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Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 7/28/15

July 28th, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Hornets could have had four first-round picks if they’d just been willing to give up the ninth selection to the Celtics, as Grantland’s Zach Lowe detailed earlier today. Boston also offered four first-rounders to the Heat for pick No. 10, as Dan Le Batard of the Miami Herald and ESPN reported last month. Both Charlotte and Miami said no and kept their top 10 picks.

The Heat and the Hornets had no guarantee from the Celtics that any of the four picks would be as high in the order as the ones they already held. Still, the ninth and 10th selections aren’t generally places where superstars come from. Justise Winslow looks like a steal at No. 10 for Miami, but Frank Kaminsky, whom Charlotte took at No. 9, has a limited ceiling. Neither is certain to pan out.

Thus, the question for today: Would you rather your team have one pick in the back half of the lottery, or four picks later in the first-round? Kawhi Leonard, a former No. 15 pick, and Jimmy Butler, once the last pick of the first round, signed deals this month that will give them maximum salaries this coming season, proving that top-flight talent can come from any point in the round. Still, the outlook for lottery picks is generally better than it is for anyone else, and teams picking higher in the order have the power of choice. But sometimes, the best choice involves a trade.

Tell us what you would do if you had a late lottery pick and received an offer for four first-rounders. To comment, simply enter your name and email address, write what you want to say, and submit it; there’s no need to become a registered user. Just make sure you comply with our commenting policy.

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Column: Indiana Ready To Move At Different Pace

July 28th, 2015 at 8:03am CST by Hoops Rumors

Sam Amico, the founder and editor of AmicoHoops.net and a broadcast journalist for Fox Sports Ohio, will write a weekly feature for Hoops Rumors with news, rumors and insight from around the NBA. We’re excited to present the first installment here:

It should be an interesting season for the Indiana Pacers.

Two years ago, the Pacers were a real contender. They lost to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals but appeared to be on the brink of very good things. They were making major strides, seemingly a franchise that would soon get over the hump.

Then Lance Stephenson left in free agency.

Then Paul George suffered a horrific leg injury while playing an exhibition with Team USA.

Then the Pacers suddenly became a middle-of-the-road club, fighting to make the playoffs, but not quite good enough to get in.

So president of basketball operations and basketball icon Larry Bird decided to give them a bit of a makeover. Bird and coach Frank Vogel aimed to get the Pacers to move at a quicker, well, pace. They want to push the ball, force the tempo, and move away from the smash-mouth style of the previous five or six years.

That style worked well for the Pacers — but it truly was an elbows-out, feet-on-the-floor type of game and it only carried them so far.

So plodding 7’2″ center Roy Hibbert was shipped off to the Lakers (for virtually nothing), aging power forward David West left for San Antonio, and Bird suddenly started talking about the possibility of George, a swingman by trade, playing some power forward.

(As an aside, when George hinted he may be less than thrilled with the position change, Bird uttered a line only a man with his credentials can utter. “He don’t make the decisions around here,” Bird said, drawing laughter.)

Either way, the Pacers will be playing an entirely different style — and they believe that with the addition of a healthy George and free agent signees Monta Ellis and Jordan Hill, they are ready for take-off.

Bird and Vogel also seem especially excited about rookie lottery pick Myles Turner, a big man with a perimeter game, and even Joseph Young, a push-it-up and fill-it-up combo guard drafted in the second round.

Also, even after the signing of Glenn Robinson III, the Pacers may still have a few minor moves in the works.

Right now, Turner is likely the starting center, with Hill and George in the frontcourt, and George Hill and Ellis at guard. Word is, Bird wants another experienced big, and someone such as Carlos Boozer may eventually come cheap.

But no matter who comes and goes, it’s clear that Bird, his front office team and coaching staff are taking a different approach to finding success. And with good health and smooth adaptation to a new playing style, the Pacers just may be on to something.

Around the NBA

1. Several league execs have said this could be a breakout season for Perry Jones III, a fourth-year forward who was recently traded from Oklahoma City to Boston. “I’m just happy to have a fresh start,” Jones told the media Monday, including Jay King of MassLive.com (Twitter link). “It’s something that I needed.”

2. Since last season, the Celtics have added David Lee, Amir Johnson, Jones and draft picks Terry Rozier and R.J. Hunter. “It feels like we’ve taken a step forward in this offseason by adding these guys and our draft picks,” owner Wyc Grousbeck told reporters Monday, including Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com (Twitter link).

