2014/15 Salary Rankings: Power Forwards
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the cap hit for each NBA player by position. I’ve already posted the point guard, shooting guard, and small forward salary rankings for the 2014/15 campaign. The next spot on the hardwood that I’ll be looking at is the power forward position for the 2014/15 season.
All told, NBA teams have committed a total of $510,052,423 in cap hits this season to the men traditionally tasked with scoring in the paint and snagging rebounds around the league. The average hit for the four spot this season is a respectable $4,722,708, with Amar’e Stoudemire of the Knicks topping the list with a more than robust $23,410,988.
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 will be sweating it out all the way until January 7th. 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. Most salaries align with cap hits, but that’s not the case for a player like Jeremy Lin, who’s getting close to $15MM from the Lakers this season even though his cap hit is little more than half that amount, because of the contract he signed through the Gilbert Arenas Provision. 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. The only deals which were omitted were for players with non-guaranteed deals who were already waived.
The league’s power forwards are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- Amar’e Stoudemire (Knicks) $23,410,988
- Chris Bosh (Heat) $20,644,400
- Blake Griffin (Clippers) $17,674,613
- Zach Randolph (Grizzlies) $16.5MM
- LaMarcus Aldridge (Blazers) $16,256,000
- Kevin Love (Cavs) $15,719,062
- David Lee (Warriors) $15,012,000
- Nene (Wizards) $13MM
- Derrick Favors (Jazz) $12,950,000
- Serge Ibaka (Thunder) $12,350,000
- Kevin Garnett (Nets) $12MM
- David West (Pacers) $12MM
- Andrea Bargnani (Knicks) $11,500,000
- Tim Duncan (Spurs) $10,361,446
- Paul Millsap (Hawks) $9.5MM
- Thaddeus Young (Wolves) $9,410,869
- Tiago Splitter (Spurs) $9.25MM
- Channing Frye (Magic) $8,579,088
- Ryan Anderson (Pelicans) $8,491,500
- Boris Diaw (Spurs) $8MM
- Taj Gibson (Bulls) $8MM
- Dirk Nowitzki (Mavs) $7,974,482
- Ersan Ilyasova (Bucks) $7.9MM
- Pau Gasol (Bulls) $7,128,000
- Amir Johnson (Raptors) $7MM
- Marvin Williams (Hornets) $7MM
- Brandon Bass (Celtics) $6.9MM
- Glen Davis (Waived by Magic) $6.6MM
- Carl Landry (Kings) $6.5MM
- Derrick Williams (Kings) $6,331,404
- Jason Thompson (Kings) $6,037,500
- Patrick Patterson (Raptors) $5,831,326
- Anthony Davis (Pelicans) $5,607,240
- Anthony Bennett (Wolves) $5,563,920
- Greg Monroe (Pistons) $5,479,935
- Josh McRoberts (Heat) $5,305,000
- Nikola Mirotic (Bulls) $5,305,000
- Tristan Thompson (Cavs) $5,138,430
- Trevor Booker (Jazz) $5MM
- Brandan Wright (Suns) $5MM
- Luis Scola (Pacers) $4,868,499
- Jonas Jerebko (Pistons) $4.5MM
- Luc Mbah a Moute (Sixers) $4,382,575
- Kris Humphries (Wizards) $4,250,000
- Aaron Gordon (Magic) $3,992,040
- Al Harrington (Waived by Magic) $3,804,900
- Thomas Robinson (Blazers) $3,678,360
- Marreese Speights (Warriors) $3,657,500
- Darrell Arthur (Nuggets) $3,457,149
- Mike Scott (Hawks) $3,333,333
- Tyler Hansbrough (Raptors) $3,326,235
- Nerlens Noel (Sixers) $3,315,120
- Carlos Boozer (Lakers) $3,251,000
- Anthony Tolliver (Suns) $3MM
- Julius Randle (Lakers) $2,997,360
- Markieff Morris (Suns) $2,989,239
- Marcus Morris (Suns) $2,943,221
- Noah Vonleh (Hornets) $2,524,200
- James Johnson (Raptors) $2.5MM
- Kenneth Faried (Nuggets) $2,249,768
- Nick Collison (Thunder) $2,242,003
- Aron Baynes (Spurs) $2,077,000
- Elton Brand (Hawks) $2MM
- John Henson (Bucks) $1,987,320
- Adreian Payne (Hawks) $1,855,320
- Jeff Ayres (Spurs) $1,828,750
- Anthony Randolph (Waived by Magic) $1,825,359
- Reggie Evans (Kings) $1,768,653
- Ryan Kelly (Lakers) $1,650,000
- Terrence Jones (Rockets) $1,618,680
- Andrew Nicholson (Magic) $1,545,840
- Donatas Motiejunas (Rockets) $1,483,920
- Jared Sullinger (Celtics) $1,424,520
- Mitch McGary (Thunder) $1,400,040
- Victor Claver (Blazers) $1,370,000
- Shavlik Randolph (Suns) $1,227,985
- Cartier Martin (Pistons) $1,145,685
- Perry Jones III (Thunder) $1,129,200
- Ed Davis (Lakers) $981,084
- Jon Leuer (Grizzlies) $967,500
- Joey Dorsey (Rockets) $948,163
- Greg Smith (Mavs) $948,163
- Quincy Acy (Knicks) $915,243
- Lavoy Allen (Pacers) $915,243
- Lou Amundson (Waived by Knicks) $915,243
- Matt Bonner (Spurs) $915,243
- Glen Davis (Clippers) $915,243
- Drew Gooden (Wizards) $915,243
- Jason Maxiell (Hornets) $915,243
- Khris Middleton (Bucks) $915,243
- Kyle O’Quinn (Magic) $915,243
- Ekpe Udoh (Clippers) $915,243
- Charlie Villanueva (Mavs) $915,243
- Brandon Davies (Sixers) $816,482
- Grant Jerrett (Thunder) $816,482
- Tony Mitchell (Pistons) $816,482
- Mike Muscala (Hawks) $816,482
- Jarnell Stokes (Grizzlies) $725,000
- Dante Cunningham (Pelicans) $716,043
- Johnny O’Bryant (Bucks) $600K
- Cameron Bairstow (Bulls) $507,336
- Tarik Black (Lakers) $507,336
- Cory Jefferson (Nets) $507,336
- Eric Moreland (Kings) $507,336
- Dwight Powell (Mavs) $507,336
- JaKarr Sampson (Sixers) $507,336
- Shayne Whittington (Pacers) $507,336
- Drew Gordon (Sixers) $468,540
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Sixers Veteran Trade Acquisitions Rarely Stick
It’s no secret that draft considerations have served as the centerpiece for many of the trades that Sam Hinkie has made during his tenure as Sixers GM, which began in May 2013. His deal with the Pelicans in June 2013 that netted the rights to Nerlens Noel was the first significant signal of the rebuilding effort that Hinkie has undertaken in the nearly 18 months since. Still, what’s happened with the 15 players who were already on NBA contracts when the Sixers acquired them is as instructive as any other measure of the scope of Philadelphia’s future-focused approach.
