Southeast Notes: Wizards, Napier, D-League
One major factor contributing to the Wizards‘ success this season is their excellent team chemistry, Jenny Dial Creech of the Houston Chronicle writes. Trevor Ariza was one of the team’s veteran leaders last season, but when he signed a free agent deal with the Rockets this past summer Washington acted quickly to replace that void by signing Paul Pierce, Creech notes. “You always have a contingency plan for that and that’s what we did,” coach Randy Wittman said. “Nothing ever really surprises you anymore in this league. It was a situation where we would have loved to have Trevor stay. We wanted to make sure we didn’t lose anything in that area with a guy like Trevor. We are trying to move on. We have Paul who has come in here and really moved into that spot.”
Here’s more out of the Southeast Division:
- The Hawks have assigned John Jenkins to the Idaho Stampede, the team announced in a press release. Jenkins is headed to Idaho as part of the flexible assignment rule since Atlanta is without a one-to-one partnership with a D-League team. In one previous stint in the D-League Jenkins appeared in five games, averaging 19.4 points and 3.8 rebounds in 23.8 minutes.
- Adreian Payne has been assigned to the Austin Spurs, the Hawks have announced. This will be Payne’s fourth trek to the D-League this season, and in 11 games Payne has logged 13.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 28.4 minutes per contest.
- The Heat have assigned Shabazz Napier to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. Napier has appeared in 25 games with the Heat this season, averaging 5.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 21.0 minutes while shooting 42.5 percent from the field. This will be Napier’s second sojourn of the season to the D-League.
Western Notes: Black, Smith, Hill, Len
New addition Tarik Black comes to the Lakers with a reputation as a gritty defender, writes Bill Oram of the Orange County Register. Coach Byron Scott believes Black could become a contributor to the team. “All the reports are that his upside is tremendous,” Scott said. “It was a no brainer for us. Once he gets out here, we’ll put him out here and see what he can do.” Los Angeles ranks 30th in the league on defense, allowing 109.2 points per game.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Josh Smith‘s deal with the Rockets covers just this season, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders confirms. There were previously conflicting reports about the length of the contract. In his first two games for Houston, Smith has scored 26 points on 28 shots from the field, which are the second most attempts on the team during that stretch.
- Jordan Hill has struggled recently for the Lakers and he could lose playing time in a suddenly crowded front court, writes Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. Hill has a $9MM team option on his contract for the 2015/16 season. If he keeps up this level of play, it might be hard for the Lakers to justify picking that up, although that is just my speculation.
- The Suns believe they have a star in second-year center Alex Len, writes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. “He’s not afraid of anything,” coach Jeff Hornacek said. “He’s not afraid of big moments. He’s not afraid of hitting somebody or getting hit. He just plays. That’s great to see in a young guy.” The team is 6-1 since it moved Len into the starting lineup.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Southwest Notes: Brewer, Motiejunas, Mavericks
It didn’t take Corey Brewer long to impress his new Rockets teammates, reports Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Brewer, acquired from the Timberwolves in a December 19th deal, was 6 of 8 on three-point shots in Sunday’s loss to the Spurs. “Corey’s been excellent for us,” said Houston guard James Harden. “He brings energy off the bench, defensive mindset, shoot the basketball, attack the rim. He’s been playing well.”
There is other Southwest Division news:
- Rockets forward Donatas Motiejunas, who was replaced in the starting lineup Sunday by Josh Smith, tells Feigen that his only concern is playing well whenever he is called upon. “I’m not a coach,” Motiejunas said. “I’m not making decisions. I’m following. They think it’s better and will help us win more games. I’m trying to put these things in my mind. I just try to use my time as productive as possible and do what I can do to win.”
- The Mavericks have been struggling a bit since the Rajon Rondo deal and they need to start playing like a contender, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Dallas is 3-2 since the deal and one of its wins came against a Kobe Bryant-less Lakers team.
- Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was non-committal Sunday when asked about the prospect of signing free agent big man Jermaine O’Neal, Sefko reports. “I don’t know if he wants to come here,” Cuban responded. “[There are] a lot of decisions to be made before then.”
