And-Ones: Cavs, Raptors, Pistons
Cavs GM David Griffin told reporters, including Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group, that he is interested in re-signing unrestricted free agent J.R. Smith and restricted free agent Matthew Dellavedova. “In Delly’s case, the restricted free agency is a totally different process,” Griffin said. “With J.R., I wouldn’t want to characterize the discussion or anything, but he’s a player I’d like to have back. We just have to find a way to make it work.”
Here’s more from around the basketball world:
- The Raptors have hired Andy Greer as an assistant coach, reports Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski (on Twitter). Greer, who previously was an assistant with the Bulls under former Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau, will run the Raptors’ defense.
- The Raptors let a leftover sliver of the Steve Novak trade exception expire Friday. It was initially a $3,445,947 exception created when Toronto sent Novak to Utah on July 10th, 2014. The lion’s share of it went toward the acquisition of Luke Ridnour last month, a move that failed to be of much efficacy for the Raptors, who simply waived Ridnour this past Thursday.
- The Pistons plan to proceed with finalizing Reggie Jackson‘s five-year, $80 million contract later this week or early next week, Detroit coach/executive Stan Van Gundy told reporters including David Mayo of MLive.com. At around the same time, Gundy plans to address the topic of Andre Drummond‘s contract extension, Mayo adds. The Pistons expect to lock Drummond into a long-term extension, Mayo writes, though they would have about another $15MM in cap flexibility in 2016/17 if the 21-year-old center agrees to wait until 2016 to sign rather than inking an extension this summer.
- Free agent guard A.J. Price, who was formerly with the Suns, is mulling a move overseas and might land with Serbia’s Red Star Belgrade, a source told David Pick of Eurobasket.com (on Twitter).
- Anthony Randolph has decided to return to Russia and the former NBA forward re-signed with Kuban, Pick also tweets.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Central Rumors: Drummond, Butler, Pacers
The Pistons will begin extension talks with center Andre Drummond this summer with the aim of signing him to a long-term deal, most likely for the max, Terry Foster of the Detroit News reports. The Pistons want to lock up their franchise player even though they could have more flexibility to sign free agents and make trades next summer by waiting to re-sign him when he’s a restricted free agent, Foster continues. The incentive for Drummond is to get the guaranteed money now in case he suffers a significant injury, Foster adds. Money is apparently no object to get an agreement. “We have until the end of October so we will get into those talks in the next couple of weeks,” Pistons president of basketball operations and coach Stan Van Gundy said during a press conference. “What you are talking about there is more timing than anything. It is not like you will be haggling over dollars, so it is a different situation.”
In other news around the Central Division:
- Van Gundy admitted he took “a little bit of a gamble” with his commitment to point guard Reggie Jackson, who has never started a full season, John Niyo of the Detroit News writes. Jackson, a restricted free agent, agreed to a five-year, $80MM deal without any options to be the team’s floor leader going forward. Van Gundy wanted to have Jackson for the long haul. “You’ve got to weigh in future years,” Van Gundy told the Detroit media. “Most of the guys who signed free-agent contracts [this July], they’ve got an out after year three or four. We were willing to pay more money to not have the out.”
- Jimmy Butler received a $4.6MM signing bonus when he re-signed with the Bulls, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. Butler stayed put with a five-year deal worth approximately $95MM. A 5% trade kicker is another element to the contract, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- The Pacers will use cap room to re-sign guard Rodney Stuckey since they renounced his non-Bird rights, Pincus reports. They also renounced their rights to Andrew Bynum, David West and Luis Scola, among others, Pincus adds (Twitter links). Stuckey agreed to a three-year, $21MM deal to remain with Indiana.
And-Ones: Drummond, Farmar, Mekel
The Pistons could reap greater cap flexibility for next summer if they wait until then to sign Andre Drummond as a restricted free agent instead of giving him an extension this summer, but the team will leave that choice to the Jeff Schwartz client, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Drummond reportedly wants an extension, so it would seem it’s a strong bet he’ll end up with one before the October 31st rookie scale extension deadline. Here’s more from around the NBA and related circles:
- Jordan Farmar has signed with Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv, the team announced (hat tip to David Pick of Eurobasket.com). Agent Tony Dutt searched for NBA deals for the point guard who spent part of last season with the Clippers, but found nothing, as Pick hears (Twitter link).
