Mike Dunleavy Jr. Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Stein’s Latest: Rockets, Cavaliers, Blazers, Pistons

January 13th, 2017 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

ESPN.com’s Marc Stein takes a swing at picking the All-Star starters from each conference and passes along some trade rumors in his latest column. He lists four teams that could be active with the deadline less than six weeks away:

The Rockets‘ hopes of acquiring Mike Dunleavy Jr. fell through this week when the Hawks committed to keeping him, but Houston is still looking for another shooter. GM Daryl Morey tried to get involved when Atlanta was searching for a third team in its deal with Cleveland, and he had interest in acquiring Dunleavy when it looked like he might not report to the Hawks. Sources tell Stein that K.J. McDaniels has surpassed Corey Brewer as the Rocket most likely to be traded. McDaniels has one season left on his current deal at more than $3.3MM, while Brewer is signed for one more more season at $7.6MM.
The Cavaliers have $4.4MM left from their Anderson Varejao trade exception, which will expire February 20th. That means a trade for a backup point guard may be just as likely as a veteran free agent signing such as Mario Chalmers, Jarrett Jack or Norris Cole.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has moved ahead of Reggie Jackson on the list of untouchable Pistons in possible trades. Caldwell-Pope is now atop that list alongside Andre Drummond. Detroit is well below .500 since Jackson returned from tendinitis in his left knee in early December. Jackson, whose 5.5 assists per game are the lowest during his time in Detroit, still has three seasons and more than $51MM left on his current deal.
Three Trail Blazers who signed huge offseason deals will become eligible to be traded on Sunday. Keep an eye on whether Portland tries to unload some of the salary it committed to Allen Crabbe, Maurice Harkless and Meyers Leonard.

Eastern Notes: Dunleavy Jr., Cavs, Monroe, Noel

January 12th, 2017 at 6:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Mike Dunleavy Jr. labelled reports that indicated he wanted a buyout from the Hawks “pretty inaccurate” and believes he’ll fit right in with the team, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution reports. The Hawks were hoping to find another team for the 36-year-old swingman when he was included in the deal that delivered sharpshooter Kyle Korver to the Cavaliers, Vivlamore continues. Dunleavy has since received assurances from coach Mike Budenholzer that he’ll get some playing time, though he will not immediately become part of the rotation. “I fit in as far as the way I play,” Dunleavy told Vivlamore. “I move, cut, shoot, pass. That’s the way this team is structured. It’s not a matter of what are you going to do for me or how am I going to fit in. It didn’t take much explaining.”

In other news around the Eastern Conference:

In the aftermath of the Korver trader, the $9.6MM trade exception that the Cavaliers gained in the trade that sent Anderson Varejao to the Trail Blazers last February has been reduced to $4.4MM, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets. That exception will expire on February 20, Wojnarowski continues. The Cavs created two more exceptions worth $4.8MM and $2.2MM in the deal that also shipped Mo Williams and a protected 2019 first-round pick to Atlanta. Those exceptions will expire on February 7, 2018, Wojnarowski adds.
Bucks center Greg Monroe is a long way from deciding whether to exercise the player option on his contract, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Monroe has a $17.8MM option this summer in the final year of his three-year, $50MM deal. “I’m not thinking about anything like the off-season right now,” he told Gardner. “There is a time and place for everything. If and when I have to make a decision, that time is not right now.” Monroe, the subject of heavy trade speculation during the offseason, has boosted his stock with his play this season, averaging 10.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists as the leader of the second unit.
Sixers big man Nerlens Noel, whose playing time has spiked this month, calls this group the “closest team I’ve been on” in his short NBA career, Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly tweets. Noel, a prime trade candidate as our Luke Adams detailed last month, is averaging 11.3 points and 6.7 rebounds in 23.3 minutes over the last three games. His comment suggests he might be softening his tone about his role with the club.

Hawks Notes: Millsap, Dunleavy, Williams, Wilcox

January 12th, 2017 at 2:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Paul Millsap is reportedly off the trade block in Atlanta, but with six weeks to go until this year’s trade deadline, several NBA.com writers and reporters remain unconvinced that the team’s decision is final. David Aldridge, Steve Aschburner, Scott Howard-Cooper, and John Schuhmann are among the scribes who believe there’s still a chance Millsap could be moved by February 23, with Howard-Cooper writing that the phrase “taken off the market” will mean nothing if a team calls the Hawks with an offer that Atlanta likes.

