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Atlantic Notes: Green, Young, Marks, Noel

August 12th, 2021 at 6:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Danny Green, who re-signed with the Sixers on a two-year deal, said most of his other suitors in free agency offered less money or would have needed to work out a sign-and-trade with Philadelphia, according to Rich Hofmann of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Ex-teammates Dwight Howard (Lakers) and George Hill (Bucks) tried to recruit Green to the teams they signed with this summer, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. However, Tobias Harris and Joel Embiid were also in frequent contact with the veteran guard, urging him to stick with the Sixers, Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice tweets.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

  • Former Celtics assistant Jamie Young is joining Doc Rivers’ staff with the Sixers, Derek Bodner of The Athletic tweets. Young spent 21 years with Boston.
  • While Nets general manager Sean Marks says he’s mostly done tweaking the team’s roster this offseason, he reserved the right to make more moves, Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes. “We’ve got to continue to tinker with the roster, and just see what happens,” he said. “We’ve seen in the past where other teams make cuts, and so forth, and we’re able to adjust because of that. So I don’t want to say that the roster’s complete: Maybe it’s 90 percent complete, 99 percent complete.”
  • Nerlens Noel‘s three-year contract with the Knicks includes $4MM in total incentives. Among those potential incentives is a $750K bonus each time he makes First or Second Team All-Defense, Ian Begley of SNY.TV reports.
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Bucks Sign Georgios Kalaitzakis To Three-Year Deal

August 11th, 2021 at 2:40pm CST by Luke Adams

2:40pm: Kalaitzakis‘ three-year, minimum-salary deal with the Bucks is currently 50% guaranteed ($462,629) in year one and will become 50% guaranteed ($781,759) for year two if he remains under contract through August 25, 2022, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac.

12:44pm: The Bucks have officially signed Georgios Kalaitzakis, the last pick in this year’s draft, to his first NBA contract, the team announced today in a press release. According to Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link), it’s a three-year deal.

A 6’8″ guard/forward from Greece, Kalaitzakis has been under contract with Panathinaikos since 2016, having spent four seasons with the Greek club and one year on loan to Nevezis Kedainiai in Lithuania in 2019/20. The Pacers drafted the 22-year-old with the No. 60 pick on behalf of the Bucks, sending his rights to Milwaukee in a trade involving the No. 31 selection.

Assessing the pick on draft night, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony praised Kalaitzakis’ physical tools, positional versatility, and “terrific” frame, but cautioned that he’s an average decision-maker and shooter whose stock leveled off over the last couple years due to his lack of playing time for Panathinaikos. Kalaitzakis averaged just 2.6 PPG and 1.0 RPG in 27 Greek League and EuroLeague games in 2020/21.

Milwaukee used a portion of its mid-level exception to complete the signing, which allowed the team to offer Kalaitzakis more than just two years. The Bucks, who also used $4MM of their mid-level on George Hill, aren’t hard-capped because they haven’t spent more than the $5.89MM taxpayer portion of the MLE.

Unlike a veteran or undrafted free agent, Kalaitzakis will only count for about $926K for tax purposes, assuming he signed for the rookie minimum, which should help keep the Bucks’ year-end tax bill in check.

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Eastern Notes: Bucks, Pacers, Butler, Heat

August 9th, 2021 at 11:03am CST by Luke Adams

The two second-round picks the Bucks sent to the Grizzlies in the Grayson Allen trade were the 2024 and 2026 selections Milwaukee had just acquired from Indiana in a trade for the No. 31 pick, according to RealGM.

In the deal with Indiana, Milwaukee gave up the No. 31 selection in exchange for this year’s Nos. 54 and 60 selections along with those two future second-rounders. The team subsequently flipped the second-rounders to Memphis along with Sam Merrill for Allen.

The upshot is that the Bucks gave up Merrill and the No. 31 pick (Isaiah Todd) in exchange for Allen, the No. 54 pick (Sandro Mamukelashvili), and the No. 60 pick (Georgios Kalaitzakis).