- Maccabi Tel Aviv management pushed for the deal with Farmar, while the coaches were higher on former Mavs and Pelicans point guard Gal Mekel, according to Pick, who earlier reported that Mekel and the team had a verbal agreement on a three-year deal with NBA out clauses (Twitter links). However, fellow Israeli club Hapoel Jerusalem is still pursuing Mekel, who remains in talks with teams from the NBA and Europe, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- Lakers co-owner Jeanie Buss clarified in a radio appearance on KPCC-FM last week that this past year was the first on brother Jim Buss‘ three-year window to guide the team to at least the Western Conference Finals, as Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com details. Jim Buss would resign his job as executive VP of basketball operations if the Lakers aren’t back to that point by the end of the 2016/17 season, his sister said.
- The Lakers, Heat, Knicks, Suns and Pelicans have expressed interest in Justin Hamilton, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). The Timberwolves elected not to retain the right to match offers for him when they decided against making a qualifying offer.
- Serge Ibaka failed to meet an incentive worth $100K this past season, so his cap hit for the Thunder for this coming season shrinks by that amount, to $12.25MM, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter). That’s unlikely to matter for the Thunder, who are expected to be well above the cap and exceed the tax line. Ibaka’s salary for tax purposes will be determined based on the bonuses that he either triggers or doesn’t trigger this coming season, whereas last season’s figures only affect his cap number.
- The Nuggets are hiring German national team coach Chris Fleming, former Magic assistant Wes Unseld Jr., and Kings assistants Ryan Bowen and Micah Nori as assistants to new head coach Michael Malone, reports Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post. They’ll join Bulls assistant Ed Pinckney, who’s also reportedly joining the Denver coaching staff.
Andre Drummond Seeks Extension With Pistons
Andre Drummond wants to sign a rookie scale extension with the Pistons this summer, reports Vincent Ellis of the Detroit Free Press (on Twitter). Drummond is eligible to sign one between the end of the July Moratorium next week and October 31st, and if he doesn’t, he’ll be set for restricted free agency next year.
The news isn’t altogether surprising, though it indicates that the Jeff Schwartz client likes the direction the Pistons are headed and wants to firm up a commitment as soon as possible. There were persistent whispers about the center’s level of contentment in Detroit, as TNT’s David Aldridge wrote in January, but presumably Drummond has become more comfortable since then.
Pistons owner Tom Gores called Drummond a “max player” in April, likely setting the table for negotiations this summer. The max is expected to surge right along with the salary cap next year, so an estimated starting salary would be nearly $21MM, or about $25MM if Drummond unexpectedly wins MVP to trigger the Derrick Rose rule this coming season. The Pistons can give Drummond a deal for up to five years with 7.5% raises.
Detroit would be able to keep a smaller cap hold, worth only $8.18MM, on the books if it waited until restricted free agency to do a deal with Drummond, though he could sign his qualifying offer or take a short-term offer sheet from another team in that scenario.
Central Notes: Kaminsky, Pistons, Pacers
According to a source close to Wisconsin center Frank Kaminsky, the big man has a list of three teams that he believes would be a good fit for him, and the Pacers are one of those squads, Candace Buckner of The Indianapolis Star relays. “They kind of alluded to the fact that they want to get up and down more, get out and run a little bit more but at the same time under control,” Kaminsky said after his meeting with the Pacers at the draft combine. “That’s kind of how it was for me my last year in Wisconsin, so I think it’ll be a good fit.” It’s Indiana’s desire to switch to a more up-tempo offense that has the team reportedly hoping that incumbent big man Roy Hibbert will opt out of his $15.514MM player option for the 2015/16 campaign.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- The Pacers have workouts scheduled on Sunday for Corey Hawkins (UC Davis), Darrun Hilliard (Villanova), Kaminsky, T.J. McConnell (Arizona), D.J. Newbill (Penn State), and Myles Turner (Texas), the team announced.
