Atlantic Notes: Pleiss, Seraphin, Stackhouse, Green
German center Tibor Pleiss received an invitation to work out for the Nets, but seems likely to sign overseas, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. Pleiss is finalizing a deal with the Galatasaray team in Turkey. He will take the place of former NBA player Nenad Krstic, who has a lingering knee injury and is expected to retire (Twitter link). Pleiss was waived by the Sixers last week after being acquired in a trade with the Jazz. The 7’3″ center appeared in 12 games for Utah last season, but spent most of the year in the D-League.
There’s more news out of the Atlantic Division:
- The Knicks were outbid in their attempt to re-sign reserve center Kevin Seraphin, according to Mark Berman of the New York Post. Seraphin agreed to join the Pacers last week and signed a two-year, $3.6MM contract on Thursday, with the second year as a team option. The deal starts at $2MM for next season, which topped the Knicks’ offer of $1.2MM, the minimum for a player who has been in the league for six years. It will still be a pay cut for Seraphin, who signed for the $2.8MM cap exception last season. The Knicks were hoping to keep Seraphin, who averaged 3.9 points in 48 games in 2015/16, as a backup to Joakim Noah. Berman expects Kyle O’Quinn to get a larger role with Seraphin’s departure, with Willy Hernangomez, Marshall Plumlee and Maurice Ndour as other options.
- Jerry Stackhouse sees his new job as coach of Toronto’s D-League affiliate as the next step toward becoming an NBA head coach, writes Chris O’Leary of The Toronto Star. Stackhouse was named to the position Friday after spending last season as an assistant with the Raptors. With 18 years as an NBA player, Stackhouse hopes to use that experience to help some of the players with Raptors 905. “I spent just about as much of my life on the struggle that you’re watching some of these [D-League players] … making whatever they make, 25, 30 grand, but it’s a destination,” he said. “It’s where you want to get, it’s the sacrifices you have to make. I’m excited about it, I really am.”
- The return of Gerald Green will give the Celtics a prolific scorer off the bench, writes Taylor C. Snow of NBA.com. In a look at Boston’s wing players, Snow notes that Green, who left the Heat for the Celtics this summer, can score the ball in a variety of ways.
Stackhouse To Coach Raptors’ D-League Affiliate
Jerry Stackhouse has been named head coach of Raptors 905, Toronto’s affiliate in the D-League, the team announced today. Stackhouse replaces Jesse Mermuys, who was hired as an assistant with the Lakers in June.
Stackhouse, a two time All-Star who played 18 years in the NBA, served as an assistant coach with the Raptors last season. He coached Toronto’s summer league team in Las Vegas.
“The basketball pedigree that he brings to the 905 bench is as good as it gets in the D-League,” said Raptors 905 GM Dan Tolzman. “We believe that his experience as a successful NBA player along with his year spent learning under Coach [Dwane] Casey on the Raptors staff will go a long way in helping teach the young players within our system what it takes to thrive at the next level.”
Hornets Sign Andrew Andrews, Rasheed Sulaimon
The Hornets officially signed Andrew Andrews and Rasheed Sulaimon, the team announced today. The signings give Charlotte 18 players under contract with training camp looming at the end of the month.
Andrews, 23, is a 6’2″ point guard who played four years at the University of Washington. As a senior, he averaged 20.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 34 games with the Huskies. Andrews received a training camp invitation from Charlotte in early August.
Sulaimon, 22, is a 6’4″ shooting guard who averaged 11.1 points, 3.5 assists and 3.5 rebounds as a senior with Maryland last season. He played with the Bulls’ summer league team and reached an agreement with the Hornets on August 7th. Sulaimon will spend the upcoming season with Charlotte’s new D-League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm.
Nets Notes: Stephenson, Ferrell, Mockevicius, Beech
Former Nets GM Billy King turned down a trade proposal last season that would have brought Lance Stephenson to Brooklyn, according to NetsDaily.com. King, who lost the GM title in January in a shakeup that cost coach Lionel Hollins his job, nixed the deal, which would have sent Joe Johnson to Charlotte in exchange for Stephenson and other unidentified players. The trade had the approval of Dmitry Razumov, chairman of the Nets’ board of directors, and NetsDaily shares the story as a way of showing that King had final say on all personnel moves, including the disastrous deal with the Celtics that put Brooklyn in its current position. King, the columnist added, also rejected Razumov’s suggestion to pursue JaVale McGee.