Here’s more from around the East:

  • The Pacers officially announced a pair of additions to Rick Carlisle‘s staff, stating in a press release that Jannero Pargo has been hired as a player development assistant and Zach Chu has come aboard as the team’s manager of game strategy and analytics. Pargo spent the last two seasons with Portland, while Chu worked under Carlisle in Dallas.
  • Jimmy Butler‘s new maximum-salary extension with the Heat will actually be a three-year deal that begins in 2023/24, meaning it’s being tacked onto his 2022/23 player option, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Instagram video). Butler’s salary in ’23/24 will likely be 35% of that year’s cap, so the exact value of his extension isn’t yet known.
  • The Heat are taking their usual approach to their two-way contract slots, not filling them right away and instead auditioning several players for those openings. As Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel writes, the next week at the Las Vegas Summer League could go a long way toward determining which players have the leg up for those spots. Javonte Smart, A.J. Lawson, RJ Nembhard, Micah Potter, and Marcus Garrett are expected to be in the mix.
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Central Notes: Pistons Contracts, McConnell, Allen, Bulls

August 8th, 2021 at 7:41pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pistons‘ three-year deal with Kelly Olynyk has a partial guarantee in year three, with only $3MM of the big man’s $12.2MM salary assured in 2023/24, according to Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link). Detroit also gave Trey Lyles a two-year, $5.125MM deal that includes a second-year team option, Smith adds (Twitter link).

While those contract details are similar to what was reported earlier in free agency, the specifics on the Pistons’ deals for Saben Lee and second-round pick Isaiah Livers didn’t surface until today.

According to Smith (Twitter link), the Pistons used cap space to give Lee a three-year, minimum-salary contract that includes two fully guaranteed years followed by a third-year team option. As for Livers, his new deal with Detroit is also for three years with a third-year team option, tweets Smith. The No. 42 pick got slightly more than the rookie minimum in his first year, followed by the veteran’s minimum in years two and three.

Here’s more from around the Central:

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Eastern Contract Details: Lowry, Birch, Heat, Dinwiddie, Niang, More

August 8th, 2021 at 4:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Kyle Lowry‘s new three-year, $85MM contract with the Heat is a standard increasing deal, starting at about $26.98MM and rising annually by 5%, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac.

Based on Lowry’s 2021/22 salary, we now know the value of the traded player exception the Raptors created in their sign-and-trade deal with the Heat, tweets Blake Murphy of The Athletic. That TPE will be worth $4,832,848, which is the difference between Lowry’s new salary and the combined cap hits of Goran Dragic and Precious Achiuwa.

Murphy also confirms that Khem Birch‘s three-year, $20MM deal with the Raptors is a standard increasing contract with no options or partial guarantees — it eats up about $6.35MM of Toronto’s mid-level exception, leaving $3.187MM on that MLE.

Here are more contract details from around the East, courtesy of Smith:

  • As expected, the new deals for Max Strus, Omer Yurtseven, and Gabe Vincent with the Heat are each two-year, minimum-salary contracts with one year guaranteed and the second year non-guaranteed (Twitter link). P.J. Tucker, meanwhile, got a two-year, $14.35MM contract that uses $7MM of Miami’s mid-level exception in year one. Tucker’s second year is a player option (Twitter link).
  • Spencer Dinwiddie‘s three-year contract with the Wizards only has a base value of $54MM, rather than the previously-reported total of $60MM+ (Twitter link). The deal, which features unlikely incentives that could push its value higher, has a partial guarantee worth $10MM (of $18.86MM) in year three.
  • Georges Niang‘s deal with the Sixers came in at $6.765MM over two years, both of which are fully guaranteed (Twitter link).
  • Trae Young‘s five-year, maximum-salary extension with the Hawks includes a 15% trade kicker (Twitter link).
  • The numbers are also in for the finalized deals between Jarrett Allen and the Cavaliers (Twitter link), Bobby Portis and the Bucks (Twitter link), George Hill and the Bucks (Twitter link), and Danny Green and the Sixers (Twitter link), with no surprises among that group. As expected, Green’s second year is non-guaranteed and Portis has a second-year player option, while Allen and Hill have fully guaranteed salaries.
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Southeast Notes: Bamba, Oubre, Gill, Wizards

August 7th, 2021 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mohamed Bamba won’t play for the Magic when Summer League starts on Sunday, but he’s practicing with his teammates in Las Vegas, writes Chris Hays of The Orlando Sentinel. The third-year center got a path to regular minutes for the first time in his career when Orlando unloaded its veteran centers last spring and turned the position over to Bamba and Wendell Carter Jr.

