Hoops Rumors Glossary: Hardship Provision
The ability for NBA teams to surpass the 15-man regular season roster limit has come into focus this week, with the Pelicans and Grizzlies applying for hardship provisions. Both teams are dealing with multiple injuries that have made it difficult for them to field competitive lineups, but the league provides relief, in certain circumstances.
The term “hardship” used to be a common part of the league’s vernacular in reference to players who entered the draft before exhausting their college eligibility, but it has a completely different meaning in regard to the size of NBA rosters. The NBA’s Constitution and By-Laws, in their definition of hardship, give the board of governors the power to approve special provisions counter to the NBA’s roster limits with a majority vote. It’s rare for the board of governors to get involved, but the rule also spells out circumstances in which injury and illness would allow teams to receive extra roster spots without board of governors approval, instead leaving the matter at the commissioner’s discretion. This is the more well-traveled route.
In these cases, a team must have three players who have missed at least three straight games because of injury or illness, plus a fourth player who is also unable to perform. The team can apply for the hardship, and it’s up to the commissioner’s office to determine, using an independent doctor if it so chooses, that all four of those players will continue to be unable to play for at least two weeks. If so, the commissioner can grant the hardship and the team can acquire an extra player.
The rules are vague about the mechanics of the hardship provision, but reports about the several instances in which teams have expanded their rosters beyond 15 players in the past couple of seasons have shed light on its parameters. Each provision lasts 10 days, regardless of whether it comes before or after January 5th, the first day each season that teams can sign players to 10-day contracts. Players who go into extra roster spots don’t necessarily have to be on 10-day contracts, and they may stick around past the expiration of the hardship as long as the team offloads someone else. That was the case when the Thunder waived Sebastian Telfair last season instead of hardship signee Ish Smith to reduce their roster to 15 players. Teams are also allowed to reapply for provisions as they expire, meaning they can carry a roster of more than 15 players for longer than 10 days if the league allows it. The NBA doesn’t limit the number of provisions a team may apply for at any one time, allowing teams to have as many players as they need, at the league’s discretion, though it’s rare for any roster to go beyond 16.
A sharply limited amount of time exists for teams to take action when the league grants a hardship. They have two days to acquire an extra player, giving front offices motivation to have deals lined up in advance. Still, complications sometimes arise. The Pacers scuttled their deal with Gal Mekel last season when a visa issue would have kept him from signing until a day after the Pacers were ready to put pen to paper. That extra day would have pushed the Pacers past the two-day window, so they signed A.J. Price instead.
The hardship isn’t the only mechanism by which a team can acquire an extra player. Lengthy suspensions also give teams the ability to do so, and that happened twice last season, when the Grizzlies signed Kalin Lucas and Hassan Whiteside to move to 16 men while Nick Calathes was serving a league suspension, and when the Sixers traded for Jared Cunningham, who was briefly their 16th man while Andrei Kirilenko was on a team suspension. The rules are slightly different for a league suspension, which requires that the player have served at least five games of the suspension before a team can add an extra player, and a team suspension, in which case the player has to have missed only three games. The ability to carry an extra man goes away once the suspended player returns.
The NBA takes a careful approach to granting teams permission to expand their rosters. Not every team with four or more injuries receives a hardship provision, since making an accurate prognosis about whether an injured player might return to action within a two-week window is a tricky enterprise. The Pelicans received a hardship and used it to sign Orlando Johnson this week, but it’s unclear whether the Grizzlies got one, given the confusion over the time at which they signed Briante Weber. Thursday’s release of Mario Chalmers suggests the league didn’t give the OK, or at least hasn’t yet, because his season-ending torn Achilles would otherwise count toward the number of injuries necessary for the provision. The league doesn’t “hand those things out like candy,” as the late Flip Saunders observed.
Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (or in this case, the NBA’s Constitution and By-Laws). Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.
Reports from Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman, Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times and Marc Stein of ESPN.com provided background information for this post. An earlier version appeared on November 28th, 2014.
Grizzlies Sign Briante Weber To 10-Day Deal
FRIDAY, 9:18am: The Grizzlies announced the signing this morning. Still, given the conflicting information about whether his signing took place Wednesday or today, it’s unclear whether it expires at the end of March 18th or March 20th. Thus, his status for the March 19th game against the Clippers is a mystery.