3. One untrue rumor making rounds is J.R. Smith to the Lakers. But Smith is considerably more likely to return to the Cavs than go anywhere else. And the Lakers aren’t interested. A deal between the Cavs and Smith could be finalized within the next seven to 10 days.

4. Tayshaun Prince and the recently released Henry Walker are both drawing interest from Portland.

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Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 7/27/15

July 27th, 2015 at 11:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Celtics made their long-awaited acquisition of David Lee official today, one of a flurry of moves that took place as the team used up the last of its cap space. Boston also traded for Zoran Dragic, though it appears the C’s will let him go and simply pocket the second-round pick they acquired as part of the deal. Boston formally announced its deal with Jae Crowder and signed first-round picks Terry Rozier and R.J. Hunter, too.

Today’s moves still represent just a fraction of a busy month that also saw the Celtics sign Amir Johnson, re-sign Jonas Jerebko, sign No. 33 overall pick Jordan Mickey, trade for Perry Jones III and reportedly agree to camp deals with Levi Randolph and Corey Walden. Thus, the question of the day: How would you grade the offseason for the Celtics so far?

The team didn’t end up with a star, though it did bring in a former All-Star and 20-10 guy in Lee. The Celtics placed a heavy focus on youth, signing three of their four draft picks, and they also picked up another pair of future second-rounders in the Jones and Dragic trades. The team isn’t necessarily done, either, with 17 guaranteed contracts on the books, counting Dragic’s deal, so more moves appear to be in the offing. Still, in late July, the picture of Boston’s summer seems fairly clear.

So, being mindful of the commenting policy, let us know how the Celtics grade out. Just put in your name, email address, and comment and submit it; there’s no need to become a registered user.

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Hoops Rumors Originals 7/19/15-7/25/15

July 25th, 2015 at 2:47pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Here’s a look back at the original analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this past week…

  • Chuck Myron ran down the players who had the largest pay decreases from the 2014/15 to 2015/16 season.
  • I ran down the 2015/16 roster counts for the Trail Blazers, Kings, Spurs, Jazz, Wizards and Raptors. You can view the entire series here.
  • Chuck examined the major moves for each team that remained above the salary cap this offseason, and he reviewed their remaining flexibility.
  • We broke down this offseason’s player movement between conferences.
  • If you missed the week’s live chat, you can view the transcript here.
  • Chuck broke down how contract renegotiations work in the NBA.
  • Zach Links highlighted some of the better basketball blogs around in his weekly installment of Hoops Links.
  • If you missed any of our daily reader-driven discussions, be sure to check out the Community Shootaround archives.
  • I answered reader questions in Hoops Rumors’ Weekly Mailbag.
  • Chuck looked at some lucrative deals signed by former second round draft picks this past month.
  • Here’s how you can follow Hoops Rumors on social media and RSS feeds.
  • Chuck examined how teams are using the room exception.
  • We reviewed out commenting policy. Play nice everyone.
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2015/16 Roster Counts

July 24th, 2015 at 10:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

During the offseason it’s OK for teams to carry as many as 20 players, but clubs must trim their rosters down to a maximum of 15 by opening night. In the meantime, some teams will hang around that 15-man line, while others will max out their roster counts. Some clubs may actually have more than 15 contracts that are at least partially guaranteed on the books. That means they’ll end up paying players who won’t be on the regular season roster, unless they can find trade partners.

Here’s the complete listing of teams’ current roster counts sorted by conference and division:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Atlantic Division

Central Division

Southeast Division

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Northwest Division

Pacific Division

Southwest Division

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2015/16 Roster Counts: Washington Wizards

July 24th, 2015 at 7:16pm CST by Eddie Scarito

During the offseason it’s OK for teams to carry as many as 20 players, but clubs must trim their rosters down to a maximum of 15 by opening night. In the meantime, some teams will hang around that 15-man line, while others will max out their roster counts. Some clubs may actually have more than 15 contracts that are at least partially guaranteed on the books. That means they’ll end up paying players who won’t be on the regular season roster, unless they can find trade partners.

With plenty more movement still to come, here’s the latest look at the Wizards’ roster size, the contract guarantee status of each player, and how each player came to be on Washington’s roster.