- After hosting Pelicans big man Anthony Davis in his hometown, Bulls forward Joakim Noah came away impressed, writes Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com. “He’s a great player,” Noah said. “Great, well beyond his years. I thought that for somebody to come in, playing in front of your hometown, usually there’s some anxiety. I just saw a lot of composure out of him tonight. He came in, first shot, boom, knocked it down. You can’t give him any open looks at his size. He’s a very, very talented kid.”
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Lakers Claim Tarik Black, Waive Xavier Henry
6:00pm: The Lakers made the move official, as Mike Trudell of Lakers.com tweets.
4:22pm: The Lakers have claimed Tarik Black off waivers from the Rockets, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). To make room, the Lakers are saying farewell to Xavier Henry (link).
Just minutes ago, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported that the Hornets were planning on putting in a claim for Black. However, thanks to their record, the Lakers had waiver priority over the Hornets and other potentially interested clubs.
Black, who was signed to a non-guaranteed deal by the Rockets prior to being waived, averaged 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 25 games for Houston. The Kansas product reportedly had interest from several clubs when the Rockets decided to sever ties.
Henry, 23, saw time in nine games for the Lakers this season, averaging 2.2 PPG in 9.6 minutes per contest. For his career, Henry has averaged of 5.7 PPG and 1.9 RPG across five seasons with the Grizzlies, Pelicans (née Hornets), and the Lakers. Henry is out for the year, meaning that it’s highly unlikely that anyone will claim him and take that $1.082MM salary off of the Lakers’ books.
With Black off the books, Stein tweets that the Rockets have now dipped back below the luxury-tax line.
Hornets Plan To Make Claim On Tarik Black
The Hornets are planning to make a waiver claim on center Tarik Black, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski on Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Black was waived by the Rockets late last week to make space for the addition of Josh Smith.
The waiver system gives priority to the team with the worst record then works its way up. The Pistons could have added Black without dropping anyone from the roster thanks to their vacant spot, but they’ll pass on the big man (link). The 76ers, Knicks, and Timberwolves are among the teams that have priority over the Hornets and could theoretically beat them to the punch.
Last week, the Rockets worked feverishly to find a suitable deal for Black, Nick Johnson, Isaiah Canaan, Joey Dorsey, or Clint Capela, but they could not find a trade to their liking. Of the five, Black was the only one without a fully guaranteed contract, making him the choice to get cut. Rockets coach Kevin McHale said he was sorry to see Black go, but he also said he was confident that he wouldn’t be out of work for long. McHale, it seems, has been proved correct.
Black averaged 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds in 25 games with the Rockets, and started 12 games when Dwight Howard was out of the lineup with knee pain. He earned a roster spot with the Rockets after an impressive performance in the summer leagues.
Western Notes: Smith, Rockets, Spurs, Lakers
Josh Smith did things backwards in his debut with the Rockets, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle; his first game came before his first practice. After being signed Friday morning, Smith was thrown into the fire quickly against the Grizzlies. He delivered 21 points and eight rebounds as Houston won in overtime. On Saturday, he got his first workout with his new team. “When you’re a professional and you’ve played a lot of years like myself, it’s not that hard especially when you know a lot of the guys in the locker room,” said Smith, who was waived Monday by the Pistons. “They helped me out when I was kind of lost out there on the floor. They helped me along the way to get me through those situations.”
There’s much more from the Western Conference:
- The addition of Smith, combined with the trade that brought Corey Brewer and Alexey Shved from the Timberwolves, has transformed the Rockets from a shallow team to a deep one, Feigen notes. Houston got 48 points off the bench in Memphis, and although Smith’s total figured into that, the bench should remain potent even if he becomes a starter. A return from injury by Terrence Jones, which coach Kevin McHale estimates in four to six weeks, could fortify the second unit — or it could provide GM Daryl Morey with more trade ammunition.
- Kawhi Leonard is the key to the Spurs‘ title hopes, opines Stephen Babb of Bleacher Report, which is why they need his injured right hand to heal as quickly as possible. Leonard tore a ligament in the hand December 9th, and the team has struggled in his absence. “He can’t move his hand,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “He can’t catch and dribble and that kind of stuff. Medically, they don’t think he can hurt it any more, so that’s good. So it’s just a matter of can he get used to the hand.”
