Jeff Dowtin Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Raptors Notes: Dowtin, Barnes, Trent, Barton

March 29th, 2023 at 11:33am CST by Luke Adams

Point guard Jeff Dowtin, who is on a two-way contract with the Raptors, has seen regular playing time as Fred VanVleet‘s backup in the team’s last three games, logging 20.4 minutes per night during that stretch. Dowtin’s numbers (4.7 PPG, 3.0 APG, .417/.400/.667 shooting) are relatively modest, but Toronto has played better this season when he sees at least 10 minutes of action, notes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

“I think he’s played for us well just about every time he’s gone out there,” head coach Nick Nurse said. “We’re always talking about solid play, which is guarding your position as well as you can and executing at both ends of the floor. He’s got us running stuff and is capable of scoring a little bit as well on his own but doesn’t overdo it. He just fits in nicely there on both ends.”

Unfortunately for Toronto, Dowtin only has three games of eligibility left on his two-way deal. If the Raptors want to make him eligible to play in the rest of their regular season games and potential play-in and playoff contests, they’ll have to promote him to their 15-man roster by converting him to a standard contract.

The team doesn’t currently have an open spot on its 15-man squad, but Grange believes that Joe Wieskamp and Thaddeus Young are candidates to be cut in the event of a Dowtin promotion. Toronto is very close to the luxury tax line, but should be able to stay out of tax territory even after converting Dowtin’s contract, since a prorated minimum-salary cap hit this late in the season is minuscule.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

With several key players headed for free agency this summer, Eric Koreen of The Athletic observes that the Raptors could use some low-cost contributors off the bench and suggests that Dowtin may be a fit on the roster beyond this season.
In a separate article for The Athletic, Koreen says that the ongoing development of Scottie Barnes needs to remain a top priority for the Raptors, since Barnes’ ceiling may go a long way to determining the club’s ceiling in the next few years.
Raptors wing Gary Trent Jr. has missed the last four games due to what the team is referring to as right elbow stiffness. Nurse said on Tuesday that Trent, who was originally listed as doubtful for yesterday’s game vs. Miami, is “getting closer,” according to Grange (Twitter link).
Another wing, Will Barton, also missed Tuesday’s game due to a sprained left ankle, but Nurse doesn’t believe that injury is serious or will keep him out long, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca.

Raptors Sign Jeff Dowtin To Two-Way Deal

July 19th, 2022 at 4:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

4:00pm: The Raptors have officially signed Dowtin to a two-way contract, the team confirmed in a press release.

12:46pm: Free agent guard Jeff Dowtin will sign a two-way contract with the Raptors, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Dowtin is coming off a strong Summer League performance with Toronto, averaging 16.0 PPG while shooting 57.1% from the field in four games in Las Vegas.

The 25-year-old signed with the Magic last September, then was claimed off waivers by the Warriors before the start of the season. He played four games for Golden State before being waived again, then signed 10-day contracts with Milwaukee and Orlando.

Ron Harper Jr. holds the Raptors’ other two-way contract, so both slots will be filled once Dowtin’s signing becomes official.

Devin Cannady Signs 10-Day Deal With Magic

March 31st, 2022 at 10:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

10:38pm: The signing is official, the team announced in a press release.

9:25pm: Guard Devin Cannady is signing a 10-day contract with the Magic, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Cannady has been playing for Orlando’s G League team, the Lakeland Magic.

Jeff Dowtin‘s 10-day deal will expire at the end of the day on Thursday, so it’s logical to assume Cannady will replace him on the 15-man roster.

Cannady was waived by the Magic during training camp. Undrafted in 2019, Cannady has spent most of his three professional seasons in the G League.

He had a 10-day deal and two-way contract with Orlando last season and appeared in eight games. However, his season came to an early end in April when he suffered a significant ankle injury and underwent surgery.

In 16 G League games this season, he’s averaging 15.8 PPG and 1.9 APG in 26.5 MPG while making 47% of his 3-point attempts.

Dowtin appeared in four games since signing his 10-day.

