Luol Deng Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Rockets Receive Mavs Offer Sheet For Parsons

July 10th, 2014 at 6:03pm CST by Cray Allred

6:03pm: The three-day clock on the Parsons offer sheet will begin tonight at 11pm CDT, reports Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star Telegram (Twitter link), giving the Rockets until Sunday at that time to match. In a separate tweet, Price reports that the deal will pay Parsons $14.7MM next season, $15.36MM in 2015/16 and $16.02MM in 2016/17 for a total of $46.08MM over three years. Price also confirms the third year is a player option.

1:59pm: The Rockets have received the signed offer sheet from the Mavs, USA Today’s Sam Amick reports, so the possibility of a sign-and-trade is out and Houston’s three-day window to match will begin (Twitter link).

1:24pm: Parsons indeed signed the offer sheet, Wojnarowski clarifies, but it simply hasn’t been delivered to the Rockets, meaning it’s not official yet, and the clubs can continue to work toward a sign-and-trade (Twitter link).

12:55pm: Dallas and Houston are indeed in talks about a sign-and-trade involving Parsons, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). Wojnarowski also says Parsons has yet to sign an offer sheet, repeating what Nelson told reporters earlier today. That’s in spite of the earlier report to the contrary and photos of Parsons signing paperwork that Mavs owner Cuban posted to a social media site, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News observed.

11:57pm: Nelson told reporters that the plan is to submit the offer sheet by the end of the night, notes Jeff Caplan of NBA.com (on Twitter), so it appears that’s the deadline for working out a sign-and-trade.

11:52pm: A possible sign-and-trade is in play for the Mavs and Rockets regarding Parsons, which is why Dallas is hesitating to submit the offer sheet, tweets Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.

11:36am: Mavs GM Donnie Nelson said the team hasn’t submitted any offer sheets, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. That suggests that while Parsons may have indeed signed the offer sheet, the Mavs haven’t officially given the Rockets notice, as required, to begin the three-day matching period.

10:37am: If the Rockets sign Bosh, they intend to match the offer sheet for Parsons if they can before their time to do so runs out, a source tells Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). If they don’t sign Bosh, Houston is undecided on matching, Feigen adds.

THURSDAY, 8:04am: Parsons has signed the offer sheet, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes, but there’s been no announcement from the Mavs, so it’s unclear whether the Rockets have been officially notified and their three-day window to match the offer sheet has begun. The value of the trade kicker is the maximum 15%, according to Spears (Twitter link).

WEDNESDAY, 8:06pm: The deal includes a trade kicker, tweets Spears.

5:56pm: The Mavs and Chandler Parsons have reached an agreement on an offer sheet for three years and approximately $46MM. The third year is a player option, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Marc Stein of ESPN.com was the first to report the agreement (on Twitter), and Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports has confirmed the pending deal (via Twitter). The max salary for a player of Parsons’ status on a three-year deal would be $46,228,710, as we learned earlier today, so Dallas has offered the max or close to it to the small forward.

Parsons will sign the offer sheet when the league moratorium is lifted at 12:01am EDT, a source tells Spears (Twitter link), and the Rockets will have three days to match the deal for their restricted free agent. Houston will be faced with a 72-hour window to resolve its pursuit of Chris Bosh if they want to retain both Parsons and add the Heat veteran, as Parsons currently minuscule cap hold will turn into a massive amount of salary if they match Dallas’ offer. The Rockets would no longer have room to sign Bosh at the max level in that scenario.

Houston chose to decline the slender $960K team option for Parsons this season in a move that preserved their right to match offers for the third-year forward in restricted free agency rather than see him become an unrestricted free agent next summer. Houston has planned on retaining Parsons through this process, although the outcome of their respective pursuits of Carmelo Anthony, Bosh, and LeBron James could have altered those plans. GM Daryl Morey has been in contact with the agents for Trevor Ariza, Luol Deng, and Paul Pierce today, tweets Wojnarowski and Sam Amick of USA Today, three small forwards that would make sense as contingency plans in the event Houston doesn’t match Dallas’ offer. As it stands, Houston hasn’t been notified that they are out of the running on Anthony or James, but don’t appear to be front runners for either star.

Eastern Rumors: Ariza, Celtics, Sixers

July 9th, 2014 at 10:21pm CST by Cray Allred

The Wizards have spoken with Luol Deng, but remain committed to re-signing Trevor Ariza, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). Here’s more from the East:

