Carsen Edwards Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Carsen Edwards Signs With Fenerbahce

July 31st, 2022 at 9:10am CST by Arthur Hill

Former Celtics and Pistons point guard Carsen Edwards will play for Fenerbahce next season, according to Eurohoops. The Turkish powerhouse announced this morning that Edwards has signed a one-year contract.

Edwards, 24, finished last season in Detroit, but became a free agent in June when the team declined his option for 2022/23. He spent most of the past season with the Salt Lake City Stars in the G League before signing with the Pistons in early April and averaging 5.8 points, 1.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in four games.

Edwards was the 33rd selection in the 2019 draft and played his first two seasons with the Celtics, appearing in 68 total games. He was traded last September to the Grizzlies, who waived him eight days later.

And-Ones: Howard, Edwards, Wembanyama, Tax Payments

July 29th, 2022 at 8:59pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent center Dwight Howard wants to continue his NBA career, but apparently is interested in joining the WWE if he’s unable to find a team, as Kurt Helin of NBC Sports relays (hat tip to Arash Markazi of ESPN Radio).

An eight-time All-NBA member and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, back injuries have unfortunately slowed Howard in comparison to his supremely athletic peak. Still, he has been a productive backup center the past three years for the Lakers and Sixers, winning a ring with Los Angeles in 2020.

In 60 games (16.2 MPG) with the Lakers in 2021/22, the 36-year-old averaged 6.2 PPG and 5.9 RPG. He’s one of several veteran free agents still looking for a team this summer.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Turkish team Fenerbahce is reportedly targeting Carsen Edwards, per Basket News. Bugra Uzar of Eurohoops reports that Edwards and the EuroLeague side are in “advanced talks.” The No. 33 pick of the 2019 draft, Edwards spent his first couple of seasons with the Celtics, appearing in 68 total games while averaging 3.6 PPG and 1.1 RPG in 9.8 MPG. He was traded to Memphis last September, subsequently waived, and spent the majority of last season in the G League, averaging 26.7 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 4.2 APG and 1.6 SPG in 31 regular season games for the Salt Lake City Stars, Utah’s affiliate. The 5’11” guard signed a contract with the Pistons at the end of last season, appearing in four games with averages of 5.8 PPG and 3.5 APG in 19.8 MPG. However, his team option for ’22/23 was declined at the end of June, making him an unrestricted free agent.
French phenom Victor Wembanyama will miss the upcoming EuroBasket tournament after sustaining a muscle injury, according to a report from Eurohoops. The 7’3″ Wembanyama is the projected No. 1 pick of the 2023 draft and considered by some talent evaluators to be the best prospect the NBA has seen in a couple decades. The group phase of EuroBasket tips off on September 1.
One NBA team owner tells Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com that he thinks teams receiving payments from taxpayers at the end of the season should be required to reinvest that money into rosters rather than pocketing it. The seven taxpaying teams in ’21/22, led by the Warriors, paid a combined $481,021,386, shattering the old record of $173.3MM back in ’02/03. The 23 non-taxpaying teams received half of that total, so each team received a $10,456,987 payment. The league received the remaining $240,510,693 to help fund its revenue sharing program.

Pistons To Decline Options On Garza, Edwards

June 28th, 2022 at 4:48pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons will not pick up the team options of center Luka Garza and guard Carsen Edwards, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets.

The option on Garza, a second-r0und pick last season, is worth $1,563,518. The option figure for Edwards, who joined the Pistons late last season, is $1,815,677.

Edwards also confirms that Detroit will decline the $3,150,000 option on Frank Jackson‘s contract, which he previously reported was likely.

Technically, Detroit could make Garza and Edwards restricted free agents by extending qualifying offers, but that’s unlikely given the team could have retained either player at a low-cost figure. The Pistons are projected to have more cap space than any other team in free agency and these moves open up a little more room to make a splash.

Garza, who starred at Iowa, appeared in 32 games (five starts) last season, averaging 5.8 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 12.2 MPG. The addition of lottery pick Jalen Duren increased the possibility that Garza would be let go.

Edwards spent the bulk of last season in the G League before appearing in four games with Detroit in April.

Pistons Sign Carsen Edwards, Give Two-Way Contract To Braxton Key

April 3rd, 2022 at 4:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

4:14pm: Detroit has officially signed Key to a two-way contract, the team announced in a press release. Smith’s waiving was also made official.

