Southwest Notes: Lawson, McCallum, Pelicans
Rockets GM Daryl Morey isn’t shy about gambling, and he acknowledges that trading four players for troubled point guard Ty Lawson carries with it some potential pitfalls, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com writes. “I think when you’re trying to get the best team out of 30, you got to take risk all over the place,” Morey said. “Again, it’s a playing risk, injury risk, character risk. We feel Ty is someone we wanted to add to our team.”
With Houston badly in need of a playmaker at the point, Morey believes he has filled that need with Lawson, Watkins notes. “He’s one of the best playmakers in the league,” Morey continued. “If you look at the leaderboard for assists in the last few years or since he’s been in the league, he’s near the top. I think, as we saw, especially when [Harden] played a couple of teams last year, we struggle against teams that really load on James Harden, and we feel Ty will be a lot more difficult for teams to do that.”
Here’s more out of the Southwest Division:
- Recent Spurs trade acquisition Ray McCallum‘s minimum salary of $947,276 became fully guaranteed when San Antonio didn’t waive him by the end of Monday, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter link). It had been partially guaranteed for $200K, as the schedule of salary guarantee dates shows.
- The Pelicans are looking into establishing their own D-League franchise, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes. New Orleans GM Dell Demps acknowledged the franchise’s interest in the D-League, but he didn’t know the exact time frame for the process, Reid adds. ”A couple of years ago, we did not do it because our players were so young and growing and we figured we just throw them into the fire,” Demps said. ”But that is the next step for us. We’re looking at some options right now on the Gulf Coast and in the state of Louisiana. So we’re looking into that. We have some plans to add our own D-League team.”
- Danny Green surprised some when he elected to re-sign with the Spurs with a four-year, $45MM deal when numerous teams had expressed interest in his services, and he likely could have earned more elsewhere. But Green believes his annual salary is in line with his production, Dan McCarney of The San Antonio Express-News notes (Twitter links). “People keep saying that I took less. I think I took what I was worth,” said Green. Though, to get his full market value, Green would have likely had to go to a team like the Pistons or the Kings, who certainly don’t offer as good a chance to contend as San Antonio does, McCarney adds. The Pistons, Mavericks, Blazers, Knicks and the Kings, who’d reportedly made Green their top target, all had some degree of interest in the swingman.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Eastern Notes: Jackson, Embiid, Raptors
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy, while appearing on SI.com’s Chris Mannix’s radio show (Twitter link), said the fear of Reggie Jackson signing a one-year qualifying offer played a big role in the five-year max contract Detroit offered. The five-year, $80MM deal was officially announced Monday. Jackson said the offseason moves the Pistons made prior to his agreement — Detroit added Ersan Ilyasova, Marcus Morris, Stanley Johnson and Aron Baynes — reinforced his decision, Brendan Savage of MLive.com writes.
“I knew this was the place I wanted to be,” Jackson said. “But definitely some of the pieces that we signed, that made it that much more sweeter.”
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News said on radio station 94-WIP (relayed by CSNPhilly.com) that Joel Embiid‘s navicular bone in his right foot was re-broken. The news comes one month after the Sixers announced that Embiid had suffered a setback and a little more than a week after it was revealed the center needed another surgery.
- Norman Powell, who the Raptors picked in the second round, will make $650,000 as a rookie, then $875,000 guaranteed in the second year and $1MM (not guaranteed) in the final year of a three-year contract, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
- The Raptors used the room exception to sign Bismack Biyombo, Pincus reports (Twitter link).
Pistons Re-Sign Reggie Jackson
JULY 20TH 4:57pm: The deal is official, the team announced in a press release.
JULY 5TH, 8:57pm: The Pistons will re-sign restricted free agent guard Reggie Jackson to a five-year, $80MM deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). ESPN’s Chris Broussard tweets that the deal does not include any options.
The guard was at the Pistons’ summer league opener on Saturday and that turned out to be a good sign, as coach/executive Stan Van Gundy suspected it would be. Van Gundy and GM Jeff Bower negotiated the deal with Jackson’s agent, Aaron Mintz of CAA, over the past 48 hours at the Orlando summer league, reports Wojnarowski in a full story. Jackson hadn’t pursued offer sheets on the market this summer, Wojnarowski adds. The deal also means the Pistons are confident that they can play Jackson and Brandon Jennings together next season, both on and off the ball, NBA.com’s David Aldridge tweets.