- With four trades completed since October, the Pistons‘ front office combination of president/coach Stan Van Gundy and GM Jeff Bower is proving itself to be quite active and willing to gamble, writes Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press.
- The acquisition of Ersan Ilyasova by the Pistons is intended to help center Andre Drummond unlock his enormous potential, Ellis writes in a separate piece. Ilyasova is a stretch four, and his outside shooting should provide space for Drummond’s rolls to the rim for alley-oop dunks off passes from point guard Reggie Jackson, who will be another beneficiary of Ilyasova’s career 37% three-point shooting drawing the attention of defenses, Eillis adds.
And-Ones: Drummond, Price, Afflalo
Pistons owner Tom Gores gave Andre Drummond a vote of confidence during tonight’s contest against the Knicks, calling the big man a “max player,” David Mayo of MLive.com relays (Twitter link). Drummond, who is set to earn $3,272,091 next season, is eligible to ink an extension this summer, but this doesn’t necessarily mean the Pistons will offer him one, since the team would have the right to match any offer sheet the big man were to sign as a restricted free agent in 2016. Detroit could be wary of taking that chance given how the team is likely to lose Greg Monroe, who reportedly declined to ink an extension of his own with the club, as a free agent this summer, though that is merely my speculation.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Arron Afflalo will let his playoff performance dictate whether he picks up his $7.75MM player option for next season with the Blazers, as a source close to the swingman tells Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops that he’ll opt out if he plays well.
- One executive who spoke with Scotto for the same piece pegged Danny Green‘s value at $6MM a year. The Spurs swingman is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
- Ronnie Price indicated that his desire is to remain with the Lakers, even if it is as a third-string guard, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “I enjoyed being a voice in the locker room. I enjoyed being able to help younger guys. I helped great veterans that can help me. I’d be selfish not to extend that knowledge to players that are younger than me,” Price said. “Of course you want to play. That’s why we do what we do. You want to play. You never know what’s ahead. Whatever role is my role, I’ll embrace it whether it’s being here or the third guard.” Price will become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
- Suns forward Markieff Morris believes that the team needs to add players with more experience to its roster, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic tweets. “Veteran leadership for sure,” Morris responded when asked about Phoenix’s needs. “We have to have more older guys around so we can keep this thing intact.“
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
And-Ones: Drummond, Monroe, Prince
The idea of waiving Josh Smith didn’t catch Pistons owner Tom Gores off guard when coach/executive Stan Van Gundy presented it to him, given the frequent communication Gores and Van Gundy share, as TNT’s David Aldridge writes within his Morning Tip column for NBA.com.
“We didn’t really toy around with it,” Gores said. “We knew that’s what we wanted to do. We could have negotiated for more. We just said we don’t think this is the best thing to do. And after the decision was made, I think, early that morning, Stan met right away with Josh.”
Aldridge has more on the Pistons, who are up to 8-1 since parting with Smith, as we detail amid the latest from around the league:
- There have been whispers about Andre Drummond‘s level of contentment in Detroit over the past year or so, Aldridge writes in the same piece. The Pistons center will be up for a rookie scale extension this summer.
- Gores isn’t giving up on the notion of a long-term future for Greg Monroe in Detroit, as the Pistons owner tells Aldridge. Monroe will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. “We’ve always wanted Greg. We weren’t able to make the deal in the summer, but we always have,” Gores said. “He, by the way, has great character. He’s a true professional. Even though we weren’t able to make the deal, he’s been there every day. Given the new culture with Stan, I think we have a great shot with Greg. Of course, it’ll be his choice.”
- A buyout deal involving Tayshaun Prince and the Celtics is a possibility, but not a foregone conclusion, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com, who adds that Prince and Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge will discuss the veteran forward’s situation.
- The Thunder recalled Grant Jerrett from the D-League, the team announced Sunday (on Twitter). Jerrett averaged 16.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in two D-League games on his weekend assignment, the sixth time Thunder sent him down this season.
- The Rockets assigned Isaiah Canaan to the D-League on Sunday, the team announced (Twitter link). It’s the first trip to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers this season for Canaan, who’s averaged 15.6 minutes per game in 23 appearances for Houston this year.