Washington is prepared to offer Ariza a raise from last year’s $7.7MM salary, but not upwards of $9MM, which is what the small forward is reportedly seeking, writes Michael Lee of The Washington Post. Both Ariza and the Wizards have anticipated waiting until LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony make their decisions before any progress for Ariza can be made.
J. Michael of CSNWashington.com tweets that Ariza is assured of receiving more more money from another team, but that the Wizards hope he will want to remain in Washington for less.
The Bulls are now being linked as suitors for Ariza by Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
The Rockets are weighing whether to match Chandler Parsons‘ offer sheet with the Mavs, or pursue Ariza at a lower price, tweets Broussard.
The Celtics like the newly acquired Tyler Zeller, but don’t have long term plans for Marcus Thornton, whom they acquired in the same three-team trade, tweets Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Washburn says it’s likely Boston will deal away Thornton’s contract or let it expire.
Before the Celtics agreed to take part in today’s swap, the Cavs reached out to the Magic and just about every other team in the league as they sought a third team to take Thornton in a three-team deal with the Nets, according to Grantland’s Zach Lowe.
Sixers GM Sam Hinkie acknowledged that his team is in position to help other clubs with its ample cap flexibility, pointing to that as a way to faciliate trades, as he told Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News as part of a Q&A.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Mavs Nearing Deal With Vince Carter

July 9th, 2014 at 7:35pm CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 7:35pm: If Rockets don’t match the max offer sheet the Mavs and Chandler Parsons have agreed to, it would eliminate cap room in Dallas, but the Mavs are still hopeful Carter would re-sign under their $2.73MM cap room exception, a source tells Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. That amount would be a pay reduction from Carter’s previous deal, and lower than the steady sixth man anticipated accepting this offseason.

MONDAY, 3:27pm: Carter is indeed drawing closer to a deal with the Mavs, but several teams remain in the running and some are pushing aggressively to snatch him away, as Jeff Caplan of NBA.com hears (Twitter link).

3:02pm: The Mavericks are closing in on a deal with Vince Carter, a source tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Twitter link). The team is still in the market for Chandler Parsons, Luol Deng, Lance Stephenson, Trevor Ariza and Pau Gasol, Price adds.

The Mavs had been growing confident that they’d reach a deal with Carter, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com wrote earlier. It’ll likely be a one- or two-year arrangement between $3.5MM and the $5.305MM mid-level exception, MacMahon adds.

Carter has reportedly been the subject of pitches from the Heat and others, but there’s been strong mutual interest in getting a deal done that would bring the 37-year-old sixth man back to Dallas.

Amico On Heat, Cavs, LeBron James

July 7th, 2014 at 8:35pm CST by Charlie Adams

The Heat might be in line to add another free agent before the end of the day, sources tell Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio. Miami made headlines this afternoon when they agreed to deals with a pair of veterans in Josh McRoberts and Danny Granger. Here’s more from Amico on the Heat, Cavs, and LeBron James:

McRoberts’ decision to ink a deal with the Heat is appealing to LeBron, a source tells Amico, since the former Charlotte big man could take over the role of defending opposing teams’ power forwards from James.
Amico also hears that bigger name free agents like Pau Gasol, Trevor Ariza, and Luol Deng aren’t interested in the reduced salaries that the Heat are offering.
One Western Conference GM told Amico that plenty of front offices around the league are actually hoping the Heat’s Big Three remains intact. “One thing [Miami has] proven the past four years is they can’t add any real talent around those guys,” the GM said. “Their run will be over in two years, and it may already be. I’d be considerably more scared of LeBron in Cleveland or Phoenix.“
The same GM suggested that Pat Riley will have a hard time explaining to James the club’s lack of a proven starting point guard.
One Cavs source told Amico that Cleveland would be making moves soon and that the front office has been busy trying to improve the team, independent of the club’s pursuit of James. Sources also told Amico they expect LeBron to make his decision on where to sign by Wednesday.
Kyrie Irving has reached out to James in an effort to recruit the All-Star forward to Cleveland, hears Amico. Of course, Irving agreed to a long-term extension with the Cavs earlier this month.

Southwest Notes: Deng, Ariza, Mavs, Stokes

July 7th, 2014 at 7:07pm CST by Zachary Links

The Mavs have no intention of giving Luol Deng a deal in the $12-$14MM range, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. They have significant concerns about the 29-year-old’s durability after years of him being a workhorse for Chicago and dealing with back and Achilles tendon issues recently. They value him as a versatile, tenacious defender with a career scoring average of 16 points per game, but his subpar 3-point shooting isn’t ideal for a Dallas team that is short on long-distance threats. Here’s more out of the Southwest:

Should Dallas fail to land Carmelo Anthony, Trevor Ariza is arguably the best fit for the Mavs out of any of their Plan B targets, contends MacMahon in a separate piece.
Bulls exec Brian Hagen is now on the shortlist in the Grizzlies‘ search for a new front office addition, reveals Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Hagen joins Brooklyn’s Bobby Marks, New York’s Mark Warkentien, and Indiana’s Peter Dinwiddie as candidates for the job.
Grizzlies second-round pick Jarnell Stokes will probably wait to sign his deal so that Memphis can figure things out in free agency first, writes Ronald Tillery of the Commercial Appeal. The former Tennessee standout spoke with Hoops Rumors earlier this offseason about his skillset and career goals.
Despite hitting a few snags during negotiations, the Spurs announced that they’ve signed Bryce Cotton to a minimum-salary deal, and the Grizzlies confirmed that Zach Randolph has inked an extension to remain in Memphis.