Nine of those 15 players wound up on waivers, including Jorge Gutierrez, whom the team released today after having acquired him Thursday in the Andrei Kirilenko trade. Kirilenko seemed destined to join those ranks, too, though the Sixers are holding on to him for now, making him one of five veterans whom Hinkie’s Sixers still retain post-trade. One other player the Sixers traded for, Byron Mullens, became a free agent this summer and signed to play in China.
Royce White is the only trade acquisition in the Hinkie era whom the Sixers waited more than a month to release, as Philadelphia brought him to camp last year after acquiring him during the summer. It’s been much more common for players to hit waivers within days of having been traded to the Sixers, as was the case with Gutierrez. The Sixers released Travis Outlaw and Earl Clark on the same day that they traded for them.
Hinkie clearly didn’t intend to keep many of the veteran players he’s acquired through trade, as he’s allowed teams to unload guaranteed salaries they no longer wanted into the cap space that the Sixers have kept over most of this season and last. For this service, the Sixers have usually charged the price of a second-round draft pick or two, as even many of Hinkie’s veteran acquisitions are made with an eye on tomorrow. That was the case in the Kirilenko-Gutierrez trade, one in which Philadelphia wound up with a second-rounder from the Nets and the right to swap second-rounders with Brooklyn in another draft.
Here’s a list of all 15 players who were signed to NBA contracts when the Sixers traded for them, along with an explanation of what happened next:
- Keith Bogans — Acquired September 27th from Cavaliers. Waived October 7th, 2014.
- Earl Clark — Acquired February 20th, 2014 from Cavaliers. Waived February 20th, 2014.
- Danny Granger — Acquired February 20th, 2014 from Pacers. Waived February 26th, 2014.
- Jorge Gutierrez — Acquired December 11th, 2014 from Nets. Waived December 12th, 2014.
- Andrei Kirilenko — Acquired December 11th, 2014 from Nets. Still with team.
- Eric Maynor — Acquired February 20th, 2014 from Wizards. Waived March 17th, 2014.
- Luc Mbah a Moute — Acquired August 23rd, 2014 from Timberwolves. Still with team.
- Byron Mullens — Acquired February 20th, 2014 from Clippers. Left as free agent for China in summer 2014.
- Travis Outlaw — Acquired October 27th, 2014 from Knicks. Waived October 27th, 2014.
- Alexey Shved — Acquired August 23rd, 2014 from Timberwolves. Still with team.
- Henry Sims — Acquired February 20th, 2014 from Cavaliers. Still with team.
- Marquis Teague — Acquired October 24, 2014 from Nets. Waived October 27th, 2014.
- Hasheem Thabeet — Acquired August 26th, 2014 from Thunder. Waived September 1st, 2014.
- Royce White — Acquired July 13th, 2013 from Rockets. Waived October 24th, 2013.
- Tony Wroten — Acquired August 22nd, 2013 from Grizzlies. Still with team.
2014/15 Salary Rankings: Small Forwards
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the cap hit for each NBA player by position. I’ve already posted the point guard and shooting guard salary rankings for the 2014/15 campaign. The next spot on the hardwood that I’ll be looking at is the small forward position for the 2014/15 season.
All told, NBA teams have committed a total of $392,677,538 in cap hits this season to the versatile men tasked with manning the small forward position around the league. The average cap hit for the three spot this season is a respectable $4,674,733, with Joe Johnson of the Nets topping the list with an impressive $23,180,790.
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 will be sweating it out all the way until January 7th. 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. Most salaries align with cap hits, but that’s not the case for a player like Jeremy Lin, who’s getting close to $15MM from the Lakers this season even though his cap hit is little more than half that amount, because of the contract he signed through the Gilbert Arenas Provision. 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. The only deals which were omitted were for players with non-guaranteed contracts who were already waived.