I would have agreed with that view of the Millsap situation after a report surfaced suggesting that the Hawks were telling other teams the big man was unavailable. Telling clubs that Millsap isn’t available is a move that could be used as leverage later, in an effort to get those same teams to improve their offers. Still, Atlanta also reportedly informed Millsap himself that he won’t be dealt, and NBA teams don’t often reverse course on that sort of promise in a matter of weeks — I’d be somewhat surprised if the Hawks move Millsap, though it’s certainly not out of the realm of possibility.

Here’s more from out of Atlanta:

Mike Dunleavy Jr., who reported to the Hawks and passed his physical earlier this week, expects to make his debut for the team on Friday, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link) spoke to the other veteran acquired in last weekend’s trade by the Hawks, though Mo Williams isn’t expected to report to or play for the club. As Kennedy details, Williams is focused on coaching younger players, and doesn’t seem interested in coming out of retirement as an NBA player anytime soon.
In the wake of a report that Wes Wilcox made a “racially charged joke” at a recent season-ticket holder event, the Hawks general manager has received an undisclosed discipline from the team, reports Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated.
According to Spears, this is what Nzinga Shaw, the Hawks’ diversity and inclusion officer, had to say about Wilcox’s comments: “After hearing multiple sides of the story and getting multiple eyewitness accounts of what took place, I am not convinced that what we heard and read in Deadspin is a direct quote that was used. Wes, however, certainly did make his off-color statement, which included elements of describing his wife’s race. People that were in the room could make the assumption that he was using her race for the reason of the comments that followed. We certainly do not approve of this behavior and we are going to handle this manner internally.”

Mike Dunleavy Reports To Hawks, Passes Physical

January 10th, 2017 at 3:07pm CST by Luke Adams

3:07pm: Dunleavy has passed his physical, officially completing the deal between the Cavs and Hawks, tweets Vivlamore.

JANUARY 10, 12:45pm: Dunleavy has formally reported to the Hawks to undergo his physical, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution.

JANUARY 9, 2:41pm: After a conversation with head coach Mike Budenholzer about his potential role in Atlanta, Mike Dunleavy Jr. has “made peace” with joining his new team, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski, Dunleavy will report to the Hawks on Tuesday.

Dunlevay, who was a part of the trade between the Hawks and Cavaliers that sent Kyle Korver to Cleveland, had been reluctant to report to Atlanta, preferring to negotiate a buyout that would allow him to join a contending team of his choice. On Thursday and Friday, when the Hawks and Cavs were still finalizing the deal, there were reports that Atlanta was seeking a third team to take on Dunleavy, perhaps signaling to the veteran sharpshooter that the Hawks didn’t really want him.

However, after the trade was announced, Budenholzer spoke enthusiastically about the role he envisioned for Dunleavy in Atlanta, and according to Wojnarowski (via Twitter), once the 36-year-old was convinced that Budenholzer and the Hawks wanted him, there was no more talk of a buyout. There is “significant respect” between Dunleavy and Budenholzer, per Wojnarowski.

Although the situation has been resolved for now, there’s no guarantee that Dunleavy will finish out the season in Atlanta. We’re still about a month and a half away from the trade deadline, and if Dunleavy plays well for his new team, it’s possible the Hawks will flip him to another contender. The Warriors and Rockets were among the clubs believed to be keeping an eye on the situation in case Dunleavy hit the open market.

In 23 games for the Cavs this season, Dunleavy averaged career-worst marks in PPG (4.6) and FG% (.400). His current contract will pay him a guaranteed $4.84MM salary this season, with a partial guarantee of $1.66MM on his 2017/18 salary ($5.18MM).

Warriors, Rockets Keeping Eye On Mike Dunleavy

January 9th, 2017 at 2:29pm CST by Luke Adams

Although he was officially traded to the Hawks on Saturday, Mike Dunleavy Jr. currently has no plans to report to Atlanta, preferring to work out a buyout that would allow him to pick his new team. While there’s no indication yet that the two sides will work out a deal, some potential suitors for the veteran forward have emerged.

According to Chris Haynes of ESPN.com (via Twitter), the Warriors would consider Dunleavy as a potential free agent target if his contract is bought out by the Hawks. Golden State can’t offer more than the minimum salary to Dunleavy, but given the 36-year-old’s decline in production and his desire to join a contender, that would likely be enough to get something done.

Meanwhile, the Dubs would have some competition for Dunleavy’s services from the Rockets, per Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com (Twitter links). A source tells Watkins that Houston made an unsuccessful bid to trade for Dunleavy a few weeks ago, and while the ESPN scribe doesn’t expect the sharpshooter to ultimately land with the Rockets, there’s some interest there. Like Golden State, Houston could only offer the minimum salary.

