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2014/15 D-League Usage Report: Hawks

April 9th, 2015 at 8:58pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The D-League’s regular season is now complete, and the three-round D-League playoffs are underway. The relationship between the NBA and the D-League continues to grow, and 17 NBA franchises currently have one-to-one D-League affiliates amongst the 18 D-League teams. The remaining 13 NBA teams shared the Fort Wayne Mad Ants this season.

We at Hoops Rumors will be recapping each team’s use of the D-League this season, looking at assignments and recalls as well as the players signed out of the D-League. We’ll begin with a look back at how the Hawks utilized the D-League during the 2014/15 campaign…

D-League Team: Fort Wayne Mad Ants

Affiliation Type: Shared

D-League Team Record: 28-22

Number of NBA Players Assigned To D-League: 3

Total D-League Assignments: 11

Player Stats While On Assignment:

  1. John Jenkins: 2 assignments, 5 games, 19.4 PPG, 3.8 RPG, and 0.6 APG. .594/.333/1.000
  2. Mike Muscala: 5 assignments, 6 games, 12.8 PPG, 8.7 RPG, and 1.7 APG. .475/.500/.857.
  3. Adreian Payne: 4 assignments, 6 games, 13.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG, and 2.3 APG. .409/.000/.818

D-League Signings

  1. Austin Daye (Erie BayHawks-Magic Affiliate): Signed 1st 10-day contract on March 15th; 2nd 10-day on March 25th; Signed a multiyear deal on April 3rd.
  2. Jarell Eddie (Austin Spurs-Spurs Affiliate): Signed 1st 10-day contract on March 5th.

Assignment/Recall Log

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2015/16 Salary Commitments: Spurs

April 9th, 2015 at 6:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the NBA trade deadline passed, teams are focusing on locking down playoff spots or vying for a better chance in the draft lottery. Outside of the players who are added on 10-day deals, or those lucky enough to turn those auditions into long-term contracts, teams’ rosters are relatively set for the remainder of the season.

We at Hoops Rumors are in the process of taking a look ahead at each franchise’s salary cap situation heading into the summer, and the free agent frenzy that occurs every offseason. While the exact amount of the 2015/16 salary cap won’t be announced until July, the cap is projected to come in somewhere around $67.4MM, with the luxury tax threshold projected at approximately $81MM. This year’s $63.065MM cap represented an increase of 7.7% over 2013/14, which was well above the league’s projected annual increase of 4.5%.

We’ll continue onward by taking a look at the Spurs’ cap outlook for 2015/16…

Here are the players with guaranteed contracts:

Here are the players with non-guaranteed contracts:

Players with options:

  • None

The Spurs’ Cap Summary for 2015/16:

  • Guaranteed Salary: $34,159,326
  • Options/Non-Guaranteed Salary: $1,185,784
  • Total: $35,345,110

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

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Prospect Profile: Myles Turner

April 8th, 2015 at 9:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

It’s been a “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” sort of season for Texas big man Myles Turner, who officially announced that he’ll be entering this year’s NBA draft. Turner’s play this season helped the Longhorns lock down an 11th seed in the 2015 NCAA Tournament. But unfortunately in Texas’ first round contest it was one of those nights when the meeker Dr. Jekyll version of the center showed up, and Turner had just two lonely points to go along with 10 rebounds in the Longhorns’ loss to Butler.

NCAA Basketball: Texas at KansasThe Texas native was ranked No. 6 overall in the Recruiting Services Consensus Index coming out of high school, but he didn’t quite live up to the hype during what will be his sole college season in the Lone Star state. In a draft rich with talented big men, Turner’s stats this season don’t necessarily rate him as a lottery pick. If a team selects Turner in the top 10 it will be more about his long-term potential than the player he is right now. Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) ranks Turner as the No. 10 overall prospect, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress rates him the No. 12 overall player in this year’s NBA draft.

Turner’s overall numbers for the season weren’t eye-popping, with averages of 10.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 0.6 assists, and 2.6 blocks in 22.2 minutes per night. His shooting numbers in 34 appearances were .455/.274/.839. Turner was 1st in the Big 12 Conference in blocks, 1st in defensive rating (86.3), and 3rd in free throw percentage.

There was a large discrepancy between Turner’s performances against lesser competition and what he logged against the bigger, more talented schools. The 19-year-old failed to score in double figures in 20 of the 34 games he played in, and he only reached double digit rebounds in a total of seven contests. It’s unclear how much of Turner’s struggles with consistency can be placed upon the shoulders of former Texas coach Rick Barnes, who was let go by the university after Texas’ tournament ouster. Barnes’ system wasn’t a great fit for Turner, but one would still like to see more production from a potential lottery selection.

