Bucks Ink Jared Cunningham To 10-Day Deal
WEDNESDAY, 11:36am: The signing is official, the team announced.
TUESDAY, 6:33pm: The Bucks are close to signing Jared Cunningham to a 10-day deal, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). Milwaukee currently has the league maximum of 15 players on its roster, which likely means that the team has applied for an extra slot via the hardship provision, though that is merely my speculation. Otherwise, the Bucks would be forced to waive a player prior to inking Cunningham.
In order for a team to be granted an extra roster spot, it 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 Bucks certainly meet that criteria, with O.J. Mayo, Steve Novak and Michael Carter-Williams all lost for the season and Greivis Vasquez expected to be out of action until at least the end of March.
Cunningham, 24, recently rejoined the Idaho Stampede in the NBA D-League as a returning player after the Magic waived him. Orlando had acquired him via the swap that sent Channing Frye to the Cavaliers at the trade deadline. The shooting guard appeared in 40 games for the Cavaliers, including three starts, but he didn’t see action for the Magic. His numbers on the season are 2.6 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 8.9 minutes per contest. His slash line is .352/.313/.625.
Central Notes: Vasquez, Harris, Harper, LeBron
Greivis Vasquez is determined to return to game action before season’s end, calling the Bucks a “class act” for their assistance as he rehabilitates from the right ankle surgery he had three months ago today, as Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel details. Vasquez, who hired agent Alex Saratsis of Octagon earlier this year, is headed for free agency this summer and argues the injury didn’t have a net effect on the contract he’ll be able to command.
“I feel I didn’t lose value, but I didn’t gain value,” Vasquez said. “I feel people know what I can do. My game is not based on athleticism. I’m not jumping over guys. It’s an IQ game. I wasn’t able to do what I usually do, being limited with my injury. Surgery was needed. Now I feel much better. The team I want to show that I’m healthy is this team. Because every team I’ve been with, I got that team better. I was in Toronto; we got better. New Orleans, we got better. Memphis, we got better.”
Vasquez, an offseason trade acquisition, has appeared in only 16 games for the disappointing Bucks this season. See more from the Central Division:
- Stan Van Gundy expected it would be challenging to integrate Tobias Harris into the Pistons, as the coach usually expects in the wake of a trade, but it’s been a smooth transition so far, Van Gundy told Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports. That’s been especially so after Van Gundy switched Harris to power forward after a brief experiment with him at small forward, the coach also said. “He’s unselfish. He’s been efficient,” Van Gundy told Zillgitt. “He hasn’t needed an inordinate amount of shots to get his stuff done. He moves the ball pretty well. It’s actually been pretty easy.”
- Justin Harper‘s second 10-day contract with the Pistons expired overnight, so the backup power forward is now a free agent. The Pistons would have to sign him for the rest of the season if they were to bring him back, since two 10-day deals are the limit.
- LeBron James usually doesn’t make comments that cast a harsh light on fellow members of the Klutch Sports Agency, but he praised Cavs deadline pickup Channing Frye for his willingness to tangle with Klutch client Trey Lyles in Monday’s game, an incident that prompted ejections for both Frye and Lyles, notes Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com.
Eastern Notes: Mayo, Millsap, Jackson
The Bucks have suffered a rash of injuries this season and the team is currently down to just 10 healthy bodies, though center John Henson is getting closer to making his return from back woes. Despite his team being depleted, coach Jason Kidd indicated that Milwaukee has no immediate plans to add a player via hardship allowance, Charles F. Gardner of The Journal-Sentinel relays. “We’re going to play with the group we have,” Kidd said. “We have plenty of guys still; we’re not down to eight.” The Bucks are without O.J. Mayo, Michael Carter-Williams and Steve Novak, who are lost for the season, and Greivis Vasquez is out until at least March 25th with an ankle injury.
Kidd also noted that Mayo went to the doctor on Wednesday, the day prior to the announcement that he broke his right ankle walking down a flight of stairs at his home, because he we sick, Gardner relays. While the timing may raise eyebrows, Kidd indicated that the organization was taking the veteran shooting guard at his word, Gardner adds. “Anytime someone is sick, unless you’re going to play, we keep you home,” Kidd said. “Then the next day we get the call that he tripped and hurt himself, that he was going to the hospital. There are going to be stories. Everyone is going to have their opinion. But we can only go on what O.J. told us, and that’s what he told us.”