There’s more news tonight out of Brooklyn:
- Yogi Ferrell, Egidijus Mockevicius and Beau Beech will come into camp knowing that they’re likely headed to the Nets’ new D-League affiliate on Long Island, NetsDaily writes in the same piece. All three received “training camp invites,” which don’t become fully guaranteed unless the players remain on the roster until all contracts are guaranteed in early January. The author notes that roster spots could be hard to earn with Brooklyn having 15 players with fully guaranteed contracts, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Seven of those players have deals that either will expire or can expire after the upcoming season, so the Nets have flexibility if they decide to keep Ferrell, Mockevicius or Beech.
- The Nets may pick up another player before camp with the intention of sending him to the D-League, NetsDaily adds. The rights of the last four players cut would automatically go to the Long Island affiliate if they aren’t claimed off waivers. Brooklyn currently has 18 players headed to camp, two shy of the NBA limit.
Central Notes: Caldwell-Pope, Poythress, Bucks
The Pistons and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope may make a mutual decision to wait until next summer for contract talks, writes Keith Langlois of NBA.com. Detroit took a similar approach to Andre Drummond last year, but that was to preserve cap space. In the case of Caldwell-Pope, it would be to monitor his development and decide if he’s the long-term solution at shooting guard or if Stanley Johnson is a viable alternative. From Caldwell-Pope’s perspective, he and his representatives may be encouraged by the huge salaries thrown around in free agency this year and decide that he’s likely to top whatever offer the Pistons could make now. The deadline for extensions is October 31st. Langlois notes that regardless of when it happens, coach/executive Stan Van Gundy is a huge proponent of Caldwell-Pope and wants to see him signed long term.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- Alex Poythress isn’t discouraged about his NBA dream despite being bypassed on draft night, writes Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports. The 6’7″ forward, who spent four years at Kentucky, recently signed a partially guaranteed deal with the Pacers and is believed to be ticketed for the D-League. Poythress has been working out in Indianapolis for the past few weeks. “Things are going good,” he said. “Going through the draft process, [the Pacers] really liked me. I’m just trying to make best of this opportunity.”
- Even though the Bucks finished 33-49 last season, Matthew Dellavedova believes he is joining a playoff team, relays ESPN’s Jake Michaels. Fresh off a championship season with the Cavaliers, the Australian point guard accepted a four-year, $38MM offer from Milwaukee and was sent there as part of a sign-and-trade deal. Dellavedova said he is looking forward to having a legendary point guard as his new coach. “To be able to learn from one of the greatest point guards of all time in Jason Kidd is going to be cool, and something I’m really excited about,” he said. “I cannot wait.”
- The Bucks should locate their new D-League franchise in Sheboygan, argues Adam Johnson of D-League Digest. Sheboygan is one of the finalists for the new team, along with Oshkosh and Racine. The Bucks’ new affiliate will start play in the 2017/18 season.
And-Ones: Huestis, D-League, Nets, Dunn
The fact that the Greensboro Swarm, the Hornets‘ new D-League affiliate, selected the rights to Josh Huestis in Wednesday’s D-League expansion draft raised some eyebrows, since the former first-round pick is currently on the Thunder‘s NBA roster. However, as Erik Horne of The Oklahoman explains, the Thunder can still assign Huestis to their D-League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, as long as Huestis remains on the NBA roster. If OKC waived Huestis, the team would also surrender his D-League rights, with the Swarm getting first dibs.
Let’s check in on a few other notes from around the league, including more on yesterday’s D-League expansion draft…
- Adam Johnson of D-League Digest offers up a few more details on the D-League expansion draft, noting that most players selected won’t end up playing for the teams that drafted them. Still, Kiwi Gardner – selected in the second round by the Windy City Bulls – is expected to play for Chicago’s D-League affiliate this season, his agent tells Johnson.
- The Nets clearly value rookie guard Isaiah Whitehead very highly, writes Net Income of NetsDaily. As we noted earlier today, Brooklyn paid $3MM to move up on draft night to nab Whitehead, who was ranked 18th in the team’s 2016 mock draft, per NetsDaily.
- Kris Dunn was linked to several teams leading up to – and during – draft night, including a couple clubs that had interest in trading for him. Ultimately, the rookie point guard landed in Minnesota, and he tells Larry Berger of USA Today Sports (video link) that the Timberwolves are a “beautiful organization.”
2016 NBA D-League Expansion Draft Results
The NBA D-League conducted its expansion draft today, allowing the league’s three new teams to add the rights to 12 players apiece. The league’s previously-existing 19 teams had been permitted to retain the rights to 10 players each, leaving the rest of their players unprotected and free to be drafted, as Chris Reichert of UpsideMotor.com explained earlier today.
