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Post-Deadline Housekeeping: New TPEs, Open Roster Spots

February 24th, 2017 at 1:43pm CST by Luke Adams

There were no superstars on the move on Thursday, but NBA teams made eight trades, and there were many more signings and cuts completed once the deadline passed. In the wake of the deadline, we’ll take a look at a few roster- and cap-related notes, rounding up the new traded player exceptions that teams created on Thursday, as well as examining which teams still have space available on their rosters.

Let’s dive in…

New trade exceptions:

Several over-the-cap teams acquired new trade exceptions on Thursday. They’ll all expire on February 23, 2018, a year after they were created, or until they’re used or renounced by the teams below. If a club wants to use cap room, it must renounce its trade exceptions, but until then, these TPEs can be used in the summer or next season to acquire players.

Here’s the breakdown, in order of TPE value:

Dallas Mavericks: $6,642,537
Chicago Bulls: $5,462,000
Milwaukee Bucks: $5,000,000
Atlanta Hawks: $3,333,334
Houston Rockets: $3,333,333
Dallas Mavericks: $1,514,160
Houston Rockets: $612,172
Toronto Raptors: $328,000
Houston Rockets: $233,880

Some notes related to these TPEs:

Multiple teams on this list, including the Rockets and Bucks, could open up cap room by renouncing their trade exceptions. In Houston’s case, this is particularly notable, since the club would create more than $3.5MM in cap space by renouncing these TPEs. That cap room could come in handy very soon if the Rockets are trying to entice a free agent to sign with them instead of another contender that can only offer the minimum.
As is always the case with TPEs, some of these exceptions will be more useful than others. The Mavericks could end up doing something interesting with their $6.6MM+ TPE, but the Raptors will almost certainly never use theirs for $328K.
The Thunder also came out of Thursday’s action with a new TPE — sort of. Oklahoma City had created a trade exception worth $7.4MM on November 1 when the team sent Ersan Ilyasova to Philadelphia. The Thunder used a portion of that exception at the deadline to absorb Doug McDermott‘s salary, leaving approximately $4.94MM left on it. OKC will have until November 1 to use the rest of that TPE.
For the complete list of trade exceptions across the NBA, click here.

Teams with open roster spots:

A day after the trade deadline, the list of teams with open roster spots is incredibly fluid. Some teams that acquired players in trades don’t have any use for those players, and will waive them. Other clubs will fill roster holes with D-League call-ups, while other teams will be a little more patient and wait out the buyout market.

All of this is to say that this list is up to date at the time of publication, but could change quickly as teams make more moves this weekend. Here are the teams that currently have at least one open spot on their 15-man roster, with their player count noted in parentheses:

Charlotte Hornets (13): The 10-day contracts for Ray McCallum and Mike Tobey expired overnight, so Charlotte has two open spots. The team reportedly plans to use one on Johnny O’Bryant.
Cleveland Cavaliers (14): The Cavs have 13 guaranteed contracts, plus Derrick Williams‘ 10-day deal. The team expects to sign Deron Williams as well, so if any other roster additions are coming after that, Cleveland would need to clear a roster spot.
Dallas Mavericks (13): The Mavs have two openings after completing a two-for-one trade with the Sixers, then waiving Deron Williams.
Houston Rockets (14): The Rockets opened up a roster spot by trading K.J. McDaniels, and may waive Marcelo Huertas as well. Houston is expected to be active on the buyout market.
Milwaukee Bucks (14): The Bucks created a roster opening by sending Roy Hibbert to Denver, and they’re expected to fill it by signing Axel Toupane to a 10-day contract.
Minnesota Timberwolves (14): Unlike most of the teams on this list, the Wolves have carried an open roster spot for a while, and that didn’t change at the deadline.
Oklahoma City Thunder (14): The Thunder traded three players to Chicago and received just two in return, creating an opening. They have their eye on free agents and buyout candidates.
Orlando Magic (14): Like Minnesota, the Magic were carrying an open roster spot prior to the deadline and didn’t make a move on Thursday.

The Suns will join this list as soon as they officially waive Mike Scott and Jared Sullinger, as is expected. They’ll fill one of those two newly-open spots with Ronnie Price. There are also three teams that have full 15-man rosters with at least one player on a 10-day contract. The Hawks, Warriors, and Pelicans fall into this category, with Briante Weber‘s second 10-day deal in Golden State set to expire soon.

For a full breakdown of NBA roster counts, check out our list.

NBA Rules That Warriors Can Sign Andrew Bogut

February 23rd, 2017 at 8:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

Today’s trade that sent Andrew Bogut from Dallas to Philadelphia will make him eligible to return to the Warriors right away, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.