1:52pm: The Pistons have officially signed Edwards, the team announced in a press release.

11:24am: To make room for Key, Detroit has waived Smith, a rookie power forward who recently underwent ACL surgery, tweets Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press.

9:55am: The Pistons will sign G League guard Carsen Edwards to a two-year contract, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Edwards, 24, has been playing for Salt Lake City this season and is averaging 26.7 points in 31 games. The 33rd pick in the 2019 draft, Edwards spent two years with the Celtics, but has been out of the NBA since the end of last season.

In addition, Braxton Key will get a two-way contract from Detroit, sources tell JD Shaw of HoopsRumors (Twitter link).

The rookie small forward was productive on a 10-day deal he signed on March 24. He averaged 6.8 points and 5.2 rebounds in five games and put up 10 points, nine rebounds and two blocks in Friday’s win over the Thunder.

The 25-year-old also played two games for the Sixers on a 10-day hardship contract in January. He was in training camp with Philadelphia and has spent much of this season with the team’s G League affiliate in Delaware.

The Pistons have a 15-man roster opening with Key’s 10-day contract having expired overnight, but both two-way slots are currently filled, so another move will be necessary before he can be signed. Chris Smith and Jamorko Pickett currently hold those spots.

Greg Monroe, Gary Clark, Carsen Edwards Join G League Teams

November 5th, 2021 at 11:33am CST by Luke Adams

A handful of NBA veterans have joined G League teams in advance of the start of the NBAGL’s 2021/22 season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

As Charania reports, the Capital City Go-Go (Wizards) have added center Greg Monroe, the Mexico City Capitanes have added forward Gary Clark, and the Salt Lake City Stars (Jazz) have acquired swingman Carsen Edwards.

Monroe, 31, has nine years of NBA experience under his belt, but hasn’t played in the league since 2018/19, when he appeared in 43 total games for three teams. In 632 career NBA games, the former Georgetown star averaged 13.2 PPG and 8.3 RPG in 27.7 minutes per contest. He has spent time playing in Germany and Russia since 2019.

An undrafted free agent with three years of NBA experience from 2018-21, Clark appeared in 132 total games for four teams. He’s known more for his defense, having put up very modest offensive numbers (3.2 PPG on .346/.311/.889 shooting) in the NBA. Clark, who will turn 27 later this month, has previous G League experience with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

Edwards was the 33th overall pick out of Purdue in 2019 and spent his first two professional seasons with the Celtics, but didn’t emerge as a reliable rotation player, posting just 3.6 PPG on .372/.302/.750 shooting in 68 games (9.2 MPG). He was traded to Memphis and subsequently waived during the 2021 offseason.

The G League Ignite have also announced two veteran additions, confirming that center Kosta Koufos and former Jazz guard Kevin Murphy have come aboard. Amir Johnson and Pooh Jeter are among the other veterans on the team.

Grizzlies Waive Carsen Edwards, Daniel Oturu

September 23rd, 2021 at 9:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies have waived guard Carsen Edwards and big man Daniel Oturu while adding Shaq Buchanan and Sean McDermott to their camp roster, the team tweets.

Edwards was acquired from the Celtics earlier this month. Oturu was among the players acquired from the Clippers in the deal that sent Eric Bledsoe to Los Angeles. Edwards had a salary of $1.78MM, while Oturu’s salary for the upcoming season was $1.52MM.

Memphis had other motives for making those deals and obviously wasn’t interested in retaining either player.

By waiving the duo, Memphis is now down to 16 guaranteed contracts, one over the limit for the regular season, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.

Buchanan has played for Memphis’ G League team. He was in Grizzlies camp last season but was waived prior to opening night.

McDermott appeared in 18 games with Memphis as a two-way player last season, averaging 2.2 PPG in 8.8 MPG. Memphis waived McDermott in August.

Grizzlies Trade Hernangomez To Celtics For Dunn, Edwards, Pick Swap

September 15th, 2021 at 10:39am CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 15: The trade is now complete, according to press releases from the Grizzlies and Celtics.

The Grizzlies, who completed another trade since agreeing to this one, officially waived Marc Gasol in order to create room on the roster to finalize this deal.

SEPTEMBER 3: The Grizzlies and Celtics have agreed to a trade that will send forward Juan Hernangomez to Boston, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Sources tell Wojnarowski that the deal will send Kris Dunn, Carsen Edwards, and a 2026 second-round pick swap to Memphis.