The league’s small forwards are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- Joe Johnson (Nets) $23,180,790
- Carmelo Anthony (Knicks) $22,458,401
- LeBron James (Cavs) $20,644,400
- Rudy Gay (Kings) $19,317,326
- Kevin Durant (Thunder) $18,995,624
- Paul George (Pacers) $15,925,680
- Gordon Hayward (Jazz) $14,746,000
- Chandler Parsons (Mavs) $14.7MM
- Josh Smith (Waived by Pistons) $13.5MM
- Nicolas Batum (Blazers) $11,765,500
- Tyreke Evans (Pelicans) $11,265,416
- Danilo Gallinari (Nuggets) $10,854,850
- Gerald Wallace (Celtics) $10,105,855
- Luol Deng (Heat) $9,714,461
- Jeff Green (Grizzlies) $9.2MM
- Trevor Ariza (Rockets) $8,579,089
- Tayshaun Prince (Celtics) $7,707,865
- Wilson Chandler (Nuggets) $6,757,913
- P.J. Tucker (Suns) $5.7MM
- Andrew Wiggins (Wolves) $5,510,640
- Martell Webster (Wizards) $5,381,750
- Paul Pierce (Wizards) $5,305,000
- Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Hornets) $5,016,960
- Chase Budinger (Wolves) $5MM
- Nick Young (Lakers) $4,994,420
- Jabari Parker (Bucks) $4,930,560
- Kostas Papanikolaou (Rockets) $4,591,066
- Caron Butler (Pistons) $4.5MM
- Otto Porter (Wizards) $4,470,480
- Thabo Sefolosha (Hawks) $4,150,000
- Steve Novak (Jazz) $3,445,947
- Matt Barnes (Clippers) $3,396,250
- Mike Dunleavy (Bulls) $3,326,235
- Andrei Kirilenko (Sixers) $3,326,235
- Chris Copeland (Pacers) $3,135,000
- Dorell Wright (Blazers) $3,135,000
- Harrison Barnes (Warriors) $3,049,920
- Kawhi Leonard (Spurs) $2,894,059
- Terrence Ross (Raptors) $2,793,960
- Mike Miller (Cavs) $2,732,000
- DeMarre Carroll (Hawks) $2,442,445
- Tobias Harris (Magic) $2,380,594
- Doug McDermott (Bulls) $2,277,960
- Danny Granger (Heat) $2,077,000
- John Salmons (Pelicans) $2MM
- Shabazz Muhammad (Wolves) $1,971,960
- T.J Warren (Suns) $1,953,120
- Maurice Harkless (Magic) $1,887,840
- Jeremy Evans (Jazz) $1,794,871
- Luigi Datome (Pistons) $1,750,000
- Tony Snell (Bulls) $1,472,400
- Bruno Caboclo (Raptors) $1,458,360
- Solomon Hill (Pacers) $1,302,840
- Rodney Hood (Jazz) $1,290,360
- Shawne Williams (Heat) $1,227,985
- Damjan Rudez (Pacers) $1.1MM
- Kyle Anderson (Spurs) $1,093,680
- Kyle Singler (Pistons) $1,090,000
- Xavier Henry (Lakers) $1,082,000
- Austin Daye (Spurs) $1,063,384
- Robert Covington (Sixers) $1MM
- Al-Farouq Aminu (Mavs) $981,084
- Luke Babbitt (Pelicans) $981,084
- Rasual Butler (Wizards) $915,243
- Omri Casspi (Kings) $915,243
- Jae Crowder (Mavs) $915,243
- Alonzo Gee (Nuggets) $915,243
- Draymond Green (Warriors) $915,243
- Richard Jefferson (Mavs) $915,243
- Wesley Johnson (Lakers) $915,243
- James Jones (Cavs) $915,243
- Shawn Marion (Cavs) $915,243
- Jeff Taylor (Hornets) $915,243
- Lance Thomas (Waived by Knicks) $915,243
- Hedo Turkoglu (Clippers) $915,243
- Jerami Grant (Sixers) $884,879
- Damien Inglis (Bucks) $820K
- Glen Rice Jr. (Waived by Wizards) $816,482
- Jeff Adrien (Waived by Wolves) $742,962
- Cleanthony Early (Knicks) $507,336
- James Ennis (Heat) $507,336
- Joe Ingles (Jazz) $507,336
- K.J. McDaniels (Sixers) $507,336
- Travis Wear (Knicks) $507,336
Note: A number of players on this list also spend time at shooting guard. I used the positions listed on the official team rosters in compiling these rankings.
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
2015 Free Agent Power Rankings
Most NBA teams have played between 20 and 22 games so far this season, so we’ve hit the quarter pole of this year’s 82-game trek. It’s also been precisely a month since the inaugural edition of the Hoops Rumors 2015 Free Agent Power Rankings, so the time is right for an update. There’s been a bit of shuffling in the order, and the newest name on the list made no subtle impression to earn his way on it. Let’s break down this month’s rankings:
- LeBron James (player option) — The four-time MVP isn’t leaving Cleveland again, lest he be permanently cast in the villain’s role that fit him so poorly during his early days in Miami. But, his ability to hit the market and put pressure on the Cavs to continue to surround him with a roster capable of competing for championships defines “free agent power” and casts him at the top figure in this ranking. Last month: No. 1
- Kevin Love (player option) — The 26-year-old’s numbers are down, predictably, as more talented teammates than he’s ever had surround him in Cleveland, but he’s still an otherworldly talent. Love continues to insist that he has no plans of leaving the Cavs, though he said he’s talked in passing with Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony about playing together someday. He also called the Knicks “a great franchise to be a part of”, and Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports wrote this month that it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Love would end up on the Lakers next season. Last month: No. 2
- Marc Gasol — Re-signing Gasol is job one for the Grizzlies, according to GM Chris Wallace, and central to the team’s ability to do that will be the strength of its commitment to winning, Gasol says. That makes team’s 17-4 start an even more auspicious sign than it otherwise would be, and Gasol’s been a major catalyst, having upped his scoring average to 19.5 points per game, nearly five points better than his career high. All that success has the Knicks pessimistic about their chances to lure him to New York. Last month: No. 4
- LaMarcus Aldridge — New York reporters failed in their attempts to coax free agency chatter out of another logical Knicks target when the Blazers were in town recently, and while Knicks faithful may cling to the idea that Aldridge didn’t rule out leaving Portland, that seems a long shot. The Arn Tellem client said this past offseason that he intends to sign a new five-year deal with Portland this coming summer, and he spoke this month of his comfort with Portland and the Blazers. Last month: No. 3
- Jimmy Butler (restricted) — No soon-to-be free agent has lifted his stock during the first quarter of the NBA season as much as Butler has. The most significant flaws in his game last season were on offense , but he’s suddenly become Chicago’s leading scorer at 21.7 PPG, 8.6 PPG better than last year’s career high. Several executives around the league believe that the Happy Walters client will command the maximum salary if he keeps this up, though the Bulls seem poised to match any offers he receives. Last month: Unranked
