the veterans it craved, unless this deal was the first in a series of trades, it failed to improve the Magic as a team, Bontemps concludes.
Kings Eye Ryan Anderson, Make Belinelli Available
The Kings would like to sign Ryan Anderson in free agency this summer, and they’re pondering whether it would be wise to trade for him at the deadline to gain his Bird rights and the ability to give him a fifth year in a new contract this summer, reports Zach Lowe of ESPN.com, adding that the same is true for the Pistons. Sacramento is making several players available for a trade, including Marco Belinelli, according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (audio link; scroll to 14:45 mark), who also mentions the availability of Rudy Gay and Ben McLemore, which earlier reports made clear. It’s unclear if any of them are connected to Anderson. The Pelicans rejected a proposal from Sacramento of Anderson for Gay, as Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops reported, though James Ham of CSN California cast doubt on the notion of whether that offer took place.
Several teams have shown interest in Belinelli as well as Gay, Ham later reported, though it’s unclear just who’s in the mix for Belinelli, in particular. The shooting guard who turns 30 next month recently entered the starting lineup, but he’s shooting a career-worst 29.9% from 3-point range, off precipitously from last season’s 37.4% clip and his career mark of 38.1%. He’s nonetheless averaging more 3-point attempts than in any of his nine seasons so far. Sacramento signed him this past summer to a three-year, $19MM deal, fending off the Warriors, Hornets and Heat. The contract gives him nearly $6.061MM this season.
Anderson’s name has been mentioned frequently in rumors of late, both as a trade candidate and a looming free agent. Miami, like the Kings and Pistons, has also drawn mention as a team with interest in signing him over the summer, but it’s unclear if the Heat have any inclination to trade for him. A source with an NBA team told Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders a while ago that he expects Anderson to command a maximum-salary contract with a projected starting salary of $24.9MM. Lowe makes passing mention of $20MM as a possibility for Anderson’s salary next season.
New Orleans reportedly made Anderson available for a swap earlier this season, but the team wasn’t anxious to trade him, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders reported. The Wizards have apparently asked about him and the Rockets “kicked the tires” on Anderson earlier this season, Kyler also reported. The Raptors have strong interest in trading for him, as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press heard. New Orleans apparently had talks with the Suns that involved Anderson, too.