The trade can’t be completed until September 15, when the aggregation restriction on Dunn lifts, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Dunn was traded from Atlanta to Boston on August 7.

By trading two players for one, the Celtics will clear a minor roster crunch. The team had been carrying 16 players, including 15 on fully guaranteed deals. This move will give the team the flexibility to keep Jabari Parker on its regular-season roster or leave its 15th spot open to start the season. Dunn, acquired last month, wasn’t in the team’s plans, and Edwards hadn’t evolved into a reliable rotation player since being selected 33rd overall in the 2019 draft.

Hernangomez, meanwhile, will give Boston another frontcourt option. The 25-year-old stretch four had a mediocre year in 2020/21, averaging 7.2 PPG and 3.9 RPG on .435/.327/.619 shooting in 52 games (17.3 MPG). However, he has flashed some potential in the past, making 35.9% of his career three-pointers prior to last season.

As for the Grizzlies, they appeared to be moving closer to setting a 15-man regular season roster last week when they bought out Rajon Rondo, but this deal has them heading in the other direction once again. When it’s complete, Memphis will have a full 20-man roster, with 18 players on fully guaranteed standard contracts.

While it’s possible Dunn or Edwards is in the Grizzlies’ plans for 2021/22, that’s probably not a safe assumption, given the way Memphis has been moving on from recently-acquired players in recent weeks (Hernangomez, Rondo, and Patrick Beverley). As John Hollinger of The Athletic tweets, this trade saves Memphis a tiny bit of money and earns the team a 2026 second-round pick swap — those small gains may have been all the motivation the Grizzlies needed to pull the trigger.

The Grizzlies have traded away their own 2026 second-round pick, but control the rights to either Indiana’s or Miami’s pick (whichever is most favorable). The swap with Boston will likely allow them to trade that pick for the Celtics’ 2026 second-rounder if they so choose.

Hernangomez, Dunn, and Edwards are essentially all on expiring contracts. Hernangomez has a non-guaranteed salary for 2022/23, Edwards has a team option, and Dunn will be an unrestricted free agent.

No team has completed more trades this offseason than the Grizzlies — this will be their sixth deal since the regular season ended. It will be the Celtics’ fifth offseason trade.

Celtics Notes: Edwards, Langford, Hauser, Thomas

August 15th, 2021 at 10:53am CST by Arthur Hill

As he prepares for his third NBA season, Celtics guard Carsen Edwards hopes to move into a more defined role, writes Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Edwards has played a combined 68 games in his first two years and saw just 276 minutes last season. An opportunity for additional playing time seemed to arise after Kemba Walker was traded, but that closed when Boston signed Dennis Schröder.

“I feel like, me just being a young player in the league and stuff, I feel like narrowing down on one thing is good,” Edwards said. “I want to improve on everything at the same time, but I’m mostly just working on my pace, shooting it consistently and just being comfortable with the ball.”

Edwards spent the start of the offseason working with a skills trainer, focusing on the sets the Celtics run and breaking down how to attack different defenses. He hopes to carve out a role as a bench scorer this season and give Boston an incentive to pick up his option for 2022/23.

“I think it’s just comfort, man,” Edwards said. “I feel like at times, just being able to slow down for me, just getting repetitions. I feel like just shooting and working out and stuff like that. Training is never the same as being in a game. So just whatever experience I can get just to be comfortable, just being at ease and be able to shoot it and not feel rushed, I think is a big, important part for me.”

There’s more on the Celtics:

Romeo Langford, another young guard hoping to increase his playing time, is trying to make the most of his Summer League opportunity, notes Souichi Terada of MassLive. A lottery pick in 2019, Langford was limited to 18 games last season because of injuries. “He’s a very good player who plays the right way,” coach Joe Mazzulla said. “There are times when he’s passive maybe, but regardless of whether it’s Summer League or a league game he’s going to be in the right spot and make the right read. He’s going to be a physical defender on and off the ball and it’s something he has to continue to work on.”
Sam Hauser said the Celtics only gave him 10 minutes to decide on their offer of a two-way contract after he wasn’t selected on draft night, per Brian Robb of MassLive. Hauser, who officially signed the deal on Friday, believes he made the right choice. “They said I had a really good workout,” he said of Celtics management. “They said they weren’t sure if I was in their range or not in the draft. But I ended up here so sort of a blessing in disguise, I guess. So. I’m happy with the fit. And I’m glad to be in Boston.”
Free agent guard Isaiah Thomas mentioned the Celtics this week as one of four NBA teams that have expressed interest in him, relays Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub.