Normally, a player who is traded cannot rejoin his original team for a full year. Golden State shipped Bogut to Dallas on July 7th as a way to clear cap space to sign Kevin Durant. However, the NBA determined that the provisions of its reacquisition rule shifted from the Warriors to the Mavericks when they became the last team to trade him (Twitter link).

The ruling doesn’t mean that Bogut is a lock to go back to the Warriors. First, he must agree to a buyout with the Sixers, which seems likely. Then he must clear waivers, which is also probable as few teams have the cap space to absorb his hefty salary.

Once Bogut hits the open market, the Warriors will have to compete with other suitors. The Rockets, who have $3.54MM in cap space available, will make an effort to sign him, as will the Cavaliers and Spurs. Golden State is well over the cap, but Bogut might be tempted to accept a lesser offer to rejoin the franchise where he won an NBA title and set a league record for victories in a season.

Rockets Trade Tyler Ennis To Lakers

February 23rd, 2017 at 6:40pm CST by Luke Adams

6:40pm: The Lakers also received the draft rights to Brad Newley in the deal, tweets Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Drafted in 2007, the 32-year-old swingman plays for AEK Athens in Greece.

6:28pm: The deal is official, the Lakers announced (Twitter link). Meanwhile, the Rockets have waived Huertas.

1:58pm: The Rockets have agreed to a deal that will send Tyler Ennis to the Lakers, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter). Wojnarowski reports that Houston will receive Marcelo Huertas from Los Angeles, but that the Rockets will waive Huertas after acquiring him.

Ennis is eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer, while Huertas had a non-guaranteed salary for 2017/18, so both players were essentially on expiring contracts. The Rockets were likely planning on waiving Ennis after the deadline, so by acquiring and waiving Huertas instead, they’ll create a tiny bit of extra cap room as they peruse the buyout market. Ennis is earning approximately $233K more than Huertas this season.

From the Lakers’ perspective, Huertas had seen his playing time reduced significantly this season, having averaged 10.3 MPG in just 23 contests. He apparently wasn’t part of the team’s long-term plans, so L.A. decided to take a flier on Ennis, who could be re-signed at a modest price in the offseason if the team likes what it sees down the stretch.

Nets Acquire K.J. McDaniels

February 23rd, 2017 at 6:33pm CST by ChrisCrouse

6:33pm: The Rockets will receive cash considerations, not a draft pick, from the Nets in exchange for McDaniels, tweets Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders. The deal is now official.

3:57pm: The Nets will send a future draft choice – presumably a protected second-round pick – to the Rockets as part of the deal, according to a report from The Associated Press.

1:32pm: The Rockets have traded K.J. McDaniels to the Nets, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter links). The deal will save the Rockets roughly $3.3MM, which the team plans on using once the buyout market establishes itself.

Teams cannot take on a player/draft picks from another team without receiving some sort of compensation in return, per NBA rules. It’s likely that Houston will receive either a heavily protected second-round pick or the rights to a player currently playing abroad in the trade.

Brooklyn was about $13.5 under the salary cap after the Andrew Nicholson trade and it had an open roster spot after waiving Marcus Thornton on Wednesday. With McDaniels aboard, the Nets have 15 players under contract, as the team’s depth chart at Roster Resource indicates.

McDaniels shined during his rookie season with the Sixers, but he hasn’t gotten consistent playing time since Philly traded him to Houston at the 2015 trade deadline. The Clemson University product saw 1352 minutes of action during his first half season in the league with the Sixers, but he only received a total of 447 minutes in the two years since.

Rockets Will Target Bogut If Sixers Buy Him Out

February 23rd, 2017 at 6:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

6:10pm: The Warriors could be permitted to join the competition for Bogut, tweets salary cap expert Albert Nahmad. Golden State traded Bogut on July 7th of last year, and NBA rules state that players who are traded have to wait a full year before rejoining their original team. However, Bogut was traded again today, which could create a loophole to allow him to sign with the Warriors. The league could determine that Bogut can’t go to Dallas or Golden State, notes Bobby Marks of The Vertical (Twitter link), but it may also rule that the restriction only applies to the last team that traded him, which is now the Mavericks.

4:08pm: The Rockets will try to sign Andrew Bogut if he agrees to a buyout with the Sixers, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.

Bogut was traded from Dallas to Philadelphia earlier today in a deal involving Nerlens Noel. The veteran center doesn’t fit into the Sixers’ plans and was acquired mainly to get Philadelphia closer to the cap floor. Buyout discussions are expected to begin immediately.

The 32-year-old is making a little more than $11MM this season in the final year of his contract. Injuries limited him to just 26 games in Dallas, where he averaged 3.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per night. He has been dealing with a strained right hamstring that sidelined him for parts of January and February.