- Kawhi Leonard (restricted) — The Spurs also appear ready to pounce should Leonard draw a maximum-salary offer sheet. The Brian Elfus client’s game is expanding again this year, as he’s seeing double-digit shot attempts per night for the first time, helping him to a career-best 14.8 PPG. He’s also putting up his best per-game marks in assists, rebounds and steals. Last month: No. 6
- Rajon Rondo — The ninth-year veteran has always struggled with his shot, but Rondo’s shooting percentage is down from every range outside of three feet from the basket, according to Basketball-Reference. He’s also scoring fewer than 10 points per game for the first time since he was a rookie. Still, Rondo is again leading the league in assists per game, and there appears to be mutual interest between Rondo and the Lakers, though Boston remains No. 1 on his list. A move to L.A. doesn’t appear the most likely outcome at this point, however, as the Celtics continue to value Rondo highly. Last month: No. 5
- Al Jefferson (player option) — The Hornets are off to a dreadful start, and much of the blame has fallen at the feet of Lance Stephenson, the team’s latest marquee free agent acquisition. But Jefferson’s numbers are down, and particularly his rebounding, as he’s grabbing just 7.8 boards per night after pulling down 10.8 RPG last year. The memory of his franchise-changing season last year will linger for quite some time, but with his 30th birthday looming next month, there’s cause for concern. Last month: No. 7
- Greg Monroe — It’s even uglier in Detroit than it’s been in Charlotte so far this season, but Monroe has soldiered on, with most of his per-36-minute marks holding steady even as he sees slightly fewer minutes in a crowded Pistons frontcourt. He’ll have a chance to be an unquestioned starter elsewhere next season, and the Hawks and Knicks are ready to pursue him. He’s also playfully spoken of playing with Celtics forward Jeff Green, though it’d be tough for him to land with Boston if Rondo is still there, and Atlanta would be an odd fit unless soon-to-be free agent Paul Millsap doesn’t re-sign. Last month: No. 9
- Goran Dragic (player option) — It’s no shock that Dragic hasn’t produced quite the way he did last season, and not just because 2013/14 was a career year. The backcourt logjam in Phoenix has reduced Dragic’s minutes and taken away some of his shot attempts, and his efficiency during his time on the floor, as measured by his PER, has returned to the level he displayed in 2012/13. Eric Bledsoe was injured much of last season and Isaiah Thomas was in Sacramento, so Dragic had free reign. The Suns will face pressure to convince him that sacrificing that to work for the greater collective is truly the choice he should make come July. Last month: No. 8
Dropped out: DeAndre Jordan (Last month: No. 10)
Offseason In Review Series
Hoops Rumors has spent the past few weeks taking an in-depth look back at how each NBA franchise fared this past offseason. We covered all of the trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more as we examined the moves each team made over the last several months. These posts covered all of the activity that occurred from the end of the playoffs in June right up until the first jump ball on opening night.
Here is a team-by-team recap of the series:
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
Central Division
Southeast Division
Western Conference
Northwest Division
Pacific Division
Southwest Division
Few 2014 First-Rounders Seeing Heavy Minutes
The stock of the 2014 draft class has been on a steady decline for the past year. It was billed before the beginning of the 2013/14 college season as a landmark group of prospects capable of changing the game, but thanks to an array of underwhelming performances, the draft soon became regarded as well-stocked but bereft of franchise-changing players. The broken foot that Joel Embiid suffered just weeks before the draft, when he was the leading candidate for the No. 1 overall pick, helped take the class down another notch. Now, a quarter of the way into the season, the performances that this year’s first-round picks have delivered suggest that the draft class was below average, at best.
Of course, there’s still plenty of time to go before any reasonable final judgments can be made on the field, which has the potential to live up to at least some of the expectations attached to it. Nonetheless, the minutes that each first-rounder is seeing paint a grim picture so far. Only a third of the 30 first-round picks are seeing at least 15 minutes per game, and two of those 10 have missed significant time with injuries. The rookie seeing the next most minutes per night, Julius Randle, posted that total in just one game, the contest in which he broke his leg and was lost for the rest of the season. Six first-rounders have yet to make their NBA debuts, including Embiid, two overseas players, and Josh Huestis, who’s on a D-League contract. Injuries have also helped to forestall the debuts of Adreian Payne and Mitch McGary, though both have gone on D-League assignment this year.
Here’s a look at how much each first-round pick is playing, ranked by minutes per game, with their respective draft positions in parentheses and additional notes where appropriate:
More than 20 minutes per game
- Jabari Parker, Bucks (No. 2) — 30.0
- Andrew Wiggins, Timberwolves (No. 1) — 29.5
- Elfrid Payton, Magic (No. 10) — 24.7
- Zach LaVine, Timberwolves (No. 13) — 23.6
- Shabazz Napier, Heat (No. 24) — 23.3
Between 15-20 minutes per game
- Marcus Smart, Celtics (No. 6) — 18.6: Returned from injury, appeared in just eight games
- Dante Exum, Jazz (No. 5) — 17.8
- Rodney Hood, Jazz (No. 23) — 17.2
- P.J. Hairston, Hornets (No. 26) — 15.5
- Aaron Gordon, Magic (No. 4) — 15.0: Injured, out for as much as five more weeks.
Between 10-15 minutes per game
- Julius Randle, Lakers (No. 7) — 14.0: Injured, expected to miss rest of season. Has played only one game.
- Nik Stauskas, Kings (No. 8) — 13.9
- Gary Harris, Nuggets (No. 19) — 13.0
- Bruno Caboclo, Raptors (No. 20) — 12.0: Has played only one game.