Pistons Notes: Smith, Drummond, Van Gundy
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy spoke earlier this month of a four-day break in the team’s schedule as the point at which he’d examine where the team was and make changes, if necessary. Monday was the first of those four days, and Van Gundy wasted no time, waiving Josh Smith and using the stretch provision to somewhat ease the pain of the remainder of his four-year, $54MM contract. Here’s more on the upheaval in the Motor City:
- The Kings offered weaker proposals to the Pistons for Smith in recent weeks than they had over the summer, as Sacramento began to insist on receiving a first-rounder in the near future instead of one that wouldn’t come until a few years from now, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. The Pistons countered with second-round picks that would end up with Sacramento in the near term, but the Kings weren’t receptive to that, Ellis adds.
- Jeff Schwartz, who recently became the agent for center Andre Drummond, will be keeping a close eye on how the Pistons’ situation develops to ensure his newest client has a bright future in Detroit, notes Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today (Twitter links). Drummond will be up for a rookie scale extension this coming summer.
- Former Pistons president of basketball operations Joe Dumars approached owner Tom Gores a few years ago about using the stretch provision to rid the team of Ben Gordon instead of trading him, but Gores wasn’t willing to go along, Free Press scribe Drew Sharp writes. This time, Gores didn’t make the same mistake, as Sharp argues.
- Releasing Smith is an expensive proposition and a painful admission of a mistake, but it’s the right decision for the Pistons, MLive’s David Mayo believes.
- The passion and temerity that makes Van Gundy a successful coach didn’t serve him well in the way he handled Smith as an executive, SB Nation’s Tom Ziller believes.
Alex Lee contributed to this post.
Pistons Opt In With Drummond, Caldwell-Pope
The Pistons have picked up their 2015/16 team options on Andre Drummond and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the club announced via press release. There was never any real doubt that Detroit wouldn’t keep Drummond around for that season at little more than $3.272MM, and the same was largely true of Caldwell-Pope, who’s set to receive nearly $2.892MM in 2015/16, as our Rookie Scale Team Option Tracker shows.
Drummond has shown flashes of potential during his two seasons with the Pistons that suggest he can become an elite NBA center. He finished first in the league in total offensive rebounds and total rebounding percentage last season, but he also topped the NBA with 273 personal fouls. Caldwell-Pope was drafted at No. 8 in 2013, a spot higher than Drummond went in 2012, but he struggled to gain his footing in the NBA as a rookie last year, shooting just 31.9% from three-point territory and averaging 5.9 points in 19.8 minutes per game.
The moves give the Pistons about $38.1MM in commitments for 2015/16. That’s plenty of room beneath a projected $66.5MM cap to either retain Greg Monroe, who’ll be an unrestricted free agent in the summer, chase other significant free agents, or both.
And-Ones: Flynn, Pistons, Love
Former NBA lottery pick Jonny Flynn has signed a contract with Capo d’Orlando of the Italian League, the team announced (translation by Sportando). Flynn last saw action in the NBA with the Blazers during the 2011/12 season. His career numbers are 9.2 PPG, 1.9 RPG, and 3.9 APG. His career slash line is .400/.338/.809.
Here’s more from around the league:
- With Greg Monroe likely to sign his qualifying offer, the Pistons‘ frontcourt trio of Monroe, Josh Smith, and Andre Drummond will be together for another season. Coach Stan Van Gundy‘s challenge will be to figure out how to use them more effectively than they were last season, writes Perry A. Farrell of the Detroit Free Press.
- Kevin Love has essentially traded places with Chris Bosh, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. Love is now the third option on the Cavs, much like Bosh was alongside LeBron James and Dwyane Wade with the Heat, Winderman notes, and it’s the statistical sacrifices of the third player that determines if these star trios are successful.
- With the news that the Spurs are interested in Ray Allen, Nick Borges of ESPN.com runs down the free agent market for the future Hall-of-Famer. Borges notes that if Allen is seeking a title contender and the highest salary, then San Antonio is the best option. The Spurs can offer Allen the $5.3MM non-taxpayer mid-level exception. The Clippers, Mavs, Heat, and Cavaliers can only give Allen a veteran’s minimum contract.