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Community Shootaround: Cavs’ Point Guard Situation
When the Cavaliers announced their training camp roster on Monday morning, veteran point guard Mo Williams was one of the 20 players on the list. However, just hours later, general manager David Griffin informed the media that Williams’ agent had let him know his client had decided to retire rather than playing for one more year.
Williams’ decision puts Cleveland in a difficult spot. Currently, the only true point guards on the roster are Kyrie Irving and Kay Felder. Irving will play a lot, but the team will likely want to make sure he’s fresh for the postseason. Felder, meanwhile, is a 2016 second-round pick, and it’s not clear whether he’ll be able to play meaningful minutes out of the gate in his rookie season.
Given the Cavs’ lack of depth at the point guard spot, it comes as no real surprise that the club is considering adding a veteran player. According to a Monday evening report, Cleveland has been in touch with free agent guards like Norris Cole, Mario Chalmers, and Kirk Hinrich.
Of course, the Cavs can also rely on LeBron James to handle the ball for parts of each game, and the team does have a couple other combo guards on its roster, in Markel Brown and Jordan McRae. Brown and McRae certainly aren’t prototypical point guards, and neither player is a lock to make the roster, but if the Cavs like what they see in camp from one of those two players, they could carry them into the regular season, and perhaps count on them to spell Irving and Felder for a few minutes per game.
What do you think? Should the Cavs feel comfortable counting on Irving, Felder, and one of their other in-house guards to handle the point guard load, along with LeBron? Or does it make more sense to add a third true point guard to their roster, providing some veteran depth, as well as a safety net in case Felder isn’t ready to handle a key rotation role immediately? If they add a veteran, which player would be the best fit: Cole, Chalmers, Hinrich, or someone else?
Take to the comments section below to share your opinions on the Cavaliers’ point guard situation. We look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Western Conference Salary Rankings: Shooting Guards
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the salaries, separated by conference, for each NBA player by position. We’ve already looked at the point guards and centers of the Western Conference and will now turn our attention toward the conference’s shooting guards.
All told, the teams out west have committed a total of $299,460,075 in cap hits this season to the men who man the two spot. The average conference salary for shooting guards this season is currently $4,403,825, with James Harden topping the list with a more than respectable $26,540,100 to account for on his year-end W-2 form.
It should be noted that teams won’t necessarily pay out every dollar listed here. There are quite a few players who have non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts. Some of those players won’t make it out of the preseason, while others will be sweating it out until January 10th. That’s when teams must waive players with no specific guarantee date written into their contracts to avoid having to guarantee their salaries for the rest of the season. In addition, incentive clauses that a player either triggers or fails to meet can leave a player with more or less money than his cap hit reflects. Still, the purpose of this list is to show the relative pay scale by position, which is why all contracts are included in this post.
I should also add that not every player listed below will play shooting guard this season, as some will likely see some time at small forward or point guard. To maintain uniformity, I used their positions listed on the teams’ official rosters to determine which list to include them on. So if you see a player who isn’t expected to play shooting guard for his team this season listed below, that’s why.
The Western Conference’s shooting guards are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- James Harden [Rockets] —$26,540,100
- Allen Crabbe [Blazers] —$18,500,000
- Wesley Matthews [Mavs] — $17,145,838
- Klay Thompson [Warriors] — $16,663,575
- Manu Ginobili [Spurs] —$14,000,000
- Jamal Crawford [Clippers] —$13,253,012
- Arron Afflalo [Kings] —$12,500,000
- Eric Gordon [Rockets] —$12,385,665
- Tyreke Evans [Pelicans] —$10,203,755
- Alec Burks [Jazz] —$10,154,495
- Danny Green [Spurs] —$10,000,000
- E’Twaun Moore [Pelicans] —$8,081,363
- Garrett Temple [Kings] —$8,000,000
- J.J. Redick [Clippers] —$7,377,500
- Lou Williams [Lakers] —$7,000,000
- Victor Oladipo [Thunder] —$6,552,960
- Andrew Wiggins [Wolves] —$6,006,600
- Alex Abrines [Thunder] —$5,994,764