- Kyle Anderson, Spurs (No. 30) — 11.9
- Doug McDermott, Bulls (No. 11) — 11.6
- T.J. Warren, Suns (No. 14) — 10.5
- Jordan Adams, Grizzlies (No. 22) — 10.3: Has played only four games.
Between 5-10 minutes per game
- Tyler Ennis, Suns (No. 18) — 8.8
- Jusuf Nurkic, Nuggets (No. 16) — 8.6
- Noah Vonleh, Hornets (No. 9) — 8.0: Hampered by preseason hernia surgery. Has played only three games.
Fewer than 5 minutes per game
- C.J. Wilcox, Clippers (No. 28) — 4.5: Has played only two games.
- Clint Capela, Rockets (No. 25) — 3.7: Hampered by preseason groin injury. Has played only three games, but has played extensively in D-League.
- James Young, Celtics (No. 17) — 3.6: Has played extensively in D-League.
Haven’t played NBA games
- Joel Embiid, Sixers (No. 3) — 0: Injured, has yet to make debut.
- Dario Saric, Sixers (No. 12) — 0: Playing overseas.
- Adreian Payne, Hawks (No. 15) — 0: Hampered by plantar fasciitis. Has played extensively in D-League.
- Mitch McGary, Thunder (No. 21) — 0: Hampered by broken foot suffered in preseason. Has played in D-League.
- Bogdan Bogdanovic, Suns (No. 27) — 0: Playing overseas.
- Josh Huestis, Thunder (No. 29) — 0: Playing in D-League on D-League contract.
Trade Candidate: Corey Brewer
The chatter surrounding Corey Brewer has quieted down over the past few weeks, but the 28-year-old swingman remains one of the most intriguing trade candidates in the league. It would be no surprise if talk picks back up after a week from today, when most offseason signees become eligible for inclusion in trades. Wolves coach/executive Flip Saunders insisted recently that Brewer is too valuable for his team to give up for now, a statement that largely prompted rumors surrounding Brewer to cease. But as the injury-wracked Timberwolves slowly return to health in the weeks ahead, the specter of a trade will grow. Still, unless Brewer begins to play better, it would be in spite of the performance the former seventh overall pick has displayed this season, and not because of it.
Brewer has made his reputation on defense over the course of his career, but his numbers this season haven’t backed it up. His defensive box plus/minus, a Basketball-Reference metric, is negative 0.2, well off from his career high of 1.2 last year. The Timberwolves give up an egregious 113.7 points per 100 possessions when Brewer is on the floor this season, and only 107.1 when he’s not, according to NBA.com. Of course, those points per possession numbers have as much, if not more, to do with the four other players on the floor with Brewer, and it’s obvious that the Timberwolves, at 4-15 this season, don’t have much with which to surround him. Such analytics have given greater insight into just how well players are performing on defense, but defense remains tricky to measure. Ill-advised gambling too often shows up in a positive light in a traditional metric like steals per game, but by that measure, Brewer is matching what he did last season, when he recorded a career high 1.9 SPG, and he’s creating those turnovers in fewer minutes this time around.
There’s little debating that Brewer’s shot has been off so far this year, however. He’s just 5 for 31 from three-point range, though the long ball has never been a strength for the career 29.1% three-point shooter. Wisely, he’s taken fewer three-pointers this year, but he appears to have replaced them mostly with long twos, as Basketball-Reference shooting data shows. He’s shooting just 15.2% from between 16 feet from the basket and the three-point line, according to that data. Brewer is never going to help an offense with its spacing, but his outside shooting so far this year has been an hindrance to his team. Brewer’s made up for it in some measure with a career-high 1.4 offensive rebounds per game, but many teams place little value in offensive rebounding, preferring instead that their players hustle back and set up defensively.
It was somewhat odd to see Houston emerge as a more likely destination for Brewer than Cleveland at one point late last month. The Rockets trail only the Grizzlies in stinginess when it comes to points allowed per possession, according to NBA.com, so Brewer’s defense, assuming it perks up, would only add to a strength. His poor outside shooting would also run counter to Houston’s organizational emphasis on the three-pointer, and his choice to shoot more long two-pointers so far this season would certainly meet with resistance were he to don red.
Still, the Rockets had reportedly been anxious to make a move to bolster their depth after a summer of moves that depleted it, and it seems as though they’ve held aspirations of acquiring a rotation-caliber player whom they can package in another trade at the deadline. It’s not impossible to package players together in a trade without aggregating their salaries, but aggregation makes it a lot simpler, and it’s a tool the Rockets would only be able to use with Brewer if they acquire him by December 19th, two months before the trade deadline. So, in that regard, it makes more sense for Houston to trade for Brewer, though the team would still risk getting stuck with a player who doesn’t fit if GM Daryl Morey can’t find a deadline deal to his liking that involves Brewer. Even so, Minnesota’s need for healthy players in the short term might not lapse in time to meet that December 19th timeframe, and Morey seemed to back off an aggressive pursuit of a similar swap that would have sent out Omer Asik two months before last year’s trade deadline.
Cleveland seems a more natural home for Brewer. Reports have indicated that the Cavs have shown interest in Tayshaun Prince and Andrei Kirilenko in addition to Brewer, signaling Cleveland’s apparent interest in a wing defender. The presence of Kevin Love and Mike Miller would help offset Brewer’s lack of outside shooting, and Kyrie Irving is hitting treys at a sizzling 42.2% clip in 90 attempts so far this season. Still, it seems Cleveland’s primary focus is on finding a rim-protector, making Brewer a secondary target.