As we noted on Tuesday, the D-League’s three new franchises this year are affiliates for the Nets (Long Island Nets), Hornets (Greensboro Swarm), and Bulls (Windy City Bulls).
The players those three teams added today won’t necessarily play for them this season — in fact, it’s somewhat rare for expansion draftees to suit up for their new clubs, as D-League Digest tweets. Many of those players will try to catch on with an NBA team or will end up playing overseas. Still, the expansion draft gives the D-League’s new teams some assets as they start to build their rosters for the coming season.
Per Reichert, here are the results of today’s expansion draft. The player’s former D-League team is noted in parentheses, and picks are ordered by round. The teams will hold their players’ rights for the next two seasons:
Long Island Nets (Twitter link)
- Gary Forbes (Grand Rapids Drive)
- Carrick Felix (Santa Cruz Warriors)
- Jamaal Franklin (Los Angeles D-Fenders)
- Akil Mitchell (Rio Grande Valley Vipers)
- Peyton Siva (Delaware 87ers)
- Alex Kirk (Canton Charge)
- Austin Freeman (Westchester Knicks)
- Kendall Gray (Iowa Energy)
- Lazar Hayward (Los Angeles D-Fenders)
- Dwayne Polee Jr. (Reno Bighorns)
- Matt Bouldin (Fort Wayne Mad Ants)
- Lewis Jackson (Salt Lake City Stars)
Greensboro Swarm (Twitter link)
- Josh Davis (Austin Spurs)
- Abdul Gaddy (Maine Red Claws)
- Tony Bishop (Rio Grande Valley Vipers)
- Scotty Hopson (Sioux Falls Skyforce)
- Toure’ Murry (Sioux Falls Skyforce)
- Rodney Williams (Oklahoma City Blue)
- Josh Huestis (Oklahoma City Blue)
- Ralston Turner (Grand Rapids Drive)
- Keanau Post (Raptors 905)
- Damien Wilkins (Iowa Energy)
- Kris Joseph (Westchester Knicks)
- Dee Bost (Raptors 905)
Windy City Bulls (Twitter link)
- Wesley Saunders (Austin Spurs)
- Kiwi Gardner (Santa Cruz Warriors)
- Ralph Sampson III (Maine Red Claws)
- Booker Woodfox (Texas Legends)
- Jerel McNeal (Northern Arizona Suns)
- Akeem Richmond (Reno Bighorns)
- Casey Prather (Northern Arizona Suns)
- Jon Octeus (Canton Charge)
- Justin Dentmon (Texas Legends)
- Jamal Jones (Delaware 87ers)
- Xavier Thames (Fort Wayne Mad Ants)
- Ian Chiles (Salt Lake City Stars)
And-Ones: Matthews, Harden, Hunter
Wesley Matthews says he is fully recovered from the Achilles tear he suffered in 2015 and predicts much stronger results for his second campaign with the Mavericks, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com relays. “I want the season to start now,” Matthews said. “I’m a whole different person. I’m a whole different player, and I’m really just excited to get out there and show it, and just to be who I know I can be and just to continue to grow. Obviously, it was different coming off of an Achilles [injury] and not having four or five months to prepare and all that stuff, and jumping right into the season being physically able to play every single game and play heavy minutes. It took until about after the All-Star break for me to get my legs back, because I play both ends of the court. And I feel better than when I got hurt.”
Here’s more from around the league:
- Despite the roster and coaching changes the team has made, the Rockets will only go as far as James Harden takes them, writes Oliver Maroney of Basketball Insiders. The guard is one of the most criticized players in the league, Maroney notes, something that GM Daryl Morey disagrees with. “He’s only a polarizing figure to people who don’t watch,” Morey told Maroney. “Players voted him MVP [in 2014/15] for a reason. He’s had a winning team every season of his career, with multiple Conference Finals appearances.”
- The Long Island Nets, Brooklyn’s D-League affiliate, named Ryan Gomes and Pat Rafferty as assistant coaches, the team announced via press release.
- ESPN’s Chad Ford (Insider subscription required) released his first mock draft for 2017. The current top three, according to Ford, are Markelle Fultz (Washington), Harry Giles (Duke) and Josh Jackson (Kansas).