Offensively, Turner is more of a jump shooter at this stage of his development than a post up threat. The big man has good instincts on the offensive end, something that isn’t all that common in young power forwards and centers his age. Turner has a nice high release point on his shot which will translate nicely to the NBA and its bigger, more athletic players. He also can drain shots from beyond the arc, but isn’t a consistent threat from deep just yet. The forward is also a superior free throw shooter, nailing nearly 84% of his attempts from the charity stripe this season.

One major concern regarding Turner is his odd and somewhat awkward running style. The forward doesn’t move well in transition, even by big man standards. According to Givony, citing statistics gathered by Synergy Sports Technology, Turner only made five field goals (out of 13 attempts) all season in transition situations. That is an alarmingly low percentage for a college player with Turner’s level of athleticism, and should raise some red flags amongst scouts and GMs. Turner’s running style also has some scouts worried that he could be an injury risk, something that is already a concern with taller players without the added worry Turner’s unusual gait brings.

As a defender, Turner is far from a slouch. He was one of the anchors on a Texas team that ranked in the top-20 in the nation on defense, and he is a fearsome shot blocker and also an excellent help defender. While Turner still needs to bulk up, a common requirement for college bigs transitioning to the NBA, his excellent 9’1.5″ reach should make him a tough defender once he figures out the professional game.

The seven-footer does have a leg up on a number of college forwards, in that Turner does have a clearly defined NBA position. Far too many college bigs transition to the league without a set position, and those players usually don’t turn out to be much better than complementary rotation players for their careers. Turner is a prototypical stretch four as far as his skills go, and with the increasing demand for big men who can stretch the floor in the NBA, he shouldn’t be lacking for work anytime soon.

Turner is easily one of the more polarizing talents in this year’s NBA draft. He has top five pick potential, but his athletic limitations and injury concerns will likely cause him to drop to the bottom of the lottery, or out of it altogether. His pre-draft physicals will be paramount to his case to be a top 10 pick. If teams are too wary of his potential knee and hip issues, then Turner will slide down the draft board and some team picking in the late teens could land themselves a steal. Turner has the potential to provide similar production to that of LaMarcus Aldridge and Chris Bosh, though it will likely take him multiple seasons to even begin to approach those players’ levels. In a draft loaded with talented big men, Turner carries with him one of the higher risk versus reward ratios. But he’s absolutely worth taking a chance on for a team picking in the teens, though I wouldn’t risk a top 10 pick on him considering the depth in this year’s draft at Turner’s position.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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2014/15 NBA Reverse Standings

April 8th, 2015 at 9:30am CST by Chuck Myron

There’s just one week left in the 2014/15 regular season, meaning that for the 14 teams that don’t make the playoffs, the lottery and the 2015 NBA draft become the primary focus. Much of the draft order and many of the lottery positions remain in flux, and with the Hoops Rumors Reverse Standings, which list the NBA’s 30 teams from worst to first, you can follow along as it comes down to the wire. We update these standings daily to reflect the outcomes of the games that took place the night before.

The Reverse Standings take into account playoff teams in each conference, so they’re essentially a reflection of what the 2015 first-round order would look like if the lottery goes according to the odds. Traded picks are indicated via footnotes. For instance, the note attached to the Thunder’s pick shows that they’ll send it to the Sixers if it falls outside the top 18 selections. The final week of the season will determine the pick’s fate, since the Thunder are in 14th place in the Reverse Standings as the non-playoff team with the best record, but they’re only a half-game back of the Pelicans, who occupy the 18th spot.

The existence of the lottery means there’s no guarantee that teams atop the Reverse Standings will draft in the order in which they finish, but the worse a club’s record, the better shot it has at landing the cream of the 2015 draft class. This year’s top prospects include Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, D’Angelo Russell and Emmanuel Mudiay, all of whom carry plenty of star potential.

Our Reverse Standings feature can be found at anytime on our right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features.” It’s a great resource not just for monitoring a team’s draft position, but also for keeping an eye on whether or not traded picks with protection will be changing hands in 2015. Be sure to check back often as the season draws to a close!