Atlantic Notes: Drummond, Edwards, Walker, Morey

January 27th, 2021 at 9:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Nets may be hoping for an Andre Drummond buyout in Cleveland to help solve their center woes, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn has been short-handed in the middle since parting with Jarrett Allen in the James Harden trade. Veteran DeAndre Jordan remains the starter, but depth at the position has become an issue as the Nets have fallen from 11th to 25th in defensive rating since the deal.

Allen and Drummond are part of a crowded frontcourt in Cleveland, along with JaVale McGee and Kevin Love, who have also been mentioned as potential targets for Brooklyn. The Nets parted with a significant amount of their draft capital in the Harden trade, so the buyout market would be ideal. Kevin O’Connor of the Ringer (video link) and Zach Harper of The Athletic both mentioned a possible Drummond buyout this week, with Harper suggesting it’s “just a matter of time.”

Lewis reports that Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks is expected to hold on to at least one of his two available exceptions so he can be aggressive when buyouts begins. Players can be waived as late as April 9 and still be eligible for the postseason with another team.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Celtics guard Carsen Edwards confirmed that the four games his missed earlier this month were because he tested positive for COVID-19, writes Tom Westerholm of Boston.com. “I don’t know what I’m allowed to talk about,” Edwards said. “But I mean, I did test positive, and I had symptoms for a couple of days. But then after that, I was kind of just — I lost my taste and my smell, and then after that, I was quarantined. The first two nights were rough, but after that I was just kind of in quarantine just trying to stay out the way and be healthy and get healthy. But I’m fine now. I feel better.”
The Celtics likely won’t use Kemba Walker in back-to-back games for the rest of the season, relays Conor Roche of Boston.com. Appearing on a radio show this morning, coach Brad Stevens discussed his plans for Walker, who has been on a minutes limit since returning. “We’ll keep his minutes down. I’m not going to play him in the mid-30s (minutes wise) at any point here in the near future,” Stevens said. “It’s all part of a plan that’s not only for the best interest of this team, but also in the best interest of his career here moving forward. As the season goes on and we get into late April, early May, before the playoffs, we’ll ramp him up a little bit.”
Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey is in quarantine for COVID-19 contact tracing unrelated to the team, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Celtics, Nets, McCaw, Knicks

January 19th, 2021 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics and Sixers have, at times this season, found themselves shorthanded due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, which have required a number of players on both teams to quarantine for positive COVID-19 tests or contact tracing. Heading into their games on Wednesday and Friday of this week, both teams should be a little closer to whole.

As Tim Bontemps of ESPN details, Sixers center Joel Embiid, who missed Saturday’s game due to a sore right knee, is expected to be good to go on Wednesday, per head coach Doc Rivers. And while Seth Curry didn’t practice today, he’s in the final stages of the health and safety protocols and hasn’t yet been ruled out for Wednesday’s game, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

Meanwhile, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said today that Kemba Walker‘s knee responded “great” after his season debut on Monday, and he practiced in full today (Twitter link via Bontemps). Robert Williams, who has been cleared following a positive COVID-19 test earlier this month, also practiced today, per Stevens, and will be available on Wednesday.

Still, the Celtics aren’t at full strength yet. Jayson Tatum and Carsen Edwards both remain in the health and safety protocols and won’t play on Wednesday, though Stevens left the door open for Tatum to return as soon as Friday (Twitter link via Bontemps).

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

John Hollinger of The Athletic expects the Nets to take their time filling their open roster spots so as not to unnecessarily increase their projected luxury tax bill, which is already substantial. Hollinger also suggests that promoting Reggie Perry from his two-way contract would be a good way to fill one of those slots, since Perry – a 2020 second-round pick – would only count for the prorated rookie minimum for cap and tax purposes.
Raptors guard Patrick McCaw hasn’t played at all this season as he continues to recover from knee surgery, and it doesn’t sound like he’s close to returning. Head coach Nick Nurse said on Monday that he hoped McCaw would be much further along by this point, but the recovery progress has been slow (Twitter link via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca).
The Westchester Knicks – New York’s G League affiliate – issued a press release confirming the previously-reported hiring of Jaren Jackson Sr. as an assistant coach and announcing that Ryan Borges has been promoted to assistant general manager.