(Last Updated 3-9-16, 3:00pm)

Fully Guaranteed (15)

  • Alan Anderson (G/F) — 6’6″/32 years old. Free agent signing.
  • Bradley Beal (G) — 6’5″/22 years old. Drafted with No. 3 overall pick in 2012.
  • Jared Dudley (G/F) — 6’7″/30 years old. Acquired via trade from Bucks.
  • Jarell Eddie (G) — 6’7″/24 years old. Free agent signing.
  • Drew Gooden (F) — 6’10″/33 years old. Free agent signing.
  • Marcin Gortat (C) — 6’11″/31 years old. Acquired via trade with Suns.
  • J.J. Hickson (F/C) — 6’9″/27 years old. Free agent signing.
  • Markieff Morris (F) — 6’10″/25 years old. Acquired via trade with Suns.
  • Nene (F/C) — 6’11″/32 years old. Acquired via trade with Nuggets.
  • Kelly Oubre (G/F) — 6’7″/19 years old. Draft rights acquired via Hawks.
  • Otto Porter (F) — 6’8″/22 years old. Drafted with No. 3 overall pick in 2013.
  • Ramon Sessions (G) — 6’3″/29 years old. Acquired via trade with Kings.
  • Garrett Temple (G/F) — 6’6″/29 years old. Free agent signing.
  • Marcus Thornton (G) — 6/4″/28 years old. Free agent signing.
  • John Wall (G) — 6’4″/24 years old. Drafted with No. 1 overall pick in 2010.

10-Day Contracts (0)

  • None

TOTAL ROSTER COUNT (15)

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Lucrative Deals For Former Second-Round Picks

July 24th, 2015 at 3:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

Thursday’s Cavs-Pacers trade featured an exchange of second-round picks, with the Cavaliers receiving a 2019 second-rounder while the Pacers acquired the rights to Rakeem Christmas, this year’s 36th overall selection. It’s a swap that caused only a slight ripple in NBA waters, and indeed, most second-round picks don’t enjoy particularly memorable careers in the league, if they ever end up signing at all.

But, enough of them do such that second-rounders indeed have value. Ten free agents who were former second-round picks signed deals this month that totaled, respectively, at least $35MM. None were picked later in the second round than Marc Gasol, the 2007 48th overall pick who wound up re-signing with the Grizzlies on a max deal. DeAndre Jordan, the 35th pick from seven years ago, scored a max deal, too.

Teams like the Sixers and Celtics who’ve loaded up on second-rounders for the years to come have in essence bought up blocks of lottery tickets. The chances of success for any one particular second-round pick are slim. But, put together, picks 31-60 have some impressive credentials. Here are the top 10 deals that former second-round picks have signed this month, ranked by total value and rounded to the nearest $1K:

  1. Marc Gasol, Grizzlies (five years, $113.212MM) — 48th overall, 2007
  2. DeAndre Jordan, Clippers (four years, $87.616MM) — 35th overall, 2008
  3. Goran Dragic, Heat (five years, $85.002MM) — 45th overall, 2008
  4. Draymond Green, Warriors (five years, $82MM) — 35th overall, 2012
  5. Khris Middleton, Bucks (five years, $70MM) — 39th overall, 2012
  6. Paul Millsap, Hawks (three years, $60.216MM) — 47th overall, 2006
  7. Omer Asik, Pelicans (five years, $52.977MM) — 36th overall, 2008
  8. Monta Ellis, Pacers (four years, $43.981MM) — 40th overall, 2005
  9. Danny Green, Spurs (four years, $40MM) — 46th overall, 2009
  10. Jae Crowder, Celtics (five years, $35MM) — 34th overall, 2012

The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.

Which second-rounder from this year’s class do you think has the best chance to end up on a list like this one someday? Leave a comment to let us know.

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How Teams Are Using The Room Exception

July 24th, 2015 at 2:12pm CST by Chuck Myron

The NBA’s salary cap is a soft one, and that’s perhaps no better demonstrated than by the existence of the room exception. A form of the mid-level exception, it’s available for teams that have gone under the cap but spent their cap room. In other words, it’s essentially bonus cap room.

This year, the room exception is worth $2.814MM, and teams can use it to give two-year deals that include a 4.5% raise in the second season. So, the greatest total amount a player can receive using the room exception is $5,754,630. That’s not a lot, but it is significantly more than a two-year minimum-salary contract would entail, even for a veteran of 10 or more seasons.