If Dunleavy decides not to report to the Hawks, there are a number of different directions the team could go. Fining or suspending him is one option. Working out a buyout is also a possibility. Depending on how strong the interest from teams like the Warriors and Rockets is, it’s even possible Atlanta could work out a trade, though at his current cap hit of $4.8MM+, Dunleavy has less appeal than he would on a minimum salary deal.

The deadline for Dunleavy to report to the Hawks is 4:00pm CT today, though the team could push back that deadline or agree to waive it as the two sides continue to negotiate.

Mike Dunleavy Has No Plans To Report To Hawks

January 9th, 2017 at 11:18am CST by Luke Adams

Two days after officially being traded from the Cavaliers to the Hawks, Mike Dunleavy Jr. has yet to report to his new team, and has no plans to do so before Atlanta’s Tuesday game, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. As Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution notes, Dunleavy has until 4:00pm CT today to report to the Hawks.

A Sunday report indicated that Dunleavy is seeking a buyout from the Hawks, and Wojnarowski confirms that the veteran sharpshooter is looking to become a free agent and join a contender. Of course, Atlanta – currently 21-16 and in fourth place in the East – could be considered a contender, but the team has begun a retooling phase and isn’t viewed as a serious threat to make a run in the postseason.

According to Vivlamore, the Hawks and Dunleavy are working through several possible solutions, and it’s too early to know exactly how the situation will play out. Shortly after the trade with Cleveland was announced, head coach Mike Budenholzer expressed some excitement about getting Dunleavy into the mix in Atlanta, but previous reports had suggested the Hawks were seeking a third team to take on the 36-year-old. As such, the Hawks probably won’t be too upset if Dunleavy ultimately doesn’t see the floor for them.

If Dunleavy doesn’t report to the Hawks by today’s deadline, the team could technically void the trade, but that’s unlikely to happen — the 2019 first-round pick acquired from the Cavs is the key asset in the deal for the Hawks, so they won’t want to lose that pick. Atlanta could postpone the deadline for Dunleavy to report, or could opt to fine or suspend him. For now, it sounds like both sides are trying to resolve the situation amicably.

In 23 games for the Cavs this season, Dunleavy averaged career-worst marks in PPG (4.6) and FG% (.400). Still, entering this year, he had made more than 40% of his three-point attempts over the last six seasons, so he could still have some appeal to a contending club in need of outside shooting. Dunleavy’s current contract will pay him a guaranteed $4.84MM salary this season, with a partial guarantee of $1.66MM on his 2017/18 salary ($5.18MM).

The other player headed to the Hawks in the Kyle Korver trade – Mo Williams – also won’t be reporting to the team.

Mike Dunleavy Jr. Seeks Buyout From Hawks

January 8th, 2017 at 7:06pm CST by Will Joseph

Mike Dunleavy Jr. has yet to report to the Hawks and is seeking a buyout from the team after Atlanta acquired the veteran Saturday in a trade, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports, citing league sources. Dunleavy, of course, would be a free agent if the Hawks grant him his wish.

The Hawks, Stein writes, would like to keep Dunleavy, who is earning $4.9MM this season. His contract for next year worth $5.2MM is only partially guaranteed. The sides were still in talks as of Sunday, Stein reports. Considering his contract and how much Dunleavy can help the Hawks, it would be somewhat surprising to see him become a free agent this way.

The Cavs sent Dunleavy to the Hawks Saturday. The swap, which is official, sent Kyle Korver to Cleveland in exchange for Dunleavy, Mo Williams and a protected 2019 first-round pick. Korver is with the Cavs in Phoenix but is unable to play or even watch the game from the bench because Dunleavy’s physical hasn’t been completed, Stein writes.

Cavaliers Notes: Korver, Liggins, Dunleavy, Holmes

January 7th, 2017 at 5:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers plan to use Kyle Korver primarily off the bench, according to Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Cleveland’s trade for the veteran guard was finalized today, and coach Tyronn Lue calls him one of the NBA’s best shooters off screens, along with Warriors guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. “Especially a guy who can move without the ball the way he moves coming off screens and things like that, there’s no better guy,” Lue said. “You put him on the floor with Channing [Frye], RJ [Richard Jefferson], LeBron [James] and the floor will open wide, so now you got to pick your poison when you try to help off Kyrie and LeBron.” However, Lue prefers to keep DeAndre Liggins in the starting lineup because of defense against opposing point guards.