THURSDAY, 10:07am: The signing took place Wednesday, according to the RealGM transactions log, though the Grizzlies made no announcement of the move. His name didn’t appear in the NBA.com box score from Wednesday’s Memphis-Boston game. He’d be eligible for games against the Pelicans, Hawks, Rockets, Timberwolves and Bucks if the signing happened Wednesday, but not a game on March 19th against the Clippers, the team directly in front of the Grizzlies in the Western Conference standings.
WEDNESDAY, 10:05am: The league hasn’t granted the team a hardship exception, and it’s not a certainty that the Grizzlies will get it, writes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal, who confirms the team plans to sign Weber if the league OKs the 16th roster spot. The exception, if granted, won’t come until at least another day or so, Tillery adds. Barnes and Randolph missed the team’s last game primarily because of rest, but the other injured players will be out for a while, Tillery writes. Just how long they’re likely to be out will probably determine whether the Grizzlies get the extra roster spot to sign Weber.
TUESDAY, 10:21pm: The Grizzlies intend to ink combo guard Briante Weber to a 10-day deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter). The signing is expected to take place on Friday, Charania notes. The Vertical scribe also relays that Memphis will utilize the hardship provision to add Weber, which ostensibly means that the league has granted, or will grant, the team the means to add a 16th player.
Memphis is without Marc Gasol for the rest of the year and backup center Brandan Wright is liable to miss another seven weeks, which would finish him for the season. Fellow big man Chris Andersen is dealing with a shoulder issue, Mike Conley has a bum foot, Zach Randolph and Matt Barnes are both day-to-day with assorted woes, while Jordan Adams is out indefinitely with a knee injury. The team has two days from the time the league formally grants the provision to use it. The roster spot lasts 10 days, though the team can apply to renew it.
Weber, who is an affiliate player of the Heat, joined the Sioux Falls Skyforce after the Heat cut him in the preseason. The 23-year-old has made 22 D-League appearances this season and is averaging 10.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 28.5 minutes per contest. His slash line on the campaign is .453/.444/.750.
Western Notes: Russell, Gasol, Freeland
Spanish national team coach Sergio Scariolo believes there is still a chance that Grizzlies center Marc Gasol will play in this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio, as he told the Spanish media outlet ACB.com (translation via Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype). “Marc is hoping to be there, but health comes first and the main thing is he recovers 100%,” Scariolo said. “When the time comes, he will tell us what’s his situation and his club’s opinion because with Marc there’s a lot of factors at play. I wish it was only up to him to make the decision.” While Scariolo’s comments were likely tinged with a dose of optimism, the mere possibility of Gasol being able to suit up and play this summer bodes well for the big man being able to be on the court for Memphis come opening night next season. Gasol is out for the remainder of the 2015/16 after undergoing surgery in February to repair damage to his broken right foot.
Here’s more from out West:
- D’Angelo Russell tries not to think about the implications his performance could have for the future of the Lakers, but he believes that as he, Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle play better, it helps the team’s case for free agents this summer, notes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “If we keep playing at a high level, the sky is the limit,” Russell said. “That could dictate who wants to come here and who feels like we don’t need to bring this guy here because we have such and such. We can play a certain part.”
- Joel Freeland, who signed a two-year deal with the Russian club CSKA Moscow this past summer, said he had a number of NBA offers, including one from the Mavericks, but chose to head overseas because of the playing time that doing so would provide, Mark Woods of MVP247.com relays. “I wanted to play. I probably had four or five offers from the NBA, but at the end of the day, nobody would guarantee me minutes,” Freeland told Woods. “And I never knew what my situation was going to be, going to those teams. So I felt like this was my best option, especially coming to a team with a great heritage, a great organization and a team that’s hopefully going to be fighting for championships.” Freeland became a free agent last offseason after his rookie deal expired and the Trail Blazers declined to submit a qualifying offer to him.