The Rockets are well positioned for the buyout market, with more than $3.54MM in cap space available. By contrast, the pro-rated taxpayer mid-level exception is about $2.5MM and the pro-rated room MLE is roughly $2MM. “We have the most money of all the contenders,” Houston GM Daryl Morey said today in an appearance on The Vertical. (Twitter link).

The Rockets opened up cap room and two roster spots with a pair of deals today — sending K.J. McDaniels to the Nets for a future draft choice and Tyler Ennis to the Lakers in exchange for Marcelo Huertas, who is expected to be waived.

The Cavaliers have expressed an interest in Bogut, and the Spurs are expected to join the chase once the buyout is completed, according to Stein (Twitter link). Bogut had a chance to join the Rockets last summer when the Warriors gave him a list of destinations where he could be traded, but he chose Dallas instead.

Stein adds that Houston is not interested in signing point guard Deron Williams, who is negotiating a buyout with the Mavericks (Twitter link).

Lakers Trade Lou Williams To Rockets

February 23rd, 2017 at 3:40pm CST by Austin Kent

FEBRUARY 23, 3:40pm: The Lakers and Rockets have formally announced the Williams deal – as reported below – in a pair of press releases, making it official.

FEBRUARY 21, 7:03pm: According to David Aldridge of TNT, the first-round pick heading to the Lakers will not be protected. Per Bobby Marks of The Vertical, the pick involved is projected to be 27th overall and worth a cap hit of $1.4MM in 2017/18.

6:41pm: The Rockets are finalizing a trade with the Lakers for guard Lou Williams, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. In exchange, Houston will send Corey Brewer and a first-round pick to Los Angeles. At this time, details about the first-round pick heading to the Lakers have not been made available (although 7:03 update from Marks suggests that it’s Houston’s 2017 first-round pick).

In 58 games for Los Angeles this season, Williams has averaged 18.6 points per game. He’ll join an already potent Houston offense that had been reported to be looking to fortify its bench. The 30-year-old guard is signed through the 2017/18 campaign at $7MM per season.

Brewer, a 30-year-old forward with a similar contract to Williams (he’s owed $15.2MM over two years), averaged 4.2 points per game with Houston but has carved out a role for himself as a savvy, defensive-minded veteran.

According to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders, James Harden had specifically wanted the Rockets to bring aboard the veteran and he’ll pair with prolific reserve Eric Gordon. According to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, Williams and Gordon are the NBA’s top two scorers off the bench and both frontrunners to win this year’s Sixth Man of the Year award.

Should the first-round pick heading to Los Angeles be Houston’s first-round pick in 2017, it could slot in in the late 20s. Per our reverse standings, the Rockets are currently in line to draft 27th.

The move marks Magic Johnson‘s first transaction since taking on the role of President of Basketball Operations for the Lakers.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Eastern Notes: Bulls, Okafor, Ainge, Lopez, Hawks

February 23rd, 2017 at 3:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

Before making today’s deal with Oklahoma City, the Bulls tried to obtain point guard Patrick Beverley from the Rockets, tweets Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago. Chicago reached out to Houston on Wednesday with an offer of Taj Gibson and Isaiah Canaan in exchange for Beverley, but the Rockets turned it down.

There’s more from the Eastern Conference on an active deadline day:

The Sixers didn’t trade center Jahlil Okafor, but it wasn’t because they didn’t try, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). He says Philadelphia made a strong effort to unload Okafor but was unable to find equal value so close to the deadline.
The Celtics were rumored to be seeking Jimmy Butler and Paul George, but decided to stand pat. GM Danny Ainge explained the conservative approach to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). “We had a lot of conversations,” Ainge said. “There were things we could do to improve our team, but nothing that was good enough to do.” The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski claims that Boston was willing to make both of the Nets‘ first-round picks available (Twitter link).
Nets GM Sean Marks didn’t indicate if he tried to trade Brook Lopez, tweets Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press. “Brook’s here and we’re happy he’s here,” Marks said when asked about the veteran center. “He’s been the face of this franchise for a long time.”
After shipping Mike Scott to the Suns, the Hawks have two open roster spots, notes Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution (Twitter link). The team will focus on the buyout market and possibly D-League callups.

And-Ones: Cavs, Bogut, Barnes, Holiday

February 23rd, 2017 at 12:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Cavs won’t make a decision on Larry Sanders until after the trade deadline, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com passes along (ESPN Now link). Cleveland is also keeping an eye on the Andrew Bogut situation. The Cavs would like to bring the center aboard and they’re expected to be in the mix for him.