Magic Sign Jeff Dowtin To 10-Day Contract

March 22nd, 2022 at 8:19am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have signed guard Jeff Dowtin to a 10-day contract, reports Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). The team has officially confirmed the move (Twitter link).

A G League regular for much of his professional career since going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin was a member of the Lakeland Magic team that won the NBAGL’s bubble season in 2020/21.

This season, he has appeared in 22 games for Lakeland and six for the Wisconsin Herd, averaging 21.7 PPG, 5.9 APG, and 4.6 RPG on .580/.398/.732 shooting in 28 total G League games (32.8 MPG). He also played in 12 games for the Santa Cruz Warriors during the NBAGL Showcase in the fall.

Dowtin earned a look from a pair of NBA teams earlier in 2021/22. He began the season on a two-way contract with the Warriors before being waived in January, then joined the Bucks on a 10-day hardship deal less than a week later. He appeared in five total games for Golden State and Milwaukee, but has been an NBA free agent since mid-January and has been playing for the Lakeland Magic since then.

Orlando had an open spot on its 15-man roster, so no corresponding move was necessary to sign Dowtin, whose 10-day deal will run through March 31, covering the club’s next five games. He’ll earn $53,176 over those 10 days.

Bucks Sign Jeff Dowtin Via Hardship Exception

January 7th, 2022 at 5:33pm CST by Luke Adams

5:33pm: The Bucks have officially signed Dowtin, the team announced in a press release.

1:22pm: The Bucks intend to sign free agent guard Jeff Dowtin to a 10-day contract using a hardship exception, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Dowtin will be Milwaukee’s third 10-day hardship addition, joining Luke Kornet and Langston Galloway.

Dowtin, 24, began the season on a two-way contract with the Warriors and appeared briefly in four games for the team. However, he was waived last weekend in order to open up a two-way slot for Quinndary Weatherspoon.

A G League regular since going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, Dowtin was a member of the Lakeland Magic team that won the NBAGL’s bubble season in 2020/21 and also started 12 games for the Santa Cruz Warriors this season, averaging 17.7 PPG, 6.2 RPG, and 5.1 APG in 35.3 minutes per contest.

The Bucks currently have four players – Grayson Allen, Pat Connaughton, George Hill, and Jrue Holiday – in the health and safety protocols, which is why they qualify for another hardship exception. As a result, Dowtin’s 10-day salary ($53,176) won’t count against team salary for cap or tax purposes.

Warriors Release Jeff Dowtin

January 2nd, 2022 at 11:52am CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors have waived two-way guard Jeff Dowtin, the team announced (via Twitter).

Golden State claimed Dowtin off waivers in October after he was let go by the Magic. The 24-year-old appeared in four games, averaging 1.5 points and 1.8 rebounds in 7.0 minutes per night. He had a much larger role with the team’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, putting up averages of 17.7 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.8 assists in 12 games.

Dowtin also spent time with the G League’s Lakeland Magic after going undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020. He signed training camp contracts with Orlando the past two years.

There’s no immediate word on what the Warriors plan to do with the open two-way slot.

Pacific Notes: Ayton, Kuminga, Dowtin, Bagley

October 23rd, 2021 at 9:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns didn’t work out a rookie-scale extension with Deandre Ayton before Monday’s deadline, but that doesn’t mean the center is on the trading block, writes Sean Deveney of Heavy. Phoenix wasn’t willing to offer Ayton a maximum deal over five years, but the team isn’t looking to make major changes after reaching the NBA Finals last season.

“That is definitely not the case yet,” a rival general manager told Deveney. “The Suns still have a lot of the leverage in this. But if they really don’t think the situation is going to change, then yeah, they’d have to consider maybe making a move sooner than later.”