- The Thunder have assigned Josh Huestis and Mitch McGary to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. Huestis has appeared in 18 games with the Blue this season, averaging 11.9 points and 5.7 rebounds in 32.9 minutes per night, while McGary has made 19 appearances and is averaging 15.0 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 25.6 minutes per contest.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Grizzlies Waive Mario Chalmers
The Grizzlies have waived point guard Mario Chalmers, the team announced. Memphis also confirmed that he’ll miss the remainder of the 2015/16 season after rupturing his right Achilles tendon on Wednesday night. Zach Lowe of ESPN.com first reported that Chalmers had suffered a potential season-ending injury.
“Mario did an incredible job for us since coming to Memphis,” Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace said. “Right from the start, he embraced his change of scenery and endeared himself to his teammates and coaches on the court and the Memphis community off of it.” Memphis’ roster count now stands at 15 players.
Chalmers mouthed the words, “I heard it pop,” as he was helped off the floor during the third quarter of Wednesday night’s contest, according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. He didn’t return to the game and later left the locker room in a wheelchair, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal first relayed. The timing of the injury for Chalmers couldn’t have been worse, as he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end. By waiving him, Memphis forfeits its Bird rights for Chalmers.
“He has been an important part of our success this season, both coming off the bench and when called upon as a starter,” Wallace said. “But with Mario’s season-ending injury and our already-depleted roster, it became necessary to free up a roster spot.”
Marc Gasol is also done for the season, while Jordan Adams, Chris Andersen, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Brandan Wright are all out for indefinite periods with maladies of some kind. The avalanche of injuries the team has endured had already prompted the Grizzlies to apply for a 16th roster spot. The team has reportedly signed Briante Weber via the hardship exception to a 10-day deal, which presumably means the league granted the request, though the Grizzlies issued no formal announcement. It’s conceivable that Memphis could once again get clearance for a 16th player, since the team applied for the roster spot before Chalmers went down, as Hoops Rumors’ Chuck Myron noted earlier today. Memphis would need four players likely to miss two weeks or more to receive clearance to add a 16th man.
Chalmers posted averages of 10.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 steals in 22.8 minutes over 55 games with the Grizzlies after they acquired him from the Heat in early November.
Grizzlies Fear Mario Chalmers Tore Achilles
11:07am: The team will try to get two roster spots on top of the one for Weber, with an eye on adding both a guard and a big man, according to Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal (Twitter links). That indicates Memphis is seeking permission to carry 18 players, three over the regular season limit. Herrington also suggests the Grizzlies might weigh the merits of waiving Chalmers if he’s done for the season, thus forfeiting his Bird rights, though it’s unclear if they’re considering such a move. Weber signed Wednesday, according to RealGM, though the team has made no announcement, and it’s not entirely clear whether he’s indeed under contract.
9:52am: The Grizzlies are worried that an MRI will show that Mario Chalmers tore his Achilles tendon during Wednesday’s game, reports Zach Lowe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Chalmers mouthed the words, “I heard it pop,” as he was helped off the floor during the third quarter, according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). He didn’t return to the game and later left the locker room in a wheelchair, notes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal.
A torn Achilles would obviously be devastating for Chalmers, whose contract expires at the end of the season, and it would add to a litany of injuries that have already prompted the Grizzlies to apply for a 16th roster spot. The team plans to sign point guard Briante Weber if the league allows the team an extra man via the hardship exception. It’s conceivable that Memphis could get clearance for a 17th player, since the team applied for the roster spot before Chalmers went down.
Marc Gasol is done for the season, while Jordan Adams, Chris Andersen, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Brandan Wright are all out for indefinite periods with maladies of some kind. Memphis would need four players likely to miss two weeks or more to receive clearance to add a 16th man. A fifth such injury would allow for a 17th man.
The Grizzlies have the fortune of largely being locked into their playoff seeding, since they’re four games in the loss column behind the fourth-place Clippers and five up on the sixth-place Trail Blazers. Still, the loss of Chalmers for the rest of the season would significantly weaken their bench for the playoffs.
And-Ones: Wright, Dunn, Spurs, Grizzlies, Heat
Dorell Wright is back in the U.S. now that his Chinese club’s season is over, and while NBA teams are eyeing him, he’s not rushing to sign, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes. He prefers a multiyear deal rather than one that’s just for the remainder of the season, Kennedy adds.