Charlie Adams contributed to this post.

Western Notes: LeBron, Warriors, Mavs

July 6th, 2014 at 8:25pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Warriors could have dealt Harrison Barnes to the Magic for Arron Afflalo and a future first-round pick, a source tells Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (on Twitter). The Warriors passed, but such a deal would have eased losing Klay Thompson in a Kevin Love trade.

And-Ones: Deng, Mavs, Ariza

July 5th, 2014 at 11:11pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Luol Deng is apparently sticking to his desire for $12MM per season, notes Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio (Twitter link). Deng has spoken with the Heat who are unsure about how much cap space they will have until LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade make their decisions, and the Hawks who are currently unwilling to pay that amount, according to the tweet. Deng’s best chance might be with the Mavericks who he is scheduled to meet with soon, opines Amico.

Here’s more from around the league:

Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders runs through the best and worst performances from the first day of Summer League action, including some lottery picks making their debuts.
The Rockets and the Cavaliers are getting closer to creating max contract slots, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Rockets are discussing deals for Jeremy Lin, and the Cavs have been shopping Jarrett Jack packaged with a draft pick, notes Wojnarowski.
Nate Duncan of Basketball Insiders looks at the Mavericks cap situation after the reported signing of Devin Harris.
Trevor Ariza met with the Heat on Thursday, reports Michael Lee of The Washington Post (Twitter link).

Eastern Notes: Hamilton, Anthony, Deng

July 5th, 2014 at 6:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Justin Hamilton is mulling a guaranteed two-year contract from a team in Zagreb, reports Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Hamilton is signed to a non-guaranteed contract with the Heat for 2014/15. Hamilton has an unusual contract in that he is scheduled to make a base salary of $816,482, and if he is not waived before August 1st $408,241 becomes guaranteed, and if he’s not waived by December 1st, then $612,362 of that contract becomes guaranteed. You can check out our Schedule of Contract Guarantee Dates for more info on Hamilton and non-guaranteed contracts throughout the league.

And-Ones: Deng, Novak, Rockets, Bazemore

July 5th, 2014 at 4:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Erik Spoelstra joined Pat Riley to meet with Luol Deng in Chicago today, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Heat are said to have interest in Deng, but they might not be willing to take on the reported $12MM annual price tag for the forward. Here’s more from around the NBA:

Raptors GM Masai Ujiri has indicated that second round pick DeAndre Daniels will be stashed in Europe for a year to get some much-needed playing time, writes Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun.
The Thunder are bringing aboard Darko Rajakovic as an assistant coach, the team announced via press release. Rajakovic has spent the past two seasons as the head coach of the Tulsa 66ers, OKC’s D-League affiliate.
Steve Novak will bring some much needed shooting to the Jazz, writes Kurt Kragthorpe of the Salt Lake Tribune. Novak is a career 43.9% shooter from 3-point range over eight seasons, almost exactly the same figure as Kyle Korver. The money owed to him over the next two years (about $7.5MM) was enough to make the Raptors want to dump his salary, but it wasn’t prohibitive for Utah.
Russian powerhouse CSKA Moscow extended a two-year, €3MM offer to free agent guard Nando De Colo, tweets David Pick of Eurobasket.com. That figure translates into roughly $4.08MM.
Put the Rockets on the growing list of teams interested in Kent Bazemore, says Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (on Twitter).
Ike Diogu has signed with Dongguan in China on a deal that allows him to jump ship to the NBA anytime between now and August 15th, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
A rumored agreement between Andres Nocioni and Real Madrid is not a done deal, according to Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype (on Twitter). The forward is still receiving interest from NBA teams (link).

Charlie Adams contributed to this post.

Latest On Heat, Chris Bosh, LeBron James

July 5th, 2014 at 12:24pm CST by Zachary Links

Chris Bosh‘s representatives have made recent calls around the league to reconfirm that max slots would be available to him, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). The answer his camp has received is yes.

The biggest issue for Miami right now could be that they might not be able to meet Bosh’s salary desires and still maintain space for free agents, Wojnarowski tweets. Getting Bosh to take a discount might not be as easy as once thought. If LeBron James wants a short-term deal in Miami, it doesn’t seem likely that Bosh would want to commit long-term at a steep discount only to possibly get left behind later (link). Meanwhile, Pat Riley has been unable to give the reps for free agents concrete offers because he doesn’t have the precise figures on Bosh and Dwyane Wade yet (link).

That doesn’t mean the Heat are waiting on any member of the Big Three to talk shop, however. Team execs will be meeting in Chicago with representatives for Luol Deng today, reports Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel (Twitter link), and Riley will be in attendance according to Wojnarowski (on Twitter). David Aldridge of NBA.com (via Twitter) adds that they’ll be meeting with Anthony Morrow‘s reps as well.