- R.J. Hunter, James Young, John Holland, and Ben Bentil are expected to compete for the Celtics‘ final regular season roster spot, though Hunter appears to have the advantage heading into the preseason, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes. Regardless of any advantage he has, Hunter plans on earning his place on the team, Himmelsbach adds. “I’m a competitor, so it’s just absolutely motivation for me,” Hunter said. “I think it just adds an extra competitive spirit to training camp, which is a great way to get the year started. So I’d rather have it that way, because now I have no reason not to be on my toes on every possession and at every practice. So I’ll try to use it to my advantage.”
NBA D-League Affiliations For 2016/17
The NBA D-League announced its 2016/17 schedule this week, and once again, the league has officially expanded its list of teams. The NBA’s ultimate goal is to have each of its 30 franchises affiliated with a D-League squad, and the league inched closer to that goal this year.
Three additional NBA teams – the Nets, Hornets, and Bulls – now have expansion affiliates in the D-League, while two more teams – the Suns and Jazz – relocated their affiliates, ensuring that the distance between the NBA and D-League clubs has been reduced. Phoenix’s old D-League team, the Bakersfield Jam, is now located in Northern Arizona, while the Idaho Stampede, Utah’s old D-League affiliate, has moved to Salt Lake City.
Listed below, sorted alphabetically by NBA team, are the 22 NBA D-League affiliates for the 2016/17 season.
2016/17 D-League Affiliations:
Boston Celtics: Maine Red Claws
Brooklyn Nets: Long Island Nets (new)
Charlotte Hornets: Greensboro Swarm (new)
Chicago Bulls: Windy City Bulls (new)
Cleveland Cavaliers: Canton Charge
Dallas Mavericks: Texas Legends
Detroit Pistons: Grand Rapids Drive
Golden State Warriors: Santa Cruz Warriors
Houston Rockets: Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Indiana Pacers: Fort Wayne Mad Ants
Los Angeles Lakers: Los Angeles D-Fenders
Memphis Grizzlies: Iowa Energy
Miami Heat: Sioux Falls Skyforce
New York Knicks: Westchester Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder: Oklahoma City Blue
Orlando Magic: Erie BayHawks
Philadelphia 76ers: Delaware 87ers
Phoenix Suns: Northern Arizona Suns (relocated)
Sacramento Kings: Reno Bighorns
San Antonio Spurs: Austin Spurs
Toronto Raptors: Raptors 905
Utah Jazz: Salt Lake City Stars (relocated)
Listed below are the eight NBA teams still without a D-League affiliate. These eight clubs will get to assign players to D-League teams associated with other NBA franchises.
Teams without D-League affiliates:
Atlanta Hawks
Denver Nuggets
Los Angeles Clippers
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
Portland Trail Blazers
Washington Wizards
Heat Notes: Bosh, Stoudemire, Stokes
It’s unlikely the Heat will use the stretch provision on Chris Bosh this year, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Teams face an August 31st deadline to trigger that option for the 2016/17 season, and Miami officials don’t appear ready to commit to such a move. The stretch provision is a relatively new rule that allows teams to ease the burden of an unwanted contract by waiving the player and stretching his cap hit for double the number of years left on his deal, plus one. Bosh has three years remaining at $75,868,170, so the Heat could choose to pay him $10,838,750 each year through 2022/23.
One consequence of using the stretch provision is it erases the possibility of a medical retirement, which could happen if an independent doctor rules that Bosh, whose past two seasons have been cut short by blood clots, cannot continue playing in the NBA. That must occur at least one year after a player’s final game, which in Bosh’s case was February 9th, 2016, and would take the entire remaining contract off the Heat’s cap.
There’s more news out of Miami:
- Bosh continues to send positive messages to teammates about resuming his career, Winderman notes in the same story. If the Heat decide to use the stretch provision on Bosh, he could immediately sign with any other team, most likely one with fewer objections than Miami about letting him play again.
- Amar’e Stoudemire would have preferred more time in the NBA before joining the Israeli team that he co-owns, Winderman adds in the same piece. Stoudemire appeared in 52 games for the Heat last year and became a regular starter by the end of the season. “I started 37, 38 of the last 40 [regular-season] games,” he said at a press conference in Jerusalem. “My stats were pretty good. But teams want to go younger and have a different mindset about basketball.”
- Jarnell Stokes, who appeared in five games for Miami last season, hired Priority Sports as his new agent and turned down offers in excess of $500K to play in Europe, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. The 6’9″ center/power forward was acquired in a trade with Memphis last November, but spent most of the season in the D-League, where he earned MVP honors. Miami traded him to New Orleans in February, and the Pelicans promptly released him. The Lokomotiv Kuban franchise in Russia is among the teams interested in signing Stokes, according to Sportando.