“I have [received interest from NBA teams], but I’ve told my agent that I really don’t want to know anything until something is serious and set in stone,” Wright told Kennedy. “I did that [free agency] waiting game this past summer, getting my hopes up and thinking this could be it, but it didn’t work out. Once something is set in stone and serious, I’ll know about it. Right now, I’m just working until I get that call.”
See more from around basketball:
- Providence point guard Kris Dunn went against his father’s insistence that he enter the draft last year, and the extra year at college has helped him expand his game and his character, as Bleacher Report’s Jason King examines. He’s risen from a projected mid-first-rounder to No. 5 in the rankings that Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and Chad Ford of ESPN.com compile. “I want to do more than just go to the NBA,” Dunn said. “I want to play in the NBA. I want to be prepared when I get there, instead of sitting at the end of the bench or going to the D-League. I needed more time to grow.”
- The Spurs waited to cut Rasual Butler, a move required for the team to sign Kevin Martin, until Gregg Popovich could inform Butler of his release in person, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Popovich returned today from an absence related to a family medical issue that took him away from the team for the past two games. San Antonio’s policy is to have either Popovich or GM R.C. Buford tell a player face-to-face when he’s being waived, according to Charania.
- Briante Weber is poised to sign with the Grizzlies if the NBA gives them a 16th roster spot, but his agent, Bill Neff, still holds the Heat in high regard, reports Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. The first-year pro has been with the Heat’s D-League affiliate this season and spent a brief time on the NBA roster in the preseason. “We love the Heat,” Neff said. “I’m still betting on them. We love the Heat. I couldn’t have picked a better team; they have been wonderful. I do think there is a chance to go back.”
Spurs Sign Kevin Martin
MARCH 9TH, 12:30pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release. San Antonio waived Rasual Butler minutes earlier to clear a roster spot for the move.
9:49pm: The Thunder, Grizzlies and Wizards were among the teams pursuing Martin, Stein tweets.
MARCH 4TH, 9:01pm: The Spurs have reached a contract agreement with free agent shooting guard Kevin Martin, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). San Antonio currently has the league maximum of 15 players on its roster, so a corresponding move will be required prior to inking Martin. The Mavs, Rockets and Hawks also had expressed interest in signing Martin once he cleared waivers, as Stein also recently reported.
Martin was available for a trade for months prior to the February trade deadline, as Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press first reported in December, but potential suitors were apparently reluctant to take him on without knowing what he’d do about his player option for 2016/17. Once the trade deadline passed, Martin and the Wolves reached an agreement on a buyout that saw the player sacrifice exactly half of his $7,377,500 player option for next season and $352,750 of this season’s salary.
The 33-year-old has appeared in 39 games for Minnesota this season, including 12 starts. Martin is averaging 10.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 21.4 minutes of action per appearance. His career numbers through 698 games are 17.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists to go with a shooting line of .438/.385/.870.
And-Ones: Anderson, Carter, Matthews
Ryan Anderson is strongly considering a change of scenery this summer when he becomes an unrestricted free agent, which makes the Pelicans‘ decision not to trade him prior to this season’s deadline puzzling, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes. Sources tell Kennedy that Anderson seems to be leaning toward signing with a team other than New Orleans. Teams expressing interest in Anderson leading up to the deadline included the Wizards, Pistons, Cavaliers, Clippers, Kings and Suns, Kennedy notes. It’s unclear just how many of those teams will pursue Anderson this summer, with Washington acquiring Markieff Morris, Detroit landing Tobias Harris, Channing Frye ending up in Cleveland and Jeff Green now a member of the Clippers as a result of various deadline trades.