- The Lakers‘ Nick Young has stopped joking that the team will be fine without the injured Kobe Bryant, reports Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. After shooting 6 for 22 from the field in the past two games without the injured star, Young was contrite. “We’re always going to need Kobe out there on the floor, especially for players like me,” said Young. “That releases a lot of pressure.”
D-League Notes: Capela, Ledo, Powell, Magic
As we wait to see if D-League standout Brady Heslip gets signed by an NBA club before he accepts an offer from a team overseas, let’s round up the latest from the NBA’s official minor league:
- The Rockets have sent Clint Capela to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the team announced on Twitter. The 25th overall pick from last June’s draft hasn’t been able to get much burn in Houston’s crowded frontcourt, tallying just 12 minutes of action this season, so he’ll have a better shot to demonstrate his skills in the D-League.
- Ricky Ledo and Dwight Powell have been assigned to the Texas Legends, the Mavs announced. The pair will have a chance to see more time in the D-League than they otherwise would with the title hopeful group of veterans in Dallas.
- Magic coach Jacque Vaughn made it clear that Orlando values the one-to-one affiliation that the team has with the Erie BayHawks, its D-League club, as John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com details. The Magic assigned Devyn Marble to the D-League yesterday in order to get him some playing time while recovering from an injury.
Southwest Notes: Grizzlies, Gasol, Black, Mavs
Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace doesn’t believe the moves the Rockets and Mavs have made the past couple of weeks would necessarily prompt him to respond with pickups of his own, as he said to Zack McMillin of The Commercial Appeal, who writes in a subscription-only piece. Still, recent reports have indicated that Memphis made a strong push to woo Josh Smith before he signed with the Rockets, asked the Celtics about Jeff Green, and expressed interest in Ray Allen.
“These are all very proven veterans and definitely should make their teams better,” Wallace said of Smith, Rajon Rondo and other newcomers to Western Conference contenders. “We’re happy with our group and we don’t think there’s any question that we can compete with these guys.”
Coach Dave Joerger believes the Rockets were wise to sign Smith and calls Houston’s trade for Corey Brewer and Alexey Shved an “underrated” move, observes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Marc Gasol isn’t looking forward to free agency this summer because of the gravity the choice will have on his life as a whole, as he explains to Ian Thomsen of NBA.com. “I’ve been already through one,” Gasol said, referring to his 2011 restricted free agency, “and I did not especially enjoy it. I don’t know how I’m going to feel in July. I really don’t. This is the next five years of my life and I’m going to go all in. Whatever team you play for, you’ve always got to feel like you represent that team, that you’ve got to play for it. Because that’s the way we grew up in Spain. You play for the city. You play for a way of doing things. It’s not about you. I do this for them. I play for the city, for the franchise or whatever. You’ve got to have that pride that comes with it.”
- Rockets coach Kevin McHale, fresh off his contract extension, said the team will miss Tarik Black, whom Houston released Friday to clear a roster spot for Josh Smith, as Feigen writes in a separate piece. McHale said he told Black, who remains on waivers, that he’s confident that the rookie will find another NBA job.
- Mavs point guard Devin Harris laments the departure of Brandan Wright, whom the team traded away in the Rondo swap, calling Wright his “security blanket” because of the readily available alley-oop chances he provided, notes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.
Western Notes: Heslip, Black, Smith
D-League standout Brady Heslip is considering a jump to Europe if he doesn’t secure an NBA deal soon, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Heslip, who appeared on the Wolves’ Summer League roster after going undrafted out of Baylor, is averaging a blistering 27.1 PPG for the Reno Bighorns while completing 49.4% of his shots from beyond the arc. The Kings were close to signing the sharpshooting guard, according to Stein (Twitter link), but that was before Mike Malone was dismissed as coach. Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi hears Heslip has an offer from Baskonia of Spain.