- Tony Allen [Grizzlies] — $5,505,618
- Langston Galloway [Pelicans] —$5,200,000
- Ben McLemore [Kings] —$4,008,882
- Leandro Barbosa [Suns] —$4,000,000
- Quincy Pondexter [Pelicans] —$3,617,978
- Buddy Hield [Pelicans] —$3,517,200
- Mike Miller [Nuggets] — $3,500,000
- Anthony Morrow [Thunder] —$3,488,000
- K.J. McDaniels [Rockets] —$3,333,333
- Troy Daniels [Grizzlies] — $3,332,940
- C.J. McCollum [Blazers]—$3,219,579
- Jamal Murray [Nuggets] — $3,210,840
- Seth Curry [Mavs] — $2,898,000
- Devin Booker [Suns] —$2,223,600
- Andre Roberson [Thunder] —$2,183,072
- Archie Goodwin [Suns] —$2,094,089
- Vince Carter [Grizzlies] — $2,000,000
- Gary Harris [Nuggets] — $1,655,880
- Malik Beasley [Nuggets] — $1,627,320
- Justin Anderson [Mavs]— $1,514,160
- Jordan Adams [Grizzlies] — $1,465,080
- Malachi Richardson [Kings] —$1,439,880
- Rodney Hood [Jazz] —$1,406,520
- Alonzo Gee [Pelicans] —$1,400,000
- Kevin Martin [Waived via Stretch Provision by Wolves] $1,360,305
- Alan Anderson [Clippers] —$1,315,448
- Lance Stephenson [Pelicans] — $1,227,286
- Elliot Williams [Warriors] — $1,227,286
- John Jenkins [Suns] —$1,050,961
- Ian Clark [Warriors] — $1,015,696
- Toure’ Murry [Wolves]— $980,431
- JaKarr Sampson [Nuggets] — $980,431
- Pat Connaughton [Blazers] —$874,636
- D.J. Kennedy [Nuggets] — $874,636
- Luis Montero [Blazers] —$874,636
- Lamar Patterson [Kings] —$874,636
- Jonathon Simmons [Spurs] —$874,636
- D.J. Stephens [Grizzlies] — $874,636
- Axel Toupane [Nuggets] — $874,636
- Bryn Forbes [Spurs] —$543,471
- Quincy Ford [Jazz] —$543,471
- Patricio Garino [Spurs] —$543,471
- Shaquille Harrison [Suns] — $543,471
- Keith Hornsby [Mavs] — $543,471
- Cameron Jones [Warriors] — $543,471
- Tim Quarterman [Blazers] —$543,471
- Wayne Selden [Grizzlies] — $543,471
- Isaiah Taylor [Rockets] — $543,471
- C.J. Williams [Mavs] — $543,471
- Scott Wood [Warriors] — $543,471
Weekly Mailbag: 9/19/16-9/25/16
We have an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap or the NBA draft? Drop us a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com. Here are this week’s inquiries:
Since we have lost Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett, who do you think will be the next great to walk away from the game? I honesty think either Manu Ginobili or Paul Pierce. — pewdsbros28@gmail.com
Pierce’s 39th birthday is next month and he still hasn’t said definitively that he will play this season. If things don’t go well in training camp, his retirement could be coming soon. Ginobili turned 39 over the summer, but his minutes have been limited to less than half a game for the past five years. He probably can remain in that role for a couple more years if his body doesn’t break down. Another name to watch is Vince Carter, who will turn 40 in January. He said recently that he still loves to play and wants to remain in the league two more years, but as always, that’s only if his body holds up.
How do you think the midseason return of Tyreke Evans will affect the Pelicans’ playoff chances? — Adam Guttuso
The latest report on Evans, who underwent two knee surgeries last season, is that he won’t be ready until December at the earliest. It’s hard to project how he will affect the playoff race without knowing exactly when he will return and how the knee will respond to the rigors of NBA competition. A healthy Evans would certainly give New Orleans a boost, but the Pelicans have to find a way to stay in the race until their roster is full again. Along with Evans, the team will start the season without Jrue Holiday, who has taken a leave of absence to care for his ailing wife, and Quincy Pondexter, who is still recovering from cartilage replacement surgery on his left knee in January.
Which big name players [such as Jimmy Butler and DeMarcus Cousins] will get involved in trade talks? — Eran Dekel
Those are two good ones to start with. The Celtics and Timberwolves both tried hard to swing a deal for Butler around draft time, but neither team got it done. Butler had a well-publicized clash with coach Fred Hoiberg last season, and if he doesn’t mesh well with newcomers Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo, look for trade rumors to heat up again. Cousins enters this season with another new coach and another revamped roster in Sacramento. The clock is ticking toward his free agency in the summer of 2018, and if the Kings get off to another bad start they may explore what they could get in a trade for their big man. A long shot might be Blake Griffin, who angered Clippers management by breaking his hand in a fight with an equipment manager last season. Griffin has an early termination clause and can become a free agent next summer, so the Clippers may look to make a deal if they aren’t one of the top teams in the West.