The Rockets and Cavs have trade exceptions they can use to absorb Brewer’s nearly $4.703MM salary for this season, but the Kings and Celtics are the only other teams with trade exceptions large enough to use on him. The Lakers and Pacers have disabled player exceptions sizable enough to accommodate his salary, but the presence of his $4.905MM player option would nix that, since disabled player exceptions may only be used to acquire players on expiring contracts. Teams would reportedly like Brewer to waive that player option, but that seems a long shot unless he were to have the chance to head to a contending team.
The Mavs give up the most points per possession among teams with reasonable title chances this year, followed closely by the Raptors and then the Cavs, so perhaps Brewer would be attractive to Dallas and Toronto, assuming his defensive slip isn’t a long-term phenomenon. Brewer has been with Dallas once before, as a largely forgotten presence on the 2011 title team, and the Mavs lack a swingman who has provided consistent minutes at both the shooting guard and small forward positions so far this season. The Raptors would receive the immediate benefit of plugging Brewer in for the injured DeMar DeRozan, but he might prove too much of a drain on minutes for Louis Williams and James Johnson. Of course, there haven’t been reports linking Brewer to either the Raptors or the Mavs, so they’re merely speculative suitors.
The Wolves seem destined for the lottery this season, and while Brewer is indeed valuable as a stopgap for now who can can provide Andrew Wiggins with a veteran presence and mentor him on the finer parts of NBA defense, he doesn’t appear to be a long-term asset for the team. Brewer’s statistical declines might already be dampening interest from around the league, but it seems that he’s nonetheless a wanted commodity. It would behoove Saunders to strike upon this prior to the deadline if he can net a return capable of accelerating the rebuilding process in Minnesota.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Offseason In Review: Sacramento Kings
Hoops Rumors is in the process of looking back at each team’s offseason, from the end of the playoffs in June right up until opening night. Trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more will be covered, as we examine the moves each franchise made over the last several months.
Signings
- Darren Collison: Three years, $15.041MM. Signed via mid-level exception.
- Ramon Sessions: Two years, $4.247MM. Signed via biannual exception.
- Eric Moreland: Three years, $2.333MM. Signed via mid-level exception. First year is partially guaranteed for $200K. Second and third years are non-guaranteed.
- Ryan Hollins: One year, $1.31MM. Signed via minimum-salary exception.
- Omri Casspi: One year, $1.063MM. Signed via minimum-salary exception.
Extensions
- Rudy Gay: Three years, $40MM. Third year is player option.
Trades
- Acquired the rights to Alex Oriakhi from the Suns in exchange for Isaiah Thomas (sign-and-trade).
- Acquired Wayne Ellington, Jeremy Tyler, and the removal of the protection that existed on New York’s 2016 second-round pick (which the Knicks owed Sacramento from a previous trade) from the Knicks in exchange for Quincy Acy and Travis Outlaw. Ellington and Tyler were subsequently waived.
- Acquired Alonzo Gee and Scotty Hopson from the Rockets in exchange for Jason Terry, Sacramento’s 2015 second-round pick if it falls anywhere from No. 31 through No. 49, and New York’s unprotected 2016 second-round pick. Gee and Hopson were subsequently waived.
Waiver Claims
- None
Draft Picks
- Nik Stauskas (Round 1, eighth overall). Signed via rookie scale exception to rookie scale contract.
Camp Invitees
- Sim Bhullar
- Deonte Burton
- Trey Johnson
- David Wear
Departing Players
Rookie Contract Option Decisions
- Ben McLemore (third year, $3,156,600) — Exercised
Three players averaged more than 20 points per game for the Kings last season, and while it seemed Sacramento didn’t mind losing one of them this summer, the team focused an inordinate amount of attention on keeping another. The Kings made a hard push and an elaborate presentation to Rudy Gay in hopes that he would opt in for this season, one in which he’s making more than $19.317MM. The team put an unusual amount of effort into ensuring that a player who’s talented but less than a superstar would be on the books for a salary usually reserved for the NBA’s truly elite. It was yet another sign of owner Vivek Ranadive’s faith in a player whom the analytics community had roundly criticized and who was playing some of the most inefficient ball of his career at the time of the trade that brought him from Toronto to Sacramento a year ago. Ranadive and GM Pete D’Alessandro made trading for Gay one of their first priorities when they took their respective posts during the 2013 offseason, and since they accomplished that, Gay has proven the Kings wise with increased efficiency and production in numbers both simple and arcane.
Gay picked up his player option, but Sacramento’s ultimate plan was to secure him for a longer period of time. Talks started and stopped over the summer, but the Octagon Sports client finally signed an extension in the season’s first month that will keep him under the control of the Kings through 2016/17, with a player option for 2017/18. The now 28-year-old small forward will make salaries more in line with his market value on the extension after his lucrative payday this year. Gay will see an average of more than $14.829MM over four years, taking both the opt-in and the extension into account and assuming he once more opts in with the Kings in 2017. That’s not cheap, by any means, but it slots him second behind DeMarcus Cousins in the team’s salary structure, mirroring the pecking order on the court. It also gives Sacramento the chance to enter 2016 with Cousins and Gay locked in and max-level cap flexibility to go with them, though there are plenty of variables the team will have to resolve between now and then.
One of those variables won’t involve Isaiah Thomas, whom the Kings removed from the equation when they saw him off to the Suns with a sign-and-trade deal. D’Alessandro and company seemingly ensured they wouldn’t be bringing Thomas back when they struck a deal with fellow point guard Darren Collison, as Thomas later said he felt like that move was a signal that the Kings were pushing him out the door. In any case, Thomas and the Suns did the Kings a favor, perhaps to ensure that Sacramento wouldn’t match Phoenix’s offer for the restricted free agent, when they agreed to make it a sign-and-trade rather than a straight signing. That allowed the Kings to come away with a trade exception worth nearly $7.239MM, one of the largest still-valid exceptions in the league. It’s far too valuable for the Kings to let it go unused, particularly given D’Alessandro’s propensity for trades, even if he’s holding off on any moves for the time being.