“For me it was no-brainer,” Bamba said of his decision to come to Las Vegas. “We got a new coach, new system, new guys and I just wanted to get well acclimated way before training camp.”

Jamahl Mosley, who has taken over as head coach, said this week that it was encouraging to see Bamba join the team on his own. Bamba said he’s looking forward to playing under Mosley.

“He’s made it clear that my presence (on the floor) is needed, is wanted and it’s just all about getting out there and putting in the right amount of work,” Bamba said. “Practicing with the team only helps the chemistry of the team. Coming out here … I had a choice, either to stay in Orlando and work with the coaches that didn’t come to Summer League or come here and add in these good deposits from the team.”

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

  • Free agent forward Kelly Oubre received offers from eight other teams before deciding to sign with the Hornets, tweets Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Oubre’s agent, Torrel Harris of Unique Sports International Management, says the Knicks, Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Nuggets, Nets, Trail Blazers and Cavaliers all presented offers to Oubre.
  • Today marked the guarantee date for Wizards power forward Anthony Gill, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. Gill will make $1,517,981 in 2021/22, giving Washington 13 fully guaranteed contracts. That doesn’t include center Daniel Gafford, whose $1,782,621 won’t be guaranteed until the league-wide guarantee date of January 7.
  • Wizards Summer League players Cassius Winston, Issuf Sanon and Isaiah Todd have all been placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). Their replacements include former NBA players Cheick Diallo and Derrick Walton Jr. (Twitter link)
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Southwest Notes: Doncic, Pelicans, Silas, Allen

August 7th, 2021 at 8:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Luka Doncic played Saturday’s bronze medal game with an injured left wrist, but he tells Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News that it’s nothing Mavericks fans need to worry about. Doncic hit his wrist on plexiglass at courtside during Thursday’s semifinal contest. He had it wrapped in ice afterward and used several strips of tape to stabilize the wrist and forearm area for the bronze medal showdown.

“My wrist is going to be fine,” Doncic said. “I need a couple of days off from basketball. I’ve had every day basketball since the beginning of NBA season. A lot of games, so I need a couple days off.”

Doncic will return to Slovenia and will host a Mavericks contingent next week that includes owner Mark Cuban, new head coach Jason Kidd, general manager Nico Harrison and special advisor Dirk Nowitzki. They will finalize a five-year max-salary extension for Doncic that projects to be worth up to $207MM.

After that meeting, Kidd and director of player health and performance Casey Smith will head to Latvia to meet with Kristaps Porzingis, tweets Marc Stein of Substack.

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • The Pelicans were hoping to make a splash in free agency, but the results have been disappointing, writes Scott Kushner of NOLA.com. New Orleans was rumored to be in contention for an established point guard such as Chris Paul or Kyle Lowry, but instead the team got rid of three starters with no obvious upgrade in return. Kushner notes that it’s dangerous for a team in the NBA’s second-smallest market with no tradition of success to rely on signing free agents.
  • Rockets coach Stephen Silas is ready to focus on basketball again after spending 10 days in quarantine following a positive COVID-19 test, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Silas, who wasn’t able to be in the draft room or attend the post-draft press conference, expressed his enthusiasm about the team’s four first-round picks — Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Usman Garuba and Josh Christopher. “I was excited to get all four guys because I had done research on all for of them and studied them. We had talked a lot about them,” Silas said. “It all worked out almost as a perfect world for us as far as who we got and where we got them and now looking forward with them.”
  • The Grizzlies received a B-minus from ESPN’s Kevin Pelton for Friday’s trade that sent Grayson Allen to the Bucks in exchange for Sam Merrill and two second round picks. Pelton states that Allen wasn’t in Memphis’ long-term plans and may not have gotten another contract after his rookie deal expires next summer.
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Bucks Acquire Grayson Allen From Grizzlies

August 7th, 2021 at 2:11pm CST by Dana Gauruder

AUGUST 7: The trade is now official, the Grizzlies announced in a press release. While Merrill’s salary for 2021/22 is not yet fully guaranteed, Memphis intends to guarantee his deal and keep him on the roster, reports Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).

