Jalen Crutcher Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Magic Sign Javonte Smart, Phillip Wheeler To Exhibit 10 Deals

October 13th, 2025 at 6:20pm CST by Rory Maher

The Magic have signed Javonte Smart and Phillip Wheeler, per a team press release. To complete the signings, Orlando waived Jalen Crutcher and Alex Morales.

Both Smart and Wheeler received Exhibit 10 contracts, reports Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (via Twitter).

Smart holds two years of NBA experience, appearing in a total of 18 games with Milwaukee, Miami and Philadelphia while on two-way contracts with those clubs. He spent all of last season with the Magic’s G League affiliate in Osceola after signing an Exhibit 10 deal last fall.

The 26-year-old guard, who played for Team USA during the FIBA AmeriCup tournament this summer (the Americans finished in third place, winning a bronze medal), appeared in 44 games (27.1 MPG) for Osceola in 2024/25, averaging 14.1 PPG, 3.9 APG, 2.5 RPG and 1.1 SPG on .459/.359/.737 shooting.

Wheeler’s Exhibit 10 agreement with the Magic was first reported in early September. The 6’9″ forward, who went undrafted in 2022, has spent the majority of the past three seasons playing in the NBAGL and the Puerto Rican league. He made his NBA debut in ’24/25, appearing in five games with the Sixers while on a 10-day hardship contract.

Crutcher and Morales were on Exhibit 10 deals as well. Both players are now eligible for a bonus worth $85,300 if they spend at least 60 days with Osceola in ’25/26.

Orlando’s roster is still at the offseason maximum of 21 players.

Magic Sign Jalen Crutcher, Waive Johnell Davis

October 6th, 2025 at 6:27pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Free agent guard Jalen Crutcher has signed with the Magic, who have waived Johnell Davis in a corresponding move, according to the team (Twitter link).

Crutcher’s deal is an Exhibit 10 training camp contract, a source informs Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). As a result of the two transactions, the team still has a full 21-man preseason roster.

A three-time All-Atlantic 10 selection during his NCAA stint with Dayton, Crutcher went undrafted in 2021. Hebegan his pro career with Charlotte’s G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, in 2021/22. His NBAGL rights were shipped to New Orleans’ NBAGL club, the Birmingham Squadron, ahead of the 2023/24 season.

Crutcher signed a 10-day deal with the Pelicans in February of 2024, but was not retained after the agreement expired. He returned to the Squadron, and remained in Birmingham to tip off 2024/25. New Orleans did ink him to a two-way contract, but ultimately cut him in March.

To date, Crutcher has appeared in a single NBA game, seeing the court for just under three minutes with New Orleans in 2024.

Should Crutcher be cut and spend at least 60 days with the Osceola Magic, Orlando’s G League affiliate, he’ll become eligible for a bonus worth up to $85,300. That figures to be the next step for Davis as well.

Pelicans Waive Jalen Crutcher

March 1st, 2025 at 6:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pelicans have opened up a two-way roster spot by waiving Jalen Crutcher, according to NBA.com’s transaction log. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link) first reported the news.

The 25-year-old point guard was promoted from the G League on Wednesday when New Orleans converted Brandon Boston Jr.‘s two-way deal into a two-year standard contract. The Pelicans have played twice since then, but Crutcher didn’t get into either game.

Crutcher was in training camp with New Orleans on an Exhibit 10 contract, but he was waived before the season began. He had been playing for the team’s G League affiliate in Birmingham, averaging 17.9 points, 6.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game.

Crutcher has been a fixture in the G League since he signed with Charlotte in 2021 after going undrafted out of Dayton. He has appeared in just one NBA game, seeing three minutes of action while on a 10-day contract with the Pelicans last season.

New Orleans will have three days to fill the newly created opening before the March 4 deadline to sign two-way players. Jamal Cain and Keion Brooks hold the team’s other two-way contracts.

Pelicans Sign Brandon Boston To Standard Contract, Jalen Crutcher To Two-Way

February 26th, 2025 at 10:04am CST by Dana Gauruder

February 26: Boston’s standard contract and Crutcher’s two-way deal are now official, the Pelicans confirmed in a press release.

February 25: The Pelicans are converting Brandon Boston Jr.‘s two-way deal into a two-year standard contract, ESPN’s Shams Charania tweets. They’ll fill their newly opened two-way slot by signing Jalen Crutcher, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets.

New Orleans needed to fill a roster spot after buying out Javonte Green. That dropped the team’s roster count to 13 players, one below the limit. It came as no surprise that Boston received a standard deal.