Here’s more from the East….
- Knicks team president Phil Jackson downplayed the notion that he would leave the team prior to the expiration of his five-year deal, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “I’m still in it,” Jackson said. “I’m in it to win it.” Jackson didn’t deny his fondness for the West Coast, but noted his job in New York isn’t complete yet, Medina adds. “The energy that I have is directed toward turning this team around,” Jackson continued. “That’s taken my full effort.”
- Returning to Utah this week brought back memories for Paul Millsap, who spent his first seven seasons in the league with the Jazz, Jody Genessy of The Deseret News relays. Millsap said he had fond regards for his time in Utah, while Atlanta coach/executive Mike Budenholzer said he’s thrilled the talented big man is a member of the Hawks organization, telling Genessy, “He means so much. He fits us well. He’s a great teammate. He plays both ends of the court at a high level. He’s very unique in how talented he is with some of the things he does. I’m just very thankful that he’s with us.”
O.J. Mayo Breaks Ankle, Out For Season
3:50pm: Mayo suffered a broken right ankle after he tripped descending the stairs at his home, the team relayed in its official announcement. Milwaukee’s statement also confirms that Mayo is indeed out for the remainder of the season.
3:04pm: O.J. Mayo has a broken leg and will miss the rest of the season, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The 28-year-old is on an expiring contract, so he’s poised to enter free agency this summer. The injury took place this week, according to Charania, though it’s unclear from the report which leg is broken.
The shooting guard’s injury is just the latest in a string that the Bucks have been struck with. Both Michael Carter-Williams and Steve Novak are lost for the season, Greivis Vasquez is out until at least March 25th with an ankle injury and John Henson is expected to miss at least another week with back woes. The Bucks have the regular season maximum of 15 players on their roster, but with four players expected to miss two weeks or more the team will be eligible to apply to the league for a hardship allowance, which would grant them a 16th roster spot if approved.
Mayo, who is earning $8MM in the final season of his current deal, appeared in 41 games this season and was averaging 7.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 26.6 minutes per night. His scoring average for 2015/16 is by far the lowest in his eight seasons in the league, with his shooting line on the season an anemic .371/.321/.775.
Pacific Notes: Cousins, Cauley-Stein, Sanders
The Kings have given DeMarcus Cousins a one-game suspension, the team announced, in the wake of his outburst toward coach George Karl during a timeout in Wednesday’s game. Cousins continued his tirade after the game, upset that Karl wasn’t defending him to refs, and Cousins jawed with GM Vlade Divac too, reports Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter links). It was odd timing, as Karl told Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee after the game that he would undergo a minor procedure for cancer in his throat today. It’s the latest chapter in the up-and-down relationship between Cousins and Karl, and it costs the star big man $144,109, 1/110th of his salary for the season. Cousins, who’ll miss Friday’s game against the Magic, wasn’t the only Kings player upset with Karl on Wednesday, as we detail amid news from the Pacific Division:
- Kings rookie Willie Cauley-Stein found it difficult to accept Karl’s explanation for the decreased minutes he’s seen of late, as James Ham of CSN California relays. Karl told reporters not to overreact to Cauley-Stein’s minutes dip, saying he’ll see plenty of burn the rest of the season and pointing specifically to the matchups involved in Wednesday’s game, Ham notes. “That’s funny, that’s funny, kind of flimsy, [because] I can guard five positions, so that’s redundant, otherwise I wouldn’t be here,” Cauley-Stein said. “There should be no matchup problems ever. So that’s just an excuse I think. However, I’m not the coach.”
- Larry Sanders is living in Los Angeles and has Lakers season tickets, as he told Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. The 27-year-old center who walked away from the game last year said he can envision making a comeback but remains wary of the NBA grind and said he won’t return to the situation he was in before, Kennedy relays, a subtle hint that he wouldn’t consider returning to the Bucks. Sanders praised Magic coach Scott Skiles, who was the Bucks coach when he entered the NBA, Kennedy also notes. The former 15th overall pick recently told Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports that he plans to play in the NBA again but only after he tends to other opportunities.