In our Free Agent Stock Watch Series, Dana Gauruder wrote about how Jackson emerged as one of the league’s top free agent targets after he was traded from the Thunder to the Pistons, who immediately installed him as their starting point guard. Jackson turned down an offer worth more than $12MM a year in extension talks with the Thunder last year because he wanted out of Oklahoma City and he wanted to be a starter. With his new deal, Jackson is looked at as a cornerstone for the Pistons.
Pistons Re-Sign Joel Anthony
JULY 20TH, 4:10pm: The deal is official, the team announced.
JULY 8TH, 3:21pm: The Pistons have reached an agreement with free agent Joel Anthony on a deal that will keep the center in Detroit, reports Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter links). The pact is for two years and $5MM, with the second season non-guaranteed, Ellis relays.
It’s certainly not a shock to see Anthony returning to Detroit. The Pistons were reportedly looking to bring back the unrestricted free agent, with team executive/coach Stan Van Gundy viewing the 32-year-old as an elder statesman who can be valuable in tutoring younger players. “Obviously we can’t negotiate with him yet, we can’t talk money,” Van Gundy told Ellis prior to the start of the free agent signing period. “I talked to him [June 26th]. Again, we’ve told him consistently we would like to have him back.”
Anthony appeared in 49 games for the Pistons during the 2014/15 campaign, averaging 1.8 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks in 8.3 minutes per contest. His career numbers through eight NBA seasons are 2.3 PPG, 2.9 RPG, and 1.1 BPG, with a slash line of .509/.000/.661.
Fallout From/Reaction To Ty Lawson Deal
Ty Lawson‘s drinking habit had concerned teams even when he entered the NBA, according to Grantland’s Zach Lowe, who hears from several sources who say that it helped dissuade the Celtics from trading for him while they were in talks with the Nuggets before the February deadline. The video that depicts him smoking from a hookah and predicting that the Nuggets would trade him to the Kings as he watched Denver select Emmanuel Mudiay in the draft was a turn-off for potential suitors, too, Lowe writes. Lowe and others have more on the trade agreement, as we’ll pass along here:
- The Lakers were the only team other than the Rockets to express interest in Lawson shortly before the deal, according to Lowe, though Chris Mannix of SI.com heard the Pistons also did.
- Nick Johnson, one of the players heading to the Nuggets, didn’t get along with the coaching staff at the Rockets D-League affiliate while on assignment last season, several league sources told Lowe.
- The Nuggets face a scramble to complete the trade before the close of business today so that they can waive Pablo Prigioni, as they reportedly intend to do, before his partial guarantee of $440K becomes a full guarantee of nearly $1.735MM, as former Nets executive Bobby Marks details. Teams can waive physicals and the requirement that the players report, but it would be up to the Rockets to do so with Lawson, Marks notes. Also, players in the final year of their respective contracts must certify a trade before it goes final, so Denver has to get in contact with Prigioni, Kostas Papanikolaou and Joey Dorsey, Marks explains (All four Twitter links).
- Lawson is on board with the trade, agent Happy Walters told Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. “He’s excited,” Walters said. “I spoke to him once about it. He’s close with James [Harden], tight with Corey [Brewer], knows Trevor [Ariza] and Dwight [Howard] and is real excited. It’s an opportunity for him. He’s been deep in the playoffs before, but this is something he feels really good about.”
- Houston’s new point guard has his baggage, but the Rockets didn’t relinquish much in the deal, making it a risk that the rigors of the Western Conference demand that they take, opines Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.
- Lawson might not be the third star the Rockets have been seeking to complement Harden and Howard, but Michael Lee of The Washington Post points out that he’s the sort of facilitator that Harden has said he’d welcome.
- What’s your reaction to the deal? Leave a comment to let us know.
Pistons Sign Darrun Hilliard
MONDAY, 10:45am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.
THURSDAY, 1:37pm: The Pistons and No. 38 pick Darrun Hilliard have reached agreement on a three-year deal, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Wojnarowski indicates that the 6’6″ swingman from Villanova has already put pen to paper, though the team hasn’t made any formal announcement, and Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press hears the deal will be formalized Monday (Twitter link). The first year of his contract will be fully guaranteed, the second year will carry a partial guarantee, and the third year will be a team option, Ellis adds (on Twitter).
Detroit will dedicate cap space to him rather than use an exception, since the length of the arrangement is greater than two years, though a three-year deal gives the Pistons greater flexibility going forward, as I examined in the past. The 22-year-old was a surprise selection, as Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress had him ranked only 62nd among the best prospects in this year’s draft, while Chad Ford of ESPN.com had him even lower, at No. 77.