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10-Day Contract Trends In 2014/15

April 7th, 2015 at 10:19am CST by Chuck Myron

There are fewer than 10 days left in the regular season, so that means there won’t be any more 10-day contracts this year. Still, it was the most prolific season for 10-day contracts in recent years, as 48 players signed a least one such deal, up from 41 last year and 36 the year before. It’s the most in any season on record in our 10-Day Contract Tracker, which dates back to the 2006/07 season.

We’ll use the data from this year’s tracker to illustrate a few trends and notable statistics that emerged from this year’s 10-day signings. It’s still possible that we’ll see some 10-day signees ink deals that cover the rest of the season, and perhaps a team or two will choose to end one of its current 10-day deals before it runs to term, so some of the data may change. Still, we can see a fairly accurate picture of the 10-day landscape now that no new 10-day deals may be issued. Here’s a look at what happened:

  • The Jazz emerged as the team that gave out the most 10-day contracts, though that’s no surprise, since they had a commanding lead as of a few weeks ago. They signed ten 10-day deals with six players. The Knicks and Clippers finished right behind them, as each gave out seven 10-day deals to four players.
  • Four players signed 10-day contracts with multiple teams, and one, Elliot Williams, signed 10-day contracts with three teams — the Jazz, the Hornets and the Pelicans. None of those teams signed him for the season. The three other multiteam 10-day signees are JaMychal Green (Spurs and Grizzlies), Chris Johnson (Jazz and Bucks) and Quincy Miller (Kings and Pistons), each of whom eventually wound up with a rest-of-season deal.
  • Teams re-signed 26 10-day signees to deals that covered the rest of the season. Only three of them came after a single 10-day contract, as most of the players cycled through two 10-day pacts before moving on to rest-of-season deals.
  • A dozen players signed two 10-day contracts with a team but didn’t end up with rest-of-season deals. That includes Williams, who didn’t re-sign with the Jazz or the Pelicans despite two 10-day stints with each.
  • There were 14 players signed to just a single 10-day contract with a team, though four of those deals are still current, so there’s a decent chance they’ll join the trio of guys who followed one 10-day with a rest-of-season pact.
  • Five players saw their 10-day contracts end early, as their teams exercised their right to terminate the deals before the 10 days were up. The shortest time a player spent on a 10-day contract was two days, as the Pelicans released Toney Douglas the day after signing him. New Orleans circled back around and signed him for the season more than a month later.
  • The longest period of time a player spent on a 10-day deal was 13 days. That’s because the Pistons signed John Lucas III to a 10-day contract right before the All-Star break, which was lengthier than normal this year. The league stipulates that 10-day contracts cover at least three games, and the long gap in the schedule afforded Lucas extra time on his deal.
  • Mark Bartelstein’s Priority Sports & Entertainment was the leading agency involved with 10-day contracts this year, with five clients signing 10-day pacts. Three of them wound up signing for the season, while a fourth, Lester Hudson, is still on a 10-day contract with the Clippers.
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Protected 2015 Second-Rounders Up For Grabs

April 6th, 2015 at 5:28pm CST by Chuck Myron

The regular season ends a week from Wednesday, and by now most of the playoff spots and non-lottery draft order have been decided. A team’s place in the draft order can mean a lot when there are protections attached to a pick that’s been sent out in a trade. There are two first-round picks that could change hands or stay put based on the final days of the regular season, as we chronicled last week, and there are also second-round picks still up in the air. The protection clauses attached to some of them are complex, so we’ll dive in and analyze each of the three cases individually:

  • The Clippers owe their second-round pick to the Lakers if it falls from No. 51 through 55 and the Nuggets if it’s 56th through 60th. The Clips can’t finish with a record outside of the top 10 in the league, which they’d need to do to keep the pick. Still, whether it goes to the Lakers or the Nuggets is anybody’s guess. It would go to the Nuggets as it stands, but the Clippers are only a half-game better than the Spurs, with the Blazers and Cavs right behind them. So if any of those teams passes the Clippers, the pick goes to the Lakers.
  • The Wizards owe their pick to the Celtics, but only if it falls from No. 50 to No. 60. Washington would pick 49th if the season ended today, but the Raptors are only one game better, and the Mavericks and Bulls are tied at one game above Toronto. So, while the Wizards could improve their playoff seeding, it could cost them their second-rounder. Washington’s obligation to the Celtics would end if the pick doesn’t convey this year, so it all comes down to the final games of the season.
  • The Trail Blazers and Bulls will be giving up their second-rounders this year, but the teams that get those respective picks could switch places. The Magic get whichever pick is better, and the Cavaliers get the other one. Chances are that Chicago’s pick will be going to Orlando and Portland’s to Cleveland, since the Blazers have a four and a half game lead on Chicago. Still, the Bulls aren’t mathematically eliminated from passing the Blazers just yet.