- The Markieff Morris trade appears to have been beneficial for both the Suns and the Wizards, though much depends on where the top-nine protected pick that Washington owes Phoenix ends up in the draft order, observes Jeremy Cluff of the Arizona Republic.
And-Ones: Ajinca, Dawson, Lawson
Pelicans center Alexis Ajinca, who is dealing with a fractured sternum he suffered on March 2nd, hopes to return to action this season, but he is still experiencing significant discomfort, Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com writes. “It’s still painful,” Ajinca said. “I’m still trying to catch my breath sometimes. But it’s getting better. I started shooting. I’m hoping to come back soon, but I’m still dealing with the pain, so we’ll see how far I have till I come back.”
Ajinca wants to help out his injury-depleted team by returning to the court, but he also needs to weigh his desire to play versus long-term health concerns, Eichenhofer relays. “I’m trying to come back, because sitting on the side is not really my thing. I don’t like doing that,” Ajinca said. “I’m trying to come back before the end of the season. But on the other hand, I’m also trying to be healthy and not jeopardizing my health if I’m coming back too early. I hope I can come back soon and have a pad on [the injury to protect it]. Hopefully it won’t be too painful if I get hit again.” The big man is in the first year of the four-year, $20.2MM deal he inked last July.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Clippers rookie Branden Dawson has spent the bulk of his rookie season in the D-League, only making three NBA appearances on the campaign, but the small forward believes this will help his development in the long run, Rowan Kavner of NBA.com writes. “Just a better opportunity and just playing more,” Dawson said about his D-League time. “The first time I went down, when I went to Bakersfield, it was different. I didn’t know what to expect going down for the first time. Now, I’m a lot more confident and I’m playing more. The main thing is to get better. The reason why guys go down is to get better. The first two times, I learned a lot from the coaches I played with, the different programs. The main thing is to just come down and get better.”
- A number of teams had interest in point guard Ty Lawson after he reached a buyout agreement with the Rockets, including the Bucks and the Jazz, Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports tweets. Lawson subsequently signed with the Pacers because he wanted to catch on with a new team quickly and he believed Indiana was a perfect fit for his skills, Agness adds.
- Shelvin Mack has impressed the Jazz with his solid play since arriving in a trade deadline deal from Atlanta, and he’s provided the stability the team sought after losing starter Dante Exum for the year with a torn ACL in his left knee, Jody Genessy of The Deseret News writes. “I think he’s making a good transition,” coach Quin Snyder said. “A lot of that is a compliment to Bud [Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer] and his staff and their team … and to him, of course.”
Central Notes: Lawson, LeBron, Irving, Moore
The Rockets were willing to replace Ty Lawson with Michael Beasley, which underscores the risk the Pacers assume with their new point guard, according to Nate Taylor of the Indianapolis Star. Taylor nonetheless believes Lawson and Indiana need each other. Much depends on how Lawson performs down the stretch, Taylor believes, and his debut for the team Monday was inauspicious, since he left after five minutes with a sprained foot, as Taylor notes in a separate piece. Lawson is day-to-day, coach Frank Vogel said, according to Taylor. See more from the Central Division:
- LeBron James and Kyrie Irving don’t have a personality conflict, but a disconnect exists between their games on the floor, said several scouts and coaches who spoke with Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. It’s one of many challenges facing the Cavaliers who face a situation James couldn’t have envisioned when he returned, with a stacked roster that still hasn’t found a groove, Mannix writes.
- The Bucks are giving Giannis Antetokounmpo minutes at point guard, but they probably don’t envision him as a full-time solution at that position, as the key for the team down the stretch is simply to see how Antetokoumpo and Jabari Parker can continue to mesh together, Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says in a video. Injured starting point man Michael Carter-Williams has a “murky” future with the team, leading Gardner to believe Milwaukee will look for a point guard this summer.