Ford pointed to his lack of top-flight athleticism or standout skill in any one particular area as weaknesses, adding that he’s nonetheless strong on both sides of the floor. Hilliard averaged 14.3 points in 28.8 minutes per game with 38.7% three-point shooting this past season as a senior.
It’s unclear exactly how much he’s getting in the deal, but it’s likely for around the minimum salary, perhaps with a few extra thousand dollars tacked on in year one, since such deals are standard for second-rounders, and the Pistons are running out of cap room. Detroit’s other 2015 draft pick, No. 8 overall selection Stanley Johnson, is on track to sign next week, agent Nima Namakian tells Ellis (Twitter link).
Eastern Notes: Celtics, Anthony, Jackson
The Celtics depart the Las Vegas Summer League feeling much better about a number of their 2015 draftees, Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald relays. Celtics Summer League coach Micah Shrewsberry, discussing guards Terry Rozier, R.J. Hunter and Marcus Thornton, and forward Jordan Mickey, said, “They’re all hard workers. They all love the game, and that stood out first. They’re in the gym working. Terry and Jordan Mickey were on the workout buffet, all over the place in the month of June. They get drafted, get a couple of days, and then come right to practice. They played a lot of minutes and got stronger as the week went on. R.J. was the same way. He started out a little shaky, but he eventually showed what he can do. They’re each going to get better and better, not just this season but as their careers go on.” The Celtics and Mickey are still in the process of negotiating his rookie contract.
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy said on The Chris Mannix Show on NBC Sports Radio that the team’s fear of restricted free agent Reggie Jackson signing a one-year qualifying offer played a big part in Detroit’s willingness to offer Jackson a five-year $80MM deal (Twitter link). Detroit obviously wanted to avoid a situation similar to the one it experienced last season when Greg Monroe opted to sign his qualifying offer and then signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Bucks this offseason.
- New York’s slow rebuilding has reportedly left Carmelo Anthony wondering about the Knicks‘ plan, but even though team president Phil Jackson hasn’t been in touch with his star forward, GM Steve Mills has maintained contact with Anthony, who still trusts Jackson’s judgments, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- Guillermo Hernangomez, the 35th overall pick last month, will play again for Real Madrid this coming season, the club announced. He spent the past two seasons on loan to fellow Spanish club Baloncesto Sevilla. The Knicks acquired the NBA rights to the center in a trade worked out on draft night, and New York reportedly plans to sign him next summer.
- Cory Joseph‘s four-year pact with the Raptors will see the point guard earn $7MM for the coming season, $7.315MM in 2016/17, $7.63MM in 2017/18, and includes a player option for the final season worth $7.945MM, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays.
- The Raptors‘ biggest offseason signing, DeMarre Carroll, will earn $13.6MM in 2015/16, $14.2MM during year two, $14.8MM during the 2017/18 campaign, and will cap off his contract with a salary of $15.4MM in 2018/19, Pincus adds.
Central Notes: Smith, Antetokounmpo, Granger
J.R. Smith will probably regret turning down his $6.4MM option for next season, writes Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer, although the free agent guard could still rejoin the Cavaliers at a lesser rate. The team was unhappy with Smith’s decision and started looking for a replacement, Pluto reports. Although Smith is still trying to find a better deal, most free agents have been signed and the list of teams with cap space is dwindling. Pluto notes that Cleveland would like to bring Smith back, but only on a “modest” one-year contract.
There’s more tonight from the Central Division:
- The Cavs‘ “immediate need” for “championship caliber” players may keep Rakeem Christmas and Sir’Dominic Pointer from making the roster, according to Joe Vardon of The Northeast Ohio Media Group. The second-round picks were acquired from the Wolves in a draft-day deal that sent Tyus Jones to Minnesota, and although the Cavaliers like both players there may not be room on the roster for them to sit and learn the NBA game. “We’re in a really unique situation roster-spot wise, where both of them could be affected by that,” said Cavs GM David Griffin. “What we need are guys that can compete in championship caliber games. We ended up in a situation where we ran out of bodies in the Finals and guys that were ready to play significant minutes.”
- Giannis Antetokounmpo would like to spend his entire career with the Bucks, the 20-year-old Greek star wrote on his blog. Antetokounmpo expressed gratitude to the Milwaukee front office for drafting him and making him a team leader at such a young age, though he did include a qualifier that could make Bucks fans nervous: “Okay, if LeBron [James] said to me ‘Come to my team and play with me,’ I’d think about it! [laughs] He’s the best player in the world and a member of that exclusive group of the best that have ever played the game. Still, though, the Milwaukee Bucks would come first. They will always be the team that gave me my chance and opened up the doors to paradise.”