Boston has already appeared in 42 games, eight shy of the limit for a two-way player, including 10 starts. He’s averaging 10.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 23.6 minutes per night.

Boston, who missed Tuesday’s game against San Antonio due to a left ankle sprain and non-COVID illness, has only appeared in one game this month as he recovers from that ankle injury. He spent his first three seasons with the Clippers after being a late second-round pick in 2021. New Orleans claimed Boston during the preseason after the Spurs waived him.

Crutcher has averaged 18.1 points, 6.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds for the Birmingham Squadron, the Pelicans’ NBA G League affiliate.

Since going undrafted out of Dayton in 2021, Crutcher has spent pro career in the G League, including two with the Greensboro Swarm as well as last season with the Squadron.

Crutcher had a 10-day contract with the Pelicans last February. He appeared in one game for the team, making his NBA debut last Feb. 27.

Team USA Announces Roster For February AmeriCup Qualifiers

February 10th, 2025 at 12:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Team USA has announced its 12-man roster for upcoming AmeriCup qualifiers games against Puerto Rico and the Bahamas, per a USA Basketball press release.

Four players will return to the team after representing the U.S. in the previous AmeriCup qualifying games in November. Those four players are as follows:

The following eight players will round out the roster, which will be coached by former Rockets head coach Stephen Silas:

Keita Bates-Diop, F
Norris Cole, G
Jalen Crutcher, G
John Jenkins, G
Miller Kopp, F
RJ Nembhard, G
Nassir Little, F
Reggie Perry, F/C

While this obviously isn’t the sort of star-studded roster that Team USA would typically send to the World Cup or the Olympics, it features a good deal of NBA experience. Kopp is the only one of the 12 players on the team to have never appeared in an NBA regular season game.

Ramsey and Smart have been Team USA’s top scorers in previous AmeriCup qualifying windows, with Ramsey averaged 17.8 points per game on .511/.478/.824 shooting in four outings, while Smart put up 20.5 PPG on .714/.455/.667 in two games.

Covington has the most NBA experience of any player on the team, with 614 regular season NBA appearances on his résumé. Little is among the most notable newcomers — he appeared in 237 games for Portland and Phoenix over the past five seasons, but hasn’t been on an NBA roster since being waived by Miami in October.

Bates-Diop is another new addition worth noting. The former first-round pick has made 283 NBA appearances and was poised to play in November’s qualifying games before having to be replaced at the last minute.

The qualifying rounds for the 2025 AmeriCup feature 16 teams divided into four groups of four teams each. Each club plays the other members of its group twice, with the top three from each group (12 total) qualifying for this year’s AmeriCup tournament, which will take place from August 23-31 in Managua, Nicaragua.

Team USA went 3-1 in the previous two qualifying windows, beating each of the three teams in its group once but also dropping a game to Cuba (2-2). The U.S. will play in Puerto Rico (2-2) on Feb. 20 and in the Bahamas (1-3) on Feb. 23 as it looks to secure its AmeriCup ticket.

Southwest Notes: Kennard, Grizzlies, Pelicans, Rockets

October 29th, 2024 at 7:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Grizzlies sharpshooter Luke Kennard, who has missed the first three games of the season due to a left foot muscle strain, is getting closer to returning to action. According to Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link), head coach Taylor Jenkins said today that Kennard was a full participant in Tuesday’s practice and that he’ll ramp up his activity over the next week.

Kennard was limited to just 39 outings last season due to injury issues, but was his usual effective self from beyond the arc when he played, averaging 11.0 points per game and making 45.0% of his three-point attempts. He re-signed with the team on a one-year, $9.25MM deal and will be an unrestricted free agent again next summer.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

The Memphis Hustle, the Grizzlies‘ G League affiliate, announced their training camp roster on Monday in a press release. The 17-man squad includes multiple former NBA second-round picks, including guard David Johnson and forward Robert Woodard.
After their starting lineup was outscored in its minutes last season, the Pelicans made offseason moves in the hopes of revamping that five-man group. However, they’ve been forced to play a similar unit in the early going this season due to injuries to Dejounte Murray and Trey Murphy, with Daniel Theis replacing Jonas Valanciunas at center. As a result, the team has no choice but to try to figure out why a starting five featuring Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, and CJ McCollum isn’t more effective offensively, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com.
Veteran guard Elfrid Payton is the headliner on the official training camp roster announced by the Birmingham Squadron, the Pelicans‘ G League affiliate. Ike Anigbogu and Jalen Crutcher are among the other Squadron players with some NBA experience.
Former NBA lottery pick Thon Maker and former Knicks guard Allonzo Trier are among the notable names on the training camp roster announced by the Rockets’ G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Twitter link).