The 27-year-old says he hasn’t discussed his pending free agency with the team yet, Kennedy notes. ”No conversations at all about it,” Anderson told reporters. ”Obviously I think they are in the same boat, so many things can happen they may have multiple pieces they are thinking about. A lot of stuff that I don’t know about obviously that they talk about behind closed doors. So I haven’t communicated at all with them.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- Mavericks swingman Wesley Matthews scoffs at the notion that the Dallas roster is devoid of talent and places the blame for the team’s struggles this season on porous defense, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com relays (ESPN Now link). “A talent problem? No, we don’t have a talent problem,” Matthews told MacMahon. “If we don’t have a talent problem, then what’s the problem? We’re giving up too many points in transition. I just said it. I mean, you guys can pick apart our team all you want. We’ve got talent on this team. So y’all can miss me with that.“
- Kentucky freshman center Skal Labissiere has played his way back into the lottery in the latest mock draft from Jonathan Givony of Draft Express. The young big man is currently projected to go 10th after plummeting toward the bottom of the first round in Givony’s previous projection. Labissiere is averaging 6.8 points and 3.2 rebounds on the season, and while he’s picked up his play as of late, scouts remain skeptical and want to see how well he performs in postseason tournaments before making their final judgments, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays.
- One reason for the Trail Blazers‘ surprise success this season is that the players have fully embraced coach Terry Stotts and his combination of compassion, toughness and basketball IQ, Jason Quick of CSNNW.com writes.
- Small forward Sampson Carter, who was with the Grizzlies during the preseason, has signed with the Mexican club Caballeros de Culiacan, the team announced (translation via Orazio Cauchi of Sportando).
Southeast Notes: Dragic, Satoransky, Dedmon
Goran Dragic is pleased with the Heat‘s shift to more of an up-tempo attack in the wake of Chris Bosh‘s latest blood-clot issues, though he believes the team would have resolved its issues even if Bosh were healthy, as Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald examines. The point guard’s improved play amid the faster pace has made it far less likely the team seeks to trade him and pursues Mike Conley to replace him this summer, The Herald’s Barry Jackson posits. The Heat aren’t better simply because Bosh isn’t there, Jackson cautions, writing that they nonetheless must figure out why they didn’t play better with Bosh in the lineup. See more from the Southeast Division:
- Wizards draft-and-stash prospect Tomas Satoransky has signed a four-year extension with Barcelona of Spain, the team announced (Twitter link). It’ll keep him from the NBA until 2017, as international journalist David Pick reports the deal includes NBA outs for each year from then on (Twitter link). Rumors of such a deal have been around since January, though a report in August indicated that the Wizards expected they’d be able to sign him in the summer of 2016, which evidently won’t happen.
- The Wizards aren’t enamored with analytics, and coach Randy Wittman has a particular lack of fondness for them, but their traditional approach isn’t hurting them, argues Quinten Rosborough of SB Nation’s Bullets Forever. Owner Ted Leonsis has the coach’s back in this regard, Rosborough notes.
- The Magic have recalled Dewayne Dedmon from the D-League, the team announced (Twitter link). The big man had asked for the assignment so he could get some playing time, notes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (on Twitter).
Grizzlies Eye Jeff Ayres, Others
4:11pm: Andersen is out for at least another three to five days, and Mike Conley is also set to miss that amount of time with a sore left foot, the Grizzlies announced.
1:05pm: The Grizzlies are looking for depth amid a rash of injuries, with recent Clippers 10-day signee Jeff Ayres among their big man targets, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Memphis is without Marc Gasol for the rest of the year and backup center Brandan Wright is liable to miss another seven weeks, which would finish him for the season. Fellow big man Chris Andersen is dealing with a shoulder issue that has him questionable to play tonight while Tony Allen and Jordan Adams are out indefinitely with knee injuries.
Memphis doesn’t have an open roster spot, but if doctors determine four or more players are likely to miss two weeks or more, the team could apply to the NBA for a hardship provision to sign a 16th man. Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal suggests that’s precisely what the Grizzlies have in mind (Twitter link).
Ayres, formerly known as Jeff Pendergraph, scored six points and pulled down three rebounds in 14 minutes total minutes over five appearances with the Clippers on a pair of 10-day contracts earlier this year. The 28-year-old has otherwise been out of the NBA this season following the expiration of a two-year deal with the Spurs. The sixth-year NBA veteran has spent most of his time this year in the D-League, recently having joined the D-League affiliate of the Lakers following a trade that took him from the Jazz affiliate, which picked him first overall in this year’s D-League draft.