Here’s more from around the league:

Several teams have expressed interest in Matt Barnes, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com tweets. Sources tell Shelburne that he’s waiting until after the trade deadline to make a decision.
Jarrett Jack will audition for the Pelicans, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. New Orleans is pursuing backcourt help after trading away several players in the DeMarcus Cousins deal.
Point guard and pending free agent Jrue Holiday said the Pelicans “see me as a part of [the future],” the team tweets. The organization is calling Holiday, DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis their version of a Big Three.
Mike Bibby and Ricky Davis will be the co-captains of the Ghost Ballers, the fourth official team in the new 3-on-3 league, according to a press release on BIG3.com.
Thunder center Enes Kanter returned to practice on Wednesday for the first time since undergoing arm surgery, Royce Young of ESPN.com reports. It’s uncertain whether Kanter, who suffered a broken arm punching a chair on the bench on January 26th, will return to action on Friday against the Lakers.
Former Rockets center Yao Ming, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame last year, has been appointed as president of the Chinese Basketball Association, according to an ESPN.com report. He gave up ownership of the league’s Shanghai Sharks in order to take over his new role.

Chris Crouse contributed to this post

Trade Rumors: Rose, Rubio, Okafor, Caldwell-Pope

February 22nd, 2017 at 5:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Timberwolves have reached out to the Knicks about a possible Derrick Rose deal, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post. Rose has fallen out of favor with Knicks president Phil Jackson, who is disappointed with the veteran guard’s effort on defense. Rose is entering free agency and sources tell Berman that New York would rather move him now than give him a long-term deal. He won MVP honors in Chicago in 2011 under Minnesota coach Tom Thibodeau.

The proposed deal is believed to involve Ricky Rubio, whom Thibodeau has never believed in as his long-term point guard, according to Berman. Rubio still has two years and more than $29MM left on his contract and has been the subject of trade rumors since Minnesota drafted Kris Dunn last summer.

The Knicks contacted the Wolves about Rubio at last year’s deadline, Berman writes, and have been interested in him since he entered the league in 2009 because of the recommendations of their European scout, Kevin Wilson, who is based in Barcelona.

New York also reportedly likes Minnesota’s Nemanja Bjelica and inquired about his availability as part of the Rose discussions, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today (Twitter link).

There’s more on the trade front as Thursday’s deadline inches closer:

The Rockets have asked about Wolves guard Shabazz Muhammad, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News in Minneapolis. Wolfson doesn’t believe the teams are close to a deal.
The Pistons refused an offer from the Sixers involving Jahlil Okafor and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, tweets Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated. Philadelphia offered to bring a third team into the trade, but Detroit still wasn’t interested. The Pistons reportedly have hesitations about giving Caldwell-Pope a maximum salary after his contract expires at the end of the season. The Sixers have been calling around the league trying to make a deal for Okafor, with the Pacers and Bulls as the most frequently mentioned potential trade partners.
The Suns are looking for someone to take Brandon Knight‘s contract and might be a fallback option for an Okafor trade, according to Fischer (Twitter link). A former starter in Phoenix, Knight in is the midst of a disappointing season, averaging 11.0 points per game and shooting less than 40% from the field. He still has three seasons and nearly $43.9MM left on his current deal.
The Thunder and Clippers remain in pursuit of Nuggets swingman Wilson Chandler, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today.

Trade Rumors: Shumpert, Rockets, Wizards, Hawks

February 22nd, 2017 at 1:32pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Cavaliers have shown a willingness this season to move Iman Shumpert, the team has become a little more wary of a deal lately with J.R. Smith sidelined, per Marc Stein and Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com. The Rockets are interested in Shumpert, but don’t want to give up Patrick Beverley in a deal, as we heard this afternoon.

Despite Houston’s interest in Shumpert, a league source tells Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com that the Cavs don’t like what the Rockets are offering. According to Stein and Watkins, K.J. McDaniels is believed to be a part of Houston’s offer, though it’s not clear what other pieces the Rockets would put on the table.

While we wait to see if the Rockets and Cavs can move closer to a deal within the next 24 hours, let’s check in on a few more trade rumors and notes…

The Wizards aren’t just looking for a scorer, according to J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com, who says (via Twitter) that the team is seeking another defender as well. Washington has been linked to P.J. Tucker, so the report makes sense. Michael adds (via Twitter) that it will be difficult to get someone one player capable of meeting both criteria, but the club appears willing to acquire a rental if it’s the right player.
In an interview with Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (video link), Hawks GM Wes Wilcox strongly reiterated that Paul Millsap isn’t going anywhere at the trade deadline, and will be the team’s top priority in free agency this summer. Wilcox also confirmed that Atlanta is approaching the deadline as a buyer.
Asked today about the Pistons‘ trade possibilites, head coach Stan Van Gundy said that the team hasn’t gone into trade discussions with a specific goal in mind. “We’ve been more open to listening and looking at things,” Van Gundy said, per Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter link). Reports have suggested that the Pistons have listened to inquiries on guys like Andre Drummond and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, so the club isn’t closing the door on any possibilties.