The Suns can make Ayton a restricted free agent next summer by submitting a qualifying offer, which would give them the opportunity to match any offer he receives. However, no team will be able to give him the contract he wanted from Phoenix, which would have covered five years at an estimated $172MM+.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Rookie forward Jonathan Kuminga is making “good progress” with a strained right patellar tendon and will be re-evaluated on Friday, the Warriors announced (via Twitter). Kuminga suffered the injury in an October 6 preseason game.
Jeff Dowtin modeled his game by watching Stephen Curry, so he’s thrilled to be on the same team as his favorite player, per Connor Letourneau of The San Francisco Chronicle. The Warriors claimed Dowtin off waivers Monday and put him into one of their two-way slots. “Honestly, I haven’t wrapped my mind around the fact that we’re teammates,” Dowtin said. “Right now, I’m just kind of focused on playing basketball.” Dowtin has already talked to Damion Lee and Juan Toscano-Anderson, who both earned regular roster spots after starting as two-way players, to get advice on how to follow that same path.
After sitting out the season opener, Kings forward Marvin Bagley III saw 10 minutes of action Friday night, notes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Bagley, whose agent criticized the team this week for keeping Bagley out of its rotation, was pressed into service because Maurice Harkless missed the game with soreness in his left hip. “We’re here to win games,” coach Luke Walton said. “So, Moe goes down, next man up, and Marvin, I thought, he’s had a good week of practice. He stayed ready and I thought he went in there and did some nice things for us tonight.”

Warriors Claim Dowtin, Make Him Two-Way Player

October 18th, 2021 at 5:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Warriors have claimed Jeff Dowtin and converted his Exhibit 10 deal to a two-way contract, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets.

The Magic waived Dowtin on Saturday.

Dowtin, a 6’3” shooting guard, played for G League’s Lakeland Magic last season and was also a member of Orlando’s Summer League team. Dowtin, who went undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, averaged 6.5 PPG and 2.5 APG in 15 games (19.7 MPG) for Lakeland last season and 7.2 PPG in five games at Las Vegas.

He also saw action in three preseason games this month. Golden State’s other two-way deal is held by another guard, Chris Chiozza.

Magic Waive Four Players

October 16th, 2021 at 1:17pm CST by JD Shaw

The Magic have waived Admiral Schofield, B.J. Johnson, Jeff Dowtin and Hassani Gravett, the team announced in a press release today. All four players are likely to play for the team’s G League affiliate in Lakeland this season.

Orlando currently has 16 players on its roster, including one two-way contract. It’s unclear whether the team will fill its second two-way spot before the season begins.

The Magic committed to rebuilding last season, trading away Nikola Vucevic, Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier before the deadline. The team has a strong young core entering the 2021/22 campaign, headlined by Markelle Fultz, Jonathan Isaac and No. 5 pick Jalen Suggs.

That core also includes third-year center Wendell Carter Jr. — who signed a four-year contract extension with the organization this week.

Magic Sign Jeff Dowtin, Hassani Gravett, Jon Teske

September 8th, 2021 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have signed three free agents, announcing in a press release that guard Jeff Dowtin, guard Hassani Gravett, and center Jon Teske have been added to the team’s offseason roster.

All three players have signed non-guaranteed deals with Orlando in the past and then suited up for the team’s G League affiliate, the Lakeland Magic. While Gravett played for Lakeland in 2019/20, Dowtin and Teske were part of the squad that won the G League championship in the 2021 bubble earlier this year. All three also played for Orlando’s Summer League team last month.

Dowtin, who went undrafted out of Rhode Island in 2020, averaged 6.5 PPG and 2.5 APG in 15 games (19.7 MPG) for Lakeland last season. Teske, who played his college ball at Michigan before going undrafted a year ago, started 12 of 15 games for Lakeland, recording 6.7 PPG and 3.4 RPG in 19.8 minutes per contest.

Gravett, undrafted out of South Carolina in 2019, spent one season with Lakeland before playing for MZT Skopje overseas in 2020/21. He won a Macedonian League championship with the club.

It’s unlikely that any of the Magic’s three new additions will have a serious chance to compete for a spot on the regular season roster. I expect all three will end up in the G League again this year, with their Exhibit 10 deals giving them the chance to earn bonuses of up to $50K.