Submit Your Questions For Hoops Rumors Mailbag
We at Hoops Rumors love interacting with our readers. This is why we provide an opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in our weekly mailbag feature, which is posted each Sunday.
Have a question regarding player movement, free agent rumors, the salary cap, the NBA draft, or the top storylines of the week? You can e-mail them here: hoopsrumorsmailbag@gmail.com. Feel free to send emails throughout the week, but please be mindful that we may receive a sizable number of questions and might not get to all of them.
If you missed out on any past mailbags and would like to catch up, you can view the full archives here.
Western Conference Salary Rankings: Centers
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the salaries, separated by conference, for each NBA player by position. We’ve already looked at the point guards of the Western Conference and will now turn our attention toward the conference’s centers.
All told, the teams out west have committed a total of $247,911,928 in cap hits this season to the men who man the middle. The average conference salary for the five spot this season is $5,634,362, with Marc Gasol and DeAndre Jordan topping the list with a more than respectable $21,165,675 to account for on their year-end W-2 forms.
It should be noted that teams won’t necessarily pay out every dollar listed here. There are quite a few players who have non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts. Some of those players won’t make it out of the preseason, while others will be sweating it out until January 10th. That’s when teams must waive players with no specific guarantee date written into their contracts to avoid having to guarantee their salaries for the rest of the season. In addition, incentive clauses that a player either triggers or fails to meet can leave a player with more or less money than his cap hit reflects. Still, the purpose of this list is to show the relative pay scale by position, which is why all contracts are included in this post.
I should also add that not every player listed below will play center this season, as some will likely play power forward. To maintain uniformity, I used their positions listed on the teams’ official rosters to determine which list to include them on. So if you see a player who isn’t expected to play center for his team this season listed below, that’s why.
The Western Conference’s centers are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- Marc Gasol [Grizzlies] — $21,165,675
- DeAndre Jordan [Clippers] —$21,165,675
- Enes Kanter [Thunder] —$17,145,838
- DeMarcus Cousins [Kings] —$16,957,900
- Timofey Mozgov [Lakers] —$16,000,000
- Pau Gasol [Spurs] —$15,500,000
- Tyson Chandler [Suns] —$12,415,000
- Nikola Pekovic [Wolves] —$12,100,000
- Andrew Bogut [Mavs] — $11,027,027
- Omer Asik [Pelicans] —$9,904,494
- Kosta Koufos [Kings] —$8,046,500
- Cole Aldrich [Wolves] —$7,643,979
- Festus Ezeli [Blazers] —$7,400,000
- Tarik Black [Lakers] —$6,191,000
- Karl-Anthony Towns [Wolves] —$5,960,160
- Alex Len [Suns] —$4,823,621
- Alexis Ajinca [Pelicans] —$4,638,203
- Jordan Hill [Wolves] —$4,000,000
- Willie Cauley-Stein [Kings] —$3,551,160
- Anderson Varejao [Warriors] — $3,535,664 *See note below
- Steven Adams [Thunder] —$3,140,517
- Dewayne Dedmon [Spurs] —$2,898,000
- Nene [Rockets] —$2,898,000
- Zaza Pachulia [Warriors] — $2,898,000
- Gorgui Dieng [Wolves] —$2,348,783
- Mason Plumlee [Blazers] —$2,328,530
- Georgios Papagiannis [Kings] —$2,202,240
- Rudy Gobert [Jazz] —$2,121,287
- Jusuf Nurkic [Nuggets] — $1,921,320
- Anderson Varejao [Warriors] — $1,551,659
- JaVale McGee[Warriors] — $1,403,611
- Marreese Speights [Clippers] —$1,403,611
- Nikola Jokic [Nuggets] — $1,358,500
- Clint Capela [Roclets] —$1,296,240
- Damian Jones [Warriors] — $1,171,560
- Greg Stiemsma [Blazers] — $1,139,123
- Robert Sacre [Pelicans] —$1,050,961
- Ivica Zubac [Lakers] —$1,034,956
- Jeff Withey [Jazz] —$1,015,696
- Salah Mejri [Mavs] — $874,636
- Joffrey Lauvergne [Thunder] —$854,860
- A.J. Hammons [Mavs] — $650,000
- Chinanu Onuaku [Rockets] — $543,471
- Diamond Stone [Clippers] —$543,471
Note: Varejao’s salary includes the $1,551,659 he is earning from the Warriors and the $1,984,005 he is being paid by the Blazers, who waived him via the Stretch Provision.