The Kings committed nearly their entire $5.305MM exception to Collison’s starting salary for this year, wisely leaving a sliver just large enough to tack a third year onto Eric Moreland‘s contract for the rookie minimum, thus giving Sacramento greater power to retain Moreland. The outlay for Collison, coupled with the Gay opt-in, nonetheless left the Kings in a salary crunch that would influence much of the rest of their offseason.
Collison had spent 2013/14 making just $1.9MM while rehabilitating his value with the Clippers. He started 56 of the 66 games the Pacers played during the lockout-shortened 2011/12 season, helping the team to a 42-24 mark, but he lost his job to George Hill for the playoffs, and Indiana traded Collison the following summer to the Mavs. The former 21st overall pick cratered in his year in Dallas, where he watched 37-year-old Mike James start ahead of him by season’s end. So it was off to the Clippers last year, and the BDA Sports Management client proved his worth as a backup and injury replacement for Chris Paul, just as Collison had done as a rookie when he and Paul were teammates in New Orleans. Collison has been stuck between starting and the bench for much of his career, so the Kings have to hope that as the 27-year-old enters his prime, they’ll benefit from his best work.
Ultimately, Collison is paid like an upper-tier backup on the mid-level deal, so the price is right, and just low enough for the Kings to avoid crossing the luxury tax threshold. Giving Thomas the same deal he received from the Suns would have put the Kings in tax territory, though backloading that Thomas contract rather than frontloading it would have allowed the Kings to have paid him the same money while just barely ducking the tax line. Still, Sacramento wouldn’t have had the space available beneath the tax for Omri Casspi, as the Kings were able to scrape together just enough for a one-year offer for the minimum salary. Casspi is playing 18.6 minutes a night for the Kings with a new offensive game that relies much less on three-point shooting and more on scoring in the paint. His PER to 16.9, 3.8 points better than his previous career high.
The Kings afforded themselves the chance at more slightly more breathing room beneath the tax when they pulled off a trade that sent Quincy Acy and Travis Outlaw to the Knicks for Wayne Ellington and Jeremy Tyler. The exchange of salaries itself lessened Sacramento’s payroll by only about $196K, and Tyler’s non-guaranteed salary was $33K greater than Acy’s non-guaranteed pay, so the Kings gained slightly more flexibility in that regard, too. They also saved about $76K more when they used the stretch provision to waive Ellington instead of doing the same with Outlaw. Yet perhaps the most important benefit that the Knicks trade gave the Kings was the removal of the protection on the 2016 second-round pick that Sacramento later used to sweeten the pot in the trade that sent Jason Terry and his salary of more than $5.85MM to Houston. The Kings received only non-guaranteed salaries in that exchange and promptly waived them to pocket the savings.
D’Alessandro used some of that extra wiggle room beneath the tax line to ink Ramon Sessions and Ryan Hollins, strengthening the Kings’ bench. The addition of Sessions, to whom Sacramento committed its biannual exception, seems particularly key, since it gives the Kings a measure of insurance in case Collison fails to prove worthy of the starting job. Sessions, too, has floated between starting and reserve roles, but he played well down the stretch last season for the Bucks, and it wasn’t long ago that his 2012 trade deadline acquisition was to have given the Lakers the missing piece they lacked for another title run.
Still, the decision the Kings had to make with the eighth overall pick in this year’s draft was perhaps as important as any in front of the team this offseason, aside from what to do with Gay. Thus, it’s perplexing to have seen Sacramento use a lottery selection on a shooting guard for the second straight year. The Kings immediately pledged their support for Ben McLemore, last year’s pick, after seemingly drafting Nik Stauskas as his replacement this year and in spite of a draft-night report that indicated that Sacramento and the Celtics were in talks about a potential trade involving McLemore. The seventh overall pick from 2013 has proven the Kings wise to have hung onto him, as he’s shooting much better from just about every point on the floor than he did in his rookie season, according to Basketball-Reference. That appears to have come at the cost of playing time for Stauskas, who’s yet to find his shooting stroke amid just 13.1 minutes per night. Sacramento risks stunting his growth, lowering his trade value, or both if it can’t give him either more playing time or a new home.
The Kings are still a work in progress two offseasons into the Ranadive-D’Alessandro era. They secured Cousins, their superstar, last year on a long-term extension that’s already paying dividends as he continues to mature on and off the court. They acquired Gay, watched him become a top-flight complement to Cousins, and this year made sure that he, too, would be around for the long term. There are a few signs of hope elsewhere on the roster, one that nonetheless includes too many players who are either poor fits or not skilled enough to contribute significantly to a playoff-caliber team. Sacramento’s optimism appeared misplaced when the team entered the regular season with the intention of competing for a playoff spot in the rugged Western Conference, but more than a month in, the Kings are in the thick of the race for the eighth seed. There’s a long way to go in this season and an even longer road ahead in Sacramento’s journey to relevance in the title picture, but the Kings are making progress.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.
Hoops Rumors Originals
Here’s a look back at the original reporting and analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this week..
- Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the cap hit for each NBA player by position. This week, Eddie ran down the salaries at point guard and shooting guard.
- Team salaries are on the rise this year, as Chuck Myron writes.
- The Suns aren’t afraid to get a bit unconventional, writes Chuck.
- Chris Crouse asked Hoops Rumors readers if the Hornets should trade Lance Stephenson. Nearly 60% of you said yes.
- I looked back on the Thunder’s relatively quiet offseason.
- Eddie reflected on the Clippers’ summer.
- Chuck, meanwhile, looked across the hall at the Lakers.
- Here are the players who were claimed off waivers since the end of the last season and how they’re doing so far.
- For a team without draft picks, cap space, or any members of its starting five entering free agency, the Warriors made some potentially franchise-altering decisions this past offseason, as Chuck writes.
- You might be surprised by all of the minimum-salary players seeing 20+ minutes per game.