RealGM was used in the creation of this post.

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Use Of Stretch Provision Continues To Grow

April 6th, 2015 at 1:28pm CST by Chuck Myron

When we last looked at the way NBA teams were using the stretch provision, in early September, four players in a single week had just had their salaries spread as front offices rushed to beat a key deadline. That surpassed the total of three on whom the provision had ever been used since its inception following the 2011 lockout. Since that sudden surge, five more players have joined the list, including two who have the largest-ever stretched contracts.

No team had dared to spread more than $3.25MM when the regular season began. That changed dramatically when the Pistons stunningly decided in December to waive Josh Smith and defray the cost of the $27MM they owed him for 2015/16 and 2016/17 over a five-year period. They’ll pay him $5.4MM each year through 2019/20, since the provision calls for the salary to be spread in equal amounts over a length of time that’s double the number of years left on the deal, plus one. Detroit couldn’t keep the entirety of his $13.5MM for this season from sticking on its books, since the passage of the September 1st deadline prevented that. Still, the Pistons bought themselves some cap flexibility for the next two summers at the expense of the three to follow.

The Bucks followed with an even longer timetable for Larry Sanders, who still had three and a half years left on his contract when he and Milwaukee pulled off a buyout in February. The buyout left Sanders with only about $13.059MM of the $33MM he was supposed to see from 2015/16 through 2017/18, and the Bucks used the stretch provision to further minimize their obligation for those seasons. Milwaukee will have close to $1.866MM for Sanders on the books for a whopping seven years, a period that will carry all the way through 2021/22. Still, the Bucks won’t feel quite as much of a burden as they would have if there had been no buyout, which would have had them shelling out $11MM for the next three seasons, or if there had been a buyout but no stretch, which would have left $4.353MM cap hits each season through 2017/18.

Here’s a look at each use of the stretch provision since it came into being, listed in reverse chronological order. The month in which each use occurred is in parentheses, which helps illustrate just how much more frequently the provision has come into play within the past nine months. All salaries shown are the total amounts the teams stretched, and not the figures they’ll pay out each year. The salaries are rounded to the nearest $1K.

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

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The Beat: Chris Vivlamore On The Hawks

April 6th, 2015 at 10:19am CST by Chuck Myron

Nobody knows NBA teams better than beat writers, save for those who draw paychecks with an NBA owner’s signature on them. The reporters who are with the teams they cover every day gain an intimate knowledge of the players, coaches and executives they write about and develop sources who help them break news and stay on top of rumors.

We at Hoops Rumors will be chatting with beat writers from around the league and sharing their responses to give you a better perspective on how and why teams make some of their most significant moves. We began the series last time with Dan Woike, who covers the Clippers for the Orange County Register. Today, we hear from Hawks beat writer Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. You can follow Chris on Twitter at @CVivlamoreAJC. Click here to check out his stories and here to see his blog at AJC.com. 

Hoops Rumors: Are the Hawks as surprised by how well their season has gone as much as everyone else is, or did the organization feel as though this roster was capable of a giant leap?

  • Chris Vivlamore: I’m not sure anyone saw such a dramatic leap this season but the Hawks thought they had a good team. They were third in the East last season before Al Horford got hurt and pushed the top-seeded Pacers to seven games in the playoffs, a series they probably should have won. With Horford back, they certainly thought they could be a contender in the Eastern Conference. Also, another season under Mike Budenholzer’s system — with nearly the entire roster back — was reason for heightened expectation.

Hoops Rumors: A healthy Horford has certainly helped, but aside from that, what’s been the most significant difference this season compared to last?

  • Chris Vivlamore: The most significant differences from last season were the additions of Thabo Sefolosha and Kent Bazemore and the incredible progress of Dennis Schröder from his rookie season. Not much was made of the acquisitions of Sefolosha and Bazemore during the summer. However, they added much needed depth – especially at the wing behind DeMarre Carroll. That has led to an improved defense, which is really the staple of Budenholzer’s system. Too often last season, the Hawks would falter without Carroll in the lineup or as he tired from guarding the opposition’s top non-frontcourt threat. Sefolosha and Bazemore firm up the defense and allow the Hawks to come at an opposing star player in waves. Schröder has turned into a legitimate point guard in the NBA, which is a major step from last season. He continues to use his speed to get in the paint and either finish at the rim or kick to an outside shooter. He has also improved his outside shot, which can be a threat.