- E’Twaun Moore delivers at both ends and at both guard positions, making him indispensable for the Bulls as he enters free agency this summer, opines K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
Eastern Notes: Anthony, Lawson, Carter-Williams
- Ty Lawson‘s relationships with Pacers star forward Paul George and point guard George Hill, along with the team’s uptempo style, convinced him to sign with Indiana following his buyout agreement with the Rockets, according to Nate Taylor of the Indianapolis Star. Pacers coach Frank Vogel views the remainder of the regular season as an audition for the veteran point guard, both for this season and his impending free agency, Taylor adds in a tweet. Vogel spoke with Lawson’s former Nuggets coach and ex-Pacers assistant Brian Shaw before the signing and that helped sway Vogel that Lawson deserved a clean slate, Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star reports (Twitter links here).
- Bucks point guard Michael Carter-Williams tried to play through his hip injury but it reached the point where it needed to be addressed, Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press tweets. A source told Krawczynski that Carter-Williams felt discomfort since late December and doctors finally determined that season-ending surgery was required, he added in a separate tweet.
- The Celtics recalled rookie shooting guard R.J. Hunter from the D-League’s Maine Red Claws, the team tweets. The late first-round pick has appeared in 28 games with Boston this season.
Michael Carter Williams Out For Rest Of Season
Michael Carter-Williams will miss the rest of the season and undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left hip, the team announced. The injury damages whatever hopes of a postseason still exist for Milwaukee, which is in 12th place in the Eastern Conference and six games back of the last playoff spot. It’ll take the point guard three months to recover, according to the team.
It’s uncertain whether Carter-Williams will play again for the Bucks at all, since he was in multiple trade rumors before last month’s deadline. Coach Jason Kidd benched the former Rookie of the Year and marquee offseason signee Greg Monroe early last month, and Carter-Williams hasn’t played at all since February 27th because of patella tendinitis and his hip.
It’s much too late for the Bucks to apply for a disabled player exception, since the deadline for those is January 15th, but the hardship provision could be in play. The hardship would give the Bucks the opportunity to sign an extra player even though they’re at the 15-man roster limit. Milwaukee is also without Steve Novak for the rest of the season, and it’s uncertain when either John Henson, who’s been out since January, and Greivis Vasquez, who hasn’t played since November, will return. A team can apply for a hardship exception if it has four players expected to miss at least two weeks.
The injury robs Carter-Williams of a chance to make a final impression before he enters an offseason in which he becomes eligible for a rookie scale extension. He’s averaging career lows in points, shot attempts, assists and minutes per game, depressing his market value.
Eastern Rumors: Bucks, Bosh, Lawson, Dedmon
Bucks owner Wes Edens denies rumors of dissension within the ownership group, which also consists of principal owners Marc Lasry and Jamie Dinan, writes Charles F. Gardner of The Journal-Sentinel. Milwaukee has been among this season’s most disappointing teams, carrying a 26-36 record after last year’s playoff appearance. Regardless, Edens insists that ownership believes in Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker as the foundation for its future. “It’s definitely disappointing where we are; that’s the bad news,” Edens said. “The good news is, especially since the All-Star break, you look at the team of Giannis and Jabari and Khris, and others of course, and it’s not hard to imagine what this thing could really turn into.”
Edens added that no trades were given serious consideration before last month’s deadline and that any decision on a contract extension for coach Jason Kidd will be made after the season. “We can’t change what happened but we can improve on what’s going to happen,” Edens said. “That’s for the off season. Jason has been a big part of our involvement with the Bucks since we became owners, and I expect him to be a big part of our involvement with it going forward.”
There’s more news from the Eastern Conference:
- Heat center/forward Chris Bosh held a workout today and tweeted encouraging news about his health. “Feeling good! Feeling great!” he wrote as questions continue to linger about his availability for the rest of the season. Bosh hasn’t played since he missed the All-Star Game with a calf strain that was later reported to be a blood clot. Bosh is rumored to be on blood-thinning medication, just as he was last year for a blood clot in his lungs, though neither the condition nor the medication has been confirmed by him or the team.
- Point guard Ty Lawson is expected to sign with the Pacers on Monday and be in uniform for that night’s game, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. Lawson agreed to sign with Indiana after the Rockets waived him Monday in a buyout agreement.
- The Magic have assigned Dewayne Dedmon to the Erie Bayhawks of the D-League, the team announced today. The fourth-year center is averaging 3.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in 38 games with Orlando.