- Download the Trade Rumors app today!
- If you missed out on this week’s chat, get caught up with the transcript.
- Here’s how you can follow Hoops Rumors on social media and your RSS feed.
2014/15 Salary Rankings: Shooting Guards
Hoops Rumors is in the process of ranking the cap hit for each NBA player by position. I’ve already posted the point guard salary rankings for the 2014/15 campaign. The next spot on the hardwood that I’ll be looking at is the shooting guard position for the 2014/15 season.
All told, NBA teams have committed a total of $346,747,725 in cap hits this season to the men tasked with lighting up scoreboards around the league. The average hit for the two spot this season is a respectable $3,810,415, with Kobe Bryant of the Lakers topping the list with a healthy $23,500,000 to further pad his retirement fund.
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 will be sweating it out all the way until January 7th. 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. Most salaries align with cap hits, but that’s not the case for a player like Jeremy Lin, who’s getting close to $15MM from the Lakers this season even though his cap hit is little more than half that amount, because of the contract he signed through the Gilbert Arenas Provision. 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. The only deals which were omitted were for players who were already waived.
The league’s shooting guards are listed below, in descending order of salary:
- Kobe Bryant (Lakers) $23,500,000
- Dwyane Wade (Heat) $15MM
- Eric Gordon (Pelicans) $14,898,938
- James Harden (Rockets) $14,728,444
- Andre Iguodala (Warriors) $12,289,544
- DeMar DeRozan (Raptors) $10.1 MM
- Lance Stephenson (Hornets) $9MM
- Marcus Thornton (Celtics) $8,575,000
- Monta Ellis (Mavs) $8,360,000
- O.J. Mayo (Bucks) $8MM
- Arron Afflalo (Nuggets) $7.5MM
- Wesley Matthews (Blazers) $7,245,640
- Avery Bradley (Celtics) $7,191,011
- Manu Ginobili (Spurs) $7MM
- Kevin Martin (Wolves) $6,792,500
- J.J. Redick (Clippers) $6,792,500
- Jason Richardson (Sixers) $6,601,125
- Kyle Korver (Hawks) $6,253,531
- Jodie Meeks (Pistons) $6MM
- J.R. Smith (Cavs) $5,982,375
- Jason Terry (Rockets) $5,850,313
- Jamal Crawford (Clippers) $5,450,000
- Courtney Lee (Grizzlies) $5,450,000
- Victor Oladipo (Magic) $4,978,200
- Tony Allen (Grizzles) $4,831,461
- Corey Brewer (Wolves) $4,702,500
- Bradley Beal (Wizards) $4,505,280
- Ben Gordon (Magic) $4.5MM
- Jared Dudley (Bucks) $4,250,000
- C.J. Miles (Pacers) $4,205,000
- Dion Waiters (Thunder) $4,062,000
- Danny Green (Spurs) $4,025,000
- Vince Carter (Grizzlies) $3,911,981
- Gerald Green (Suns) $3,500,000
- Bojan Bogdanovic (Nets) $3,278,000
- Evan Turner (Celtics) $3,278,000
- Gary Neal (Hornets) $3,250,000
- Anthony Morrow (Thunder) $3.2MM
- Quincy Pondexter (Grizzlies) $3,146,068
- Klay Thompson (Warriors) $3,075,880
- Alec Burks (Jazz) $3,034,356
- Ben McLemore (Kings) $3,026,280
- Randy Foye (Nuggets) $3MM
- Marco Belinelli (Spurs) $2,873,750
- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Pistons) $2,772,480
- Nik Stauskas (Kings) $2,745,840
- Iman Shumpert (Cavs) $2,616,975
- Austin Rivers (Clippers) $2,439,840
- C.J. McCollum (Blazers) $2,421,000
- Jeremy Lamb (Thunder) $2,202,000
- Jimmy Butler (Bulls) $2,008,748
- Kent Bazemore (Hawks) $2MM
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Bucks) $1,873,200
- Zoran Dragic (Suns) $1,706,250
- James Young (Celtics) $1,674,480
- Gary Harris (Nuggets) $1,519,200
- Evan Fournier (Magic) $1,483,920
- Willie Green (Magic) $1,448,490
- John Jenkins (Hawks) $1,412,920
- Jordan Adams (Grizzles) $1,344,120
- Alan Anderson (Nets) $1,276,061
- Tony Wroten (Sixers) $1,210,080
- Reggie Bullock (Suns) $1,200,720
- Andre Roberson (Thunder) $1,160,880
- P.J. Hairston (Hornets) $1,149,720
- Brandon Rush (Warriors) $1,145,685
- Archie Goodwin (Suns) $1,112,280
- C.J. Wilcox (Clippers) $1,109,760
- Toure’ Murry (Waived by Jazz) $1MM
- Garrett Temple (Wizards) $981,084
- E’Twaun Moore (Bulls) $948,163
- Leandro Barbosa (Warriors) $915,243
- Will Barton (Blazers) $915,243
- Jared Cunningham (Waived by Clippers) $915,243
- Chris Douglas-Roberts (Celtics) $915,243
- Wayne Ellington (Lakers) $915,243
- Francisco Garcia (Rockets) $915,243
- Rodney Stuckey (Pacers) $915,243
- Joe Harris (Cavs) $884,879
- Allen Crabbe (Blazers) $862,000
- Ian Clark (Jazz) $816,482
- Troy Daniels (Rockets) $816,482
- Justin Holiday (Warriors) $816,482
- Ricky Ledo (Mavs) $816,482
- Glen Rice Jr. (Waived by Wizards) $816,482
- Hollis Thompson (Sixers) $816,482
- Markel Brown (Nets) $507,336
- Andre Dawkins (Waived by Heat) $507,336
- Nick Johnson (Rockets) $507,336
- K.J. McDaniels (Sixers) $507,336
- Glenn Robinson III (Wolves) $507,336
Note: The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.