Here’s more from out West:
- Tarik Black wasn’t surprised when he was waived by the Rockets in order to accommodate Josh Smith’s signing, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston details. “You got an undrafted free agent and you got Josh Smith, superstar,” Black said. “I think most GMs would have taken him. It happens. It’s business… I’m so thankful to the city of Houston. I still love this team.“
- Rockets coach Kevin McHale said that he would determine exactly how Smith would be used over time, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle writes. “I hate to put guys out there until they’re comfortable,” McHale said. “He’ll get some run. We’ll play everything by ear. All that stuff takes care of itself moving forward. He’s been a quality player in this league for a lot of years. I see him continuing to be a quality player.”
- Smith was pursued by a number of contending clubs, but he chose the Rockets over the Grizzlies, Mavericks, Heat and Kings because when considering his skills and Houston’s style of play, the Rockets were the best fit, Feigen adds. “I just feel like with the guys they have along on the roster, all the talent, and the opportunity to do something special for the rest of this year and in the postseason, this was the most attractive place to be,” Smith said.
Charlie Adams contributed to this post.
Josh Smith Signs With Rockets
FRIDAY, 11:23am: The deal is official, the Rockets announced.
WEDNESDAY, 5:15pm: Smith officially cleared waivers Wednesday and is looking forward to joining Howard in Houston, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. Smith said the Rockets expressed interest in acquiring him even before he was waived. “Now we came together, and being able to be wanted by a team with so much dynamics as far as having a chance to win the title is very special and very humbling,” Smith said.
1:05pm: The updated version of Wojnarowski’s story indicates that Smith is signing a one-year deal, in line with what Feigen says, and seconds Feigen’s report that the team is in talks about a trade that would open a roster spot. Those talks could be complete as soon as later today, Wojnarowski writes.
1:01pm: The Rockets are working on a swap to create a roster spot, Feigen tweets. Feigen also indicates that Smith’s deal is for just one season, conflicting with Wojnarowski’s earlier report.
12:52pm: Smith will receive the full $2.077MM value of the biannual exception this season, reports Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
12:03pm: Josh Smith has committed to signing with the Rockets once he clears waivers at 4pm Central today, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The move is no surprise, since Houston became the favorite Monday after the Pistons waived him, and the Rockets only strengthened that position Tuesday. Houston had promised a starting job, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported overnight (Twitter link), and close friend Dwight Howard was recruiting him. Smith will receive a two-year deal for the biannual exception with a player option for next season, Wojnarowski reports in a full story.
That exception, which gives him $2.077MM this year and a 4.5% raise on that salary for next season, assuming Houston is giving him the full amount, is an advantage the Rockets had over many other suitors limited to the minimum. The Sixers have the cap space necessary to claim Smith off waivers and forestall Houston from signing him, but they reportedly have no intention of doing so. Still, perhaps the most important edge the Rockets had was the willingness to offer a starting role, as Smith had narrowed his choices to only teams that would give him that, Stein tweets. The Heat were one of those teams, but they evidently came up empty, as did other contenders reported to have varying levels of interest in signing the 29-year-old forward, including the Mavericks, Cavaliers, Grizzlies, Lakers, Clippers and Kings. Memphis made a strong push for him late, as Wojnarowski reported earlier today (on Twitter), but the Grizzlies fell short.
The client of agents Brian Dyke and Wallace Prather saw his stock surge as his price point dropped. Detroit, at 5-23, saw fit to eat the remaining guaranteed money on the four-year, $54MM contract he signed in the summer of 2013, using the stretch provision to spread the money so that the Pistons will pay just $5.4MM each season from 2015/16 through 2019/20. That number figures to go down further thanks to set-off rights, depending on the value of the contracts that Smith signs for the seasons ahead. His deal with the Rockets will save the Pistons $630,259 this season, presuming Smith is receiving the full value of the biannual.
The Rockets have a full 15-man roster, as our roster counts show, so a corresponding move will be necessary. They have two players without fully guaranteed contracts, but one of them is starting point guard Patrick Beverley. The other is backup center Tarik Black, but he’s played a key role and started 12 games in place of an injured Howard. Black had a partial guarantee of $50K on his minimum-salary contract to begin the season, but he’s already earned more than that amount.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.