Hoops Rumors Originals: 9/17/16-9/24/16
Here’s a look back at the original content and analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this past week.
- We asked readers to do over the 2008 NBA Draft. Here’s who you selected for picks No. 27, No. 28, No. 29 and No. 30 overall.
- We ran down the key upcoming dates and deadlines around the NBA.
- Luke Adams examined Paul George as an extension candidate.
- Will Joseph highlighted some of the better basketball blogs around in his weekly installment of Hoops Links.
- We looked at the 2016/17 Salary Cap figures for the:
- Arthur Hill answered reader questions in our Weekly Mailbag. Here’s how you can submit your own questions for our mailbag feature.
- We ran down the salary rankings of the point guards in the Western Conference.
- In our Community Shootarounds this week we discussed:
- Will Dwyane Wade ever play for the Heat again?
- Who will become the first NBA player to ink a deal worth $200MM+?
- Which eligible members of the Thunder will sign extensions prior to this year’s deadline?
- Should the Heat allow Chris Bosh to play again despite his blood-clotting issues?
- Our Free Agent Tracker continues to have up-to-date data on this summer’s contract agreements and signings from around the NBA.
- You can stay up to date on any contract extensions agreed to this season with our tracker.
- If you haven’t already, be sure to download the Trade Rumors app for your iOS or Android device.
Western Conference Salary Rankings: Point Guards
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the salaries, separated by conference, for each NBA player by position. The first spot on the hardwood that I’ll be looking at is the Western Conference’s point guards, which is one of the most vital positions on the hardwood.
All told, the teams out west have committed a total of $314,940,435 in cap hits this season to the men who facilitate their offenses. The average conference salary for the one spot this season is a respectable $5,525,271, with Mike Conley and Russell Westbrook topping the list with a whopping $26,540,100 to account for on their year-end W-2 forms.
It should be noted that teams won’t necessarily pay out every dollar listed here. There are quite a few players who have non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts. Some of those players won’t make it out of the preseason, while others will be sweating it out until January 10th, 2017. That’s when teams must waive players with no specific guarantee date written into their contracts to avoid having to guarantee their salaries for the rest of the season. In addition, incentive clauses that a player either triggers or fails to meet can leave a player with more or less money than his cap hit reflects. Still, the purpose of this list is to show the relative pay scale by position, which is why all contracts are included in this post.
I should also add that not every player listed below will play at the one spot this season, as some are combo guards, while others may be used exclusively at shooting guard. To maintain uniformity, I used their positions listed on the teams’ official rosters to determine which positional list to include them on. So if you see a player who isn’t necessarily expected to play point guard for his team this season listed below, that’s why.
The Western Conference’s point guards are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- Mike Conley [Grizzlies] — $26,540,100
- Russell Westbrook [Thunder] —$26,540,100
- Damian Lillard [Blazers] —$24,328,425
- Chris Paul [Clippers] —$22,868,827
- Tony Parker [Spurs] —$14,445,313
- Eric Bledsoe [Suns] —$14,000,000
- Ricky Rubio [Wolves] —$13,550,000
- Brandon Knight [Suns] —$12,606,250
- Jordan Clarkson [Lakers] —$12,500,000
- Stephen Curry [Warriors] — $12,112,359
- Jrue Holiday [Pelicans] —$11,286,518
- Austin Rivers [Clippers] —$11,000,000
- Deron Williams [Mavs] — $9,000,000
- George Hill [Jazz] —$8,000,000
- Jose Calderon [Lakers] —$7,708,427
- Patrick Beverley [Rockets] —$6,000,000
- Shaun Livingston [Warriors] — $5,782,450
- D’Angelo Russell [Lakers] —$5,332,800
- Darren Collison [Kings] —$5,229,454
- Jameer Nelson [Nuggets] — $4,540,525
- Devin Harris [Mavs] — $4,227,996
- J.J. Barea [Mavs] — $4,096,950
- Dante Exum [Jazz] —$3,940,320
- Kris Dunn [Wolves] —$3,872,520
- Patty Mills [Spurs] —$3,578,948