AUGUST 6: The Grizzlies have agreed to deal guard Grayson Allen to the Bucks for guard Sam Merrill and two future second-round picks, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Allen, who is entering his fourth NBA season, had a breakout year for Memphis in which he started 38 of 50 games and averaged 10.6 PPG, 3.2 RPG and 2.2 APG. The former Duke star has knocked down 38.1% of his 3-point attempts during his three-year career and will give the Bucks another perimeter option.

Milwaukee will absorb Allen’s contract using a $4.89MM traded player exception generated by a deal this past winter that sent guard D.J. Augustin to the Rockets, according to Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer (Twitter link).

Allen has an expiring $4.1MM contract and is eligible for a rookie scale extension. Merrill has a $500K guarantee on his contract and his $1.5MM deal will become fully guaranteed if he’s on Memphis’ roster through Sunday, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets. It’s uncertain whether Memphis plans to keep Merrill, a 2020 second-pick who appeared in 30 regular season games with the Bucks.

Milwaukee’s projected luxury tax bill will jump via this acquisition. The team’s luxury tax penalty will increase from $36MM to $44MM, Marks notes in a separate tweet. Milwaukee is right at $200MM in salary and luxury tax, Marks adds.

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Free Agent Rumors: Iguodala, Oubre, Williams, Smith

August 5th, 2021 at 9:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

A reunion between the Warriors and defensive specialist Andre Iguodala could be in the works. Iguodala has narrowed his choices to his former team along with the Nets and Lakers, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Iguodala, 37, played 63 regular-season games with the Heat this past season and averaged a modest 4.4 PPG in 21.3 MPG, with a majority of his field-goal attempts coming from beyond the arc. Iguodala won three rings in six seasons with the Warriors.

We have more free agent buzz:

  • Free agent forward Kelly Oubre is in discussions with the Hornets, David Aldridge of The Athletic tweets. Oubre averaged 15.4 PPG and 6.0 RPG for Golden State last season but only made 31.6% of his 3-point attempts. The Hornets are also reportedly pondering an offer sheet to Bulls free agent Lauri Markkanen — with approximately $14MM in cap room remaining, they wouldn’t be able to sign both players unless one accepted a very team-friendly rate.
  • Before Lou Williams chose to return to the Hawks, the Lakers, Warriors and Bucks showed interest in the three-time Sixth Man of the Year award, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Williams opted for a one-year, $5MM agreement with Atlanta.
  • Free agent guard Dennis Smith Jr. won’t return to the Pistons, Marc Berman of the New York Post tweets. That’s no surprise, considering Detroit drafted Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 pick and reached an agreement with Cory Joseph after declining its team option on him.
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George Hill Signs With Bucks

August 5th, 2021 at 4:32pm CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 6: Hill’s deal with the Bucks is now official, according to the team (Twitter link).

AUGUST 5: Having cleared waivers, Hill is now on track to sign with the Bucks, according to Charania, who reports (via Twitter) that the guard will sign a two-year, $8MM contract with Milwaukee. That money will come out of the team’s mid-level exception.

Both years of the deal will be guaranteed, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic.

AUGUST 3: Veteran point guard George Hill, who was released on Tuesday by the Sixers, intends to rejoin the Bucks after he clears waivers later this week, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While it’s still possible that Hill could be claimed on waivers by a team with cap room or a large trade exception, it’s unlikely that any club would want to guarantee his $10MM+ salary, so it’s a safe bet he’ll become a free agent.

Hill played for the Bucks in 2019/20, averaging 9.4 PPG and 3.1 APG with a league-high .460 3PT% in 59 games as the club’s third guard. However, he became expendable when his contract was needed for salary-matching purposes in the Jrue Holiday trade.

Hill, who was sent to Oklahoma City in that Holiday blockbuster, averaged 8.7 PPG and 2.4 APG on .482/.388/.800 shooting in 30 total contests (22.4 MPG) for the Thunder and Sixers this past season.

He didn’t make much of an impact in the postseason for Philadelphia, with just 4.7 PPG and 1.5 APG in 12 playoff games (17.1 MPG). The 76ers opted to waive him before his salary for 2021/22 became fully guaranteed.

The Bucks are now eyeing deals with two veterans who are currently on waivers. A report earlier on Tuesday indicated that Milwaukee is expected to sign Rodney Hood, who was cut today by Toronto.

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