Hoops Rumors: The Adreian Payne trade seemed like a curious one. He hadn’t played much at all, but he’s a 15th overall pick and he wasn’t even around for a full season. What was the team hoping to accomplish with that deal, and were you surprised that the Hawks would give up an asset like that with so much uncertainty surrounding the front office?

  • Chris Vivlamore: While the Payne trade was surprising, the thought process inside the organization was to free up a roster spot as Payne was stuck behind several others at the forward/center spot. He had Paul Millsap, Pero Antic, Elton Brand, Mike Muscala and even Mike Scott ahead of him. They ended up getting another first-round pick for him. I don’t believe the “uncertainty” around the front office had any impact on the deal.

Hoops Rumors: Budenholzer is acting as GM in place of Danny Ferry, but how much has the coach leaned on assistant GMs Wes Wilcox and Scott Wilkinson, senior adviser Rick Sund, and others in that front office? Who has the most prominent voice aside from Budenholzer?

  • Chris Vivlamore: The front office continues to work much the same as it did with Ferry. It’s a group effort with Wilcox and the basketball operations staff doing all the same work. They all meet and hash out decisions that need to be made — not unlike it works with the Spurs — to arrive at a consensus. Ultimately, Budenholzer has the final say. Even when Ferry was involved, the organization used the team approach for player personnel decisions and other matters. In that regard, not much has changed.

Hoops Rumors: It’s tough to gauge where the roster is headed with Ferry in limbo and the ownership situation still up in the air. That said, do you get a sense from Millsap and Carroll that, all things being equal, they’d like to stick around if the money is right?

  • Chris Vivlamore: The process really hasn’t even begun for Millsap and Carroll as they must go to free agency. I believe there will be plenty of suitors for both and each will get a significant salary increase when it’s all said and done. They have both earned a raise with their play. Quite frankly, they are bargains for what they have produced on the court. I think the Hawks want them back and are prepared to pay each. I think the players want to come back based on the success of the team and their increased roles in Atlanta. However, once teams start making offers you never really know what will happen.

Hoops Rumors: It doesn’t seem as though there’s been a shortage of potential bidders for the team, but you wrote that the sale process could drag on into June. Why do you think it’s taking so long?

  • Chris Vivlamore: I wish I had a good answer for this question. I can just say with an organization that is so structured with different groups and individuals — who are so divided — that the smallest of details take forever to complete. The process of selling the franchise and arena is a huge undertaking to get every group on the same page – or at least in enough agreement to move forward.
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Hoops Rumors On Social Media/RSS

April 4th, 2015 at 10:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The NBA’s regular season is winding down, which means the draft and free agency will soon be the focus for nearly half the league. There are a handful of ways you can follow us to keep tabs on the latest news and rumors as these storylines unfold.

Hoops Rumors has opened a Google Plus account that you can follow for headlines and links to all of our posts. You can also Like us on Facebook and see our content through your account there. Follow us on Twitter to have all our posts and updates sent directly to your Twitter feed. Our RSS feed is located here if you’d like to follow us using your reader of choice.

If you prefer to receive updates only on roster moves such as signings, cuts, and trades, you can follow our transactions-only feeds via RSS and Twitter.

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2015/16 Salary Commitments: Kings

April 4th, 2015 at 5:17pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the NBA trade deadline passed, teams are focusing on locking down playoff spots or vying for a better chance in the draft lottery. Outside of the players who are added on 10-day deals, or those lucky enough to turn those auditions into long-term contracts, teams’ rosters are relatively set for the remainder of the season.

We at Hoops Rumors are in the process of taking a look ahead at each franchise’s salary cap situation heading into the summer, and the free agent frenzy that occurs every offseason. While the exact amount of the 2015/16 salary cap won’t be announced until July, the cap is projected to come in somewhere around $67.4MM, with the luxury tax threshold projected at approximately $81MM. This year’s $63.065MM cap represented an increase of 7.7% over 2013/14, which was well above the league’s projected annual increase of 4.5%.

We’ll continue onward by taking a look at the Kings’ cap outlook for 2015/16…

Here are the players with guaranteed contracts:

Here are the players with non-guaranteed contracts:

Players with options:

  • None

The Kings’ Cap Summary for 2015/16:

  • Guaranteed Salary: $53,149,680
  • Options/Non-Guaranteed Salary: $1,792,335
  • Total: $54,942,015

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

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