- Veteran Danny Granger will be among five players battling for the last two roster spots with the Pistons, according to Vince Ellis of USA Today. The others in contention, according to Ellis, are second-round pick Darrun Hilliard, Reggie Bullock, Cartier Martin and Adonis Thomas.
Central Notes: Kaun, Dunleavy, Brooks
The Cavaliers invited draft-and-stash center Sasha Kaun to join GM David Griffin and other team personnel in Las Vegas this weekend to discuss the possibility of Kaun signing with the franchise and joining the NBA this coming season, Joe Vardon of The Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. While Cleveland is interested in having the big Russian join its roster, the Cavs’ salary cap situation limits how much they can offer Kaun, a sum which certainly wouldn’t equal the $2.9MM annual salary he earns playing for CSKA Moscow, Vardon adds. For Kaun, the money disparity isn’t a dealbreaker, with Kaun telling Vardon, “That’s probably something that shouldn’t be a problem. Hopefully coming to this team, it will give us an opportunity to win, and winning is more important to me than money. I don’t think I want to do it [play basketball] because of the money. Just play basketball and enjoy it and play with some really great players. That’s the more important thing.”
Griffin confirmed the Cavs’ interest in the 30-year-old big man, saying, “We would love to have him if something could be worked out.” The GM also acknowledged the challenge in signing Kaun due to budgetary constraints, Vardon notes. “It’s difficult because he’s coming off making an incredibly large amount of money and he is literally a first-team, all-Euroleague-caliber center, and it’s a difficult proposition to come to a team like ours for the type of money we have to offer,” Griffin continued.
Here’s more out of the Central Division:
- Mike Dunleavy‘s three-year deal with the Bulls will pay him $4.5MM for the 2015/16 campaign, $4,837,500 in 2016/17, both seasons being fully-guaranteed, and $5.175MM the final season, which is partially guaranteed, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
- The Bulls‘ one year pact with Aaron Brooks will see him earn $2.25MM this coming season, and it gives him the power to veto trades, Pincus notes (on Twitter).
- Aron Baynes will earn $6.5MM in each of the three seasons covered in his deal with the Pistons, with the final year being a player option, Pincus tweets.
- Brazilian big man Cristiano Felicio‘s contract with the Bulls is for two years, and he will earn $525,093 in 2015/16 and $874,636 the following season, according to Pincus.
Rockets, Pistons, Lakers Interested In Ty Lawson
The Rockets, Pistons and Lakers are among the teams that have expressed interest in Ty Lawson lately, league sources told Chris Mannix of SI.com, who suggests that their interest persists in spite of Lawson’s arrest on suspicion of DUI this week. The possibility that the Nuggets trade Lawson this offseason remains strong, Mannix adds. The point guard’s talent continues to hold intrigue to teams around the league, as Mannix explains.
The news is nonetheless surprising, and conflicts with a report from earlier this week indicating that teams were showing little interest, at best, in Lawson even before the arrest, which was his second DUI-related arrest in six months. Denver was asking for a first-round pick and a young player in talks, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports wrote in that dispatch, while Yahoo Sports colleague Adrian Wojnarowski heard that teams had been waiting, prior to the arrest, for the Nuggets to lower their price for Lawson.
A league source tells Mannix that Kings coach George Karl would welcome Lawson in Sacramento, echoing just what a person familiar with Karl’s thinking told Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck in February. Still, Lawson’s off-court issues were a significant reason why the Kings weren’t willing to give the Nuggets the No. 6 pick when they spoke with Denver about Lawson before the draft.
Lawson’s troubles extend beyond his legal woes. He was late reporting back to the Nuggets after the All-Star break, and GM Tim Connelly publicly implored him to “grow up.” The Nuggets used their first-rounder, at No. 7, on point guard Emmanuel Mudiay, a move that prompted an incredulous reaction from Lawson when he was watching on television.
The Nuggets are set to pay Lawson more than $12.404MM this season and more than $13.213MM in 2016/17, though Mannix suggests he’s more of a bargain than those figures may indicate, given the escalating salary cap. Still, he’d be an awkward fit in Detroit, where the Pistons just made a lucrative commitment to Reggie Jackson and traded this week for backup point guard Steve Blake. Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press surmises that if Detroit had interest, that’s probably no longer the case (Twitter link). The Lakers drafted point guard D’Angelo Russell No. 2 overall last month, so there’s little logic behind a Lawson pursuit on their account, either. The Rockets just re-signed Patrick Beverley, though his deal is worth just $23MM over four years.