The rising salary cap in the next few years will likely leave more teams under the cap each year, and thus, more teams with access to the room exception instead of the regular mid-level or taxpayer’s mid-level. That’s already the case for the majority of the league this summer. We noted Thursday that 13 teams stayed over the cap, so that leaves 17 teams that could use the room exception in 2015/16.

So far, only four teams have done so. Here’s a look at how they’ve used the room exception:

  • Bucks: Chris Copeland — Milwaukee has reportedly agreed to pay the forward $1.1MM this coming season, slightly more than his minimum salary. Thus, the Bucks, who’ve spent their cap space, would have to use part of the room exception for Copeland, leaving $1.714MM still available.
  • Pistons: Joel Anthony — The Pistons gave Anthony a two-year deal worth precisely $2.5MM each year, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. That leaves a $314K sliver of the exception that the Pistons can’t use in the offseason, since it’s less than the full season rookie minimum salary.
  • Raptors: Bismack Biyombo — Biyombo appears to have received the full value of the mid-level exception over two years, as Pincus indicates (Twitter links). Thus, Toronto is limited to paying no more than the minimum salary to outside free agents.
  • Spurs: Manu Ginobili — Ginobili’s contract is the same as Biyombo’s, according to Pincus, but the Spurs arrived at it by an unusual fashion, since they began the offseason with Ginobili’s Bird rights. They renounced those rights to clear cap room for LaMarcus Aldridge and others, circling back to Ginobili with the room exception once they used up their cap space, with Ginobili’s loyalty surely playing a key part. The Heat made a similar move with Udonis Haslem last summer. In any case, the renouncement doesn’t carry over now that Ginobili has re-signed, meaning that if Ginobili uses the player option in his deal to become a free agent next summer, the Spurs will again have his Bird rights, making it possible for him to sign a more lucrative deal with the team a year from now.

These are the other teams that could wind up using the room exception this season. Those with cap space still remaining are noted.

  • Celtics (cap space remaining)
  • Hawks
  • Jazz (cap space remaining)
  • Kings
  • Knicks
  • Lakers
  • Magic
  • Mavericks (cap space remaining)
  • Nuggets (cap space remaining)
  • Pacers (cap space remaining)
  • Sixers (cap space remaining)
  • Suns
  • Trail Blazers (cap space remaining)

Which remaining free agent do you think would be the strongest fit for a room exception deal, and which team should give it to him? Leave a comment to let us know.  

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Player Movement Between Conferences

July 24th, 2015 at 11:45am CST by Chuck Myron

The group of veterans moving from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference this summer outnumber those heading the opposite way, but it would be a stretch to say that the East made any noticeable progress toward correcting the imbalance between the two sides of the NBA. No superstars have changed conferences this summer, though both East and West benefited from several key contributors who made jumps. David West went from the Pacers to the Spurs, but Indiana replaced him with Monta Ellis. The Hornets sent Lance Stephenson to the Clippers, but they brought in Nicolas Batum from the Trail Blazers. The Blazers lost Arron Afflalo and Robin Lopez to the Knicks, but Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams and Roy Hibbert went from the Raptors and Pacers, respectively, to the Lakers.

Lists of each player shifting from conference to conference are below, categorized by conference:

PLAYERS MOVING EAST TO WEST

Signings

Trades

PLAYERS MOVING WEST TO EAST

Signings

Trades

Notes:

1 — The Pistons traded Butler to the Bucks last month, and Milwaukee waived him not long thereafter.
2 — The David Lee/Gerald Wallace trade has still yet to become official, though it remains on track for completion.

Which conference do you think has received the better end of the movement so far? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

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2015/16 Roster Counts: Utah Jazz

July 23rd, 2015 at 9:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

During the offseason it’s OK for teams to carry as many as 20 players, but clubs must trim their rosters down to a maximum of 15 by opening night. In the meantime, some teams will hang around that 15-man line, while others will max out their roster counts. Some clubs may actually have more than 15 contracts that are at least partially guaranteed on the books. That means they’ll end up paying players who won’t be on the regular season roster, unless they can find trade partners.

With plenty more movement still to come, here’s the latest look at the Jazz’s roster size, the contract guarantee status of each player, and how each player came to be on Utah’s roster.

(Last Updated 2-18-16, 12:38pm)

Fully Guaranteed (15)

10-Day Contracts (0)

  • None

TOTAL ROSTER COUNT (15)

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