- Emmanuel Mudiay [Nuggets] — $3,241,800
- Ronnie Price [Thunder] —$2,557,545
- Shelvin Mack [Jazz] —$2,433,334
- Zach LaVine [Wolves] —$2,240,880
- Cameron Payne [Thunder] —$2,112,480
- Tim Frazier [Pelicans] —$2,090,000
- Jordan Farmar [Kings] — $1,921,519 *See note below
- Wade Baldwin [Grizzlies] — $1,793,760
- Tyler Ennis [Rockets] —$1,733,880
- Raymond Felton [Clippers] — $1,551,659
- Marcelo Huertas [Lakers] —$1,500,000
- John Lucas III [Wolves] — $1,403,611
- Shabazz Napier [Blazers] —$1,350,120
- Tyus Jones [Wolves] —$1,339,680
- Ty Lawson [Kings] — $1,315,448
- Dejounte Murray [Spurs] —$1,180,080
- Pablo Prigioni [Rockets] — $1,050,961
- Tony Wroten [Grizzlies] — $1,050,961
- Bobby Brown [Rockets] —$980,431
- Nate Wolters [Nuggets] — $980,431
- Andrew Harrison [Grizzlies] — $945,000
- Raul Neto [Jazz] —$937,800
- Tyler Ulis [Suns] —$918,369
- Xavier Munford [Clippers] — $874,636
- Ryan Arcidiacono [Spurs] —$543,471
- Semaj Christon [Thunder] —$543,471
- Isaiah Cousins [Kings] —$543,471
- Jonathan Gibson [Mavs] — $543,471
- Patrick McCaw [Warriors] — $543,471
- Marcus Paige [Jazz]—$543,471
- Gary Payton II [Rockets] —$543,471
- Isaiah Taylor [Rockets] — $543,471
*Note: Farmar’s salary total includes the $1,410,598 he is being paid by Memphis, plus the $510,921 he is collecting from Clippers, who waived him via stretch provision.
2016/17 Salary Cap Snapshots
We at Hoops Rumors have been breaking down the salary cap and luxury tax figures for each team, as well as tracking how much cash each franchise has remaining to use in trades and what payroll exceptions have been utilized and which are still available. As players are signed, waived or traded, we’ll continue to update these posts throughout the year as financial terms are relayed and moves are made official. You’ll be able to find this master list posted on our sidebar to the right, and if you follow us on Twitter, we’ll alert you as to when any changes have been made to your favorite team.
Listed below, separated by Conference and Division, are the links to the Salary Cap Snapshots for each franchise:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
Central Division
Southeast Division
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Northwest Division
Pacific Division
Southwest Division
Community Shootaround: Chris Bosh
Chris Bosh‘s medical issues have created a cloud of mystery heading into the Heat’s training camp next week. Bosh believes he’s ready to return to the court, while the team wrestles with the consequences of giving him the green light after two blood clotting episodes.
Bosh had his season cut short after 44 games two seasons ago when the medical condition initially surfaced. He made it through 53 games last season before a second blood clot was discovered in his leg.
At that time, team doctors told him that his career was probably over. Bosh has resisted that diagnosis, believing that the problem can be controlled by medication without significant risk. In recent years, the NHL’s Tomas Fleischmann has taken blood thinners that leave the body quickly and allow him to play and practice.
However, the team has not cleared him to play and as ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported this week, the franchise is concerned about bringing him back over the long term. Bosh has threatened to get the NBA Players Association involved if the Heat continue to block his attempt to play again. According to another ESPN report, there is no timetable for a resolution.
There’s no question that the Heat look like a much more serious contender in the Eastern Conference with Bosh in uniform. He averaged 21.1 points and 7.0 rebounds in 2014/15 and 19.1 points and 7.4 rebounds last season.
Bosh’s $23.7MM takes a big chunk of the team’s salary cap and the team has already spent over the cap for the upcoming season. Miami’s unimposing options at power forward besides Bosh – Derrick Williams, James Johnson, Josh McRoberts and Stefan Jankovic – reinforce the notion that the Heat need Bosh in the lineup to become a viable playoff contender.
That leads us to our question(s) of the day: Should the Heat allow Chris Bosh to play again despite his blood-clotting issues? If so, do you think Bosh can make it through the season without any setbacks?
Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the topic. We look forward to what you have to say.