Pelicans Sign Trhae Mitchell, Waive Jalen Crutcher

October 15th, 2024 at 7:26am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans made a minor change at the back of their 21-man preseason roster on Monday, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed free agent guard Trhae Mitchell and waived guard Jalen Crutcher. New Orleans still has a full 21-man squad following the two moves.

Mitchell, who went undrafted out of South Alabama in 2020, has spent most of his professional career playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s G League affiliate. He also had a stint with the Calgary Surge of the Canadian Elite Basketball League earlier this year before playing for the Pelicans’ Summer League team.

In 49 Showcase Cup and regular season games for the Vipers last season, the 27-year-old averaged 6.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.9 steals in 30.2 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .502/.422/.652. Known more for his defensive prowess than his offensive production, Mitchell earned a spot on the G League’s All-Defensive team in the spring.

The Birmingham Squadron – New Orleans’ G League team – recently acquired Mitchell’s returning rights from the Vipers. That’s a strong signal that the plan is to have him play for the Squadron this season — his new deal with the Pelicans almost certainly includes Exhibit 10 language, which will make him eligible for a bonus worth up to $77.5K if he’s waived by New Orleans and then spends at least 60 days with Birmingham.

It’s a safe bet that’s the plan for Crutcher too. The 25-year-old, who spent training camp with the Pelicans and saw some action in last Monday’s preseason opener, spent last season with the Squadron and will likely report back to New Orleans’ G League team in order to earn his $77.5K Exhibit 10 bonus.

Pelicans Sign Jalen Crutcher To Exhibit 10 Deal

September 25th, 2024 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Free agent guard Jalen Crutcher has signed a contract with the Pelicans, according to RealGM’s official log of NBA transactions. It’s a non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 deal, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac.

Since going undrafted out of Dayton in 2021, Crutcher has spent three seasons in the G League, including two with the Greensboro Swarm and one with New Orleans’ affiliate, the Birmingham Squadron.

In 49 total games for the Squadron last season, Crutcher averaged 17.0 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.3 rebounds in 35.4 minutes per game and shot the ball well, with a 40.5% mark from beyond the three-point line and 86.3% from the free throw stripe. His strong play in Birmingham earned him a 10-day contract with the Pelicans in February — he appeared in just one game for the team, making his NBA debut on Feb. 27.

A player who signs an Exhibit 10 contract can have it converted to a two-way deal before the regular season or can qualify for a bonus worth up to $77.5K if he’s waived and then spends at least 60 days with his team’s G League affiliate.

Given that the Pelicans don’t have a two-way opening and the Squadron already hold Crutcher’s NBAGL returning rights, the latter scenario appears more likely for the 25-year-old.

Pelicans Sign Jalen Crutcher To 10-Day Deal

February 22nd, 2024 at 4:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans are signing guard Jalen Crutcher to a 10-day contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. The signing is official, according to the NBA transactions log.

New Orleans has an open spot on the roster for Crutcher. The Pelicans also promoted Jeremiah Robinson-Earl from his two-way deal during the All-Star break after their roster count dropped to 13.

Crutcher, 24, has averaged 17.7 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.4 rebounds in 36 starts for the Pelicans’ Birmingham Squadron NBA G League team. Crutcher spent most of the past two seasons with the Hornets’ G League team, the Greensboro Swarm. He signed with New Orleans in October during training camp but was waived before opening night.

Crutcher went undrafted in 2021 out of Dayton and has yet to make his NBA debut. He’ll provide temporary depth at the guard spot.

A week ago, New Orleans announced that Dyson Daniels would be out at least a month after undergoing left knee surgery.

Pelicans Waive Five Exhibit 10 Players

October 21st, 2023 at 5:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pelicans have waived five players, according to the NBA.com transactions log.

Guards Izaiah Brockington, Jalen Crutcher and Tevian Jones, forward Malcolm Hill and center Trey Jemison all have Exhibit 10 contracts, so they’ll probably end up with the team’s G League affiliate, the Birmingham Squadron. They can earn bonuses worth up to $75K if they spend at least 60 days with the G League club.

Of the five, Jemison saw the most playing time during the preseason, appearing in four games and averaging 4.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists per night. Crutcher and Hill both got into two games, while Brockington and Jones saw limited time in one game.

The moves leave New Orleans with 13 players who have fully guaranteed contracts, plus Jose Alvarado‘s non-guaranteed deal. The Pelicans only have two of their three two-way slots filled.