There’s more news out of Cleveland:

Mike Dunleavy Jr.‘s disappointing season played a huge role in the deal, Lloyd writes in the same piece. The Cavs picked up Dunleavy for virtually nothing over the summer when the Bulls were clearing cap space to sign Dwyane Wade, but he put up some of the worst numbers of his career in Cleveland. He averaged just 4.6 points in 23 games and shot 35% from 3-point range, his worst figure since 2009/10. Dunleavy dropped out of the rotation early, but Lue says it wasn’t entirely his fault. “We really didn’t run the same movement stuff for him that Chicago ran for him and he didn’t really get a chance to really fit and blend in,” the coach said. “And that was on me, on us, but that’s just how our team is constructed. And it wasn’t fair to him but he’s a great professional. … I just thought he never really got a great rhythm on our team.”
Jonathan Holmes, who was cut by the Cavaliers in training camp, has joined the team’s D-League affiliate in Canton, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. The 24-year-old forward signed a two-month contract with Barcelona in November with an option for the rest of the season, but the team decided not to extend the deal. Pick calls him a “legit call-up candidate.”

Cavaliers Acquire Kyle Korver From Hawks

January 7th, 2017 at 11:55am CST by Luke Adams

11:55am: The first-round pick acquired by the Hawks in the swap will be top-10 protected in 2019 and 2020, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. If it falls in the top 10 in both of those years, it will convert to second-round picks for 2021 and 2022, though that seems unlikely.

According to Bobby Marks of The Vertical (Twitter link), Atlanta also received cash from Cleveland in the deal — roughly enough to cover the $1.2MM left on Williams’ contract. The Cavs were eligible to include up to $1.5MM in a trade.

11:29am: The Cavaliers and Hawks have finalized their trade that was first reported on Thursday, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. The swap, which is now official, will send Kyle Korver to Cleveland in exchange for Mike Dunleavy Jr., Mo Williams, and a protected 2019 first-round pick. The Cavs have confirmed the transaction in a press release.

In Korver, the Cavs will acquire one of the NBA’s best long-distance shooter, who has a career 42.9% mark on three-point attempts. Just two years removed from an All-Star nod, the 35-year-old is averaging 9.5 PPG in 32 contests for the Hawks this season, with a .441/.409/.889 shooting line. Korver will provide Cleveland with some additional outside shooting over the next several months while J.R. Smith is sidelined, and will be another scoring threat for the club in the postseason.

By moving both Dunleavy and Williams in the deal and taking only Korver back in return, the Cavs will open up a spot on their 15-man roster, allowing the team to sign, claim, or trade for another player. There’s no rush for Cleveland to fill that opening, but with Smith expected to be out until March, and Chris Andersen out for the season, the team will be keeping an eye open for depth options.

That roster spot could ultimately be used on a point guard, as the Cavs have been lacking a reliable veteran option since the start of the season. LeBron James has suggested multiple times this week that he’d like to see the team address the position, and there’s no shortage of veteran options on the market, including Mario Chalmers, Jarrett Jack, and Norris Cole.

As for Atlanta, the team has been rumored to be shopping all their veteran players on expiring contracts, a group that included Korver. Now that the club has made one move, there’s a good chance others will follow. Thabo Sefolosha, Tiago Splitter, Kris Humphries, and – of course – Paul Millsap remain on the block for the Hawks.

From a salary cap and CBA perspective, the trade is an interesting one. The Cavaliers had a $9.6MM trade exception available that they could have used to comfortably absorb Korver’s salary, but the team doesn’t necessarily have to use it. Taxpaying teams like the Cavs can acquire up to 125% of the salary they send out in a trade, so Dunleavy’s $4.8MM+ salary is enough to take back Korver, who is earning about $5.2MM.

If Cleveland completed the trade that way, the team would hang onto its big $9.6MM traded player exception, which expires next month, and create a new TPE worth Williams’ salary ($2.19MM). Alternately, using that $9.6MM TPE to take on Korver, and creating new TPEs worth Dunleavy’s salary and Williams’ salary is another possibility for Cleveland. Trade exceptions created today wouldn’t expire until January 2018.

It’s also worth noting that the Cavs needed to first complete a separate trade before this deal could be finalized. Because the Ted Stepien Rule prevents NBA teams from trading consecutive future first-round picks, and Cleveland had already sent its 2018 selection to Portland, the Cavs had to get that ’18 first-rounder back, sending out their 2017 first-round pick instead. That allowed the club to move its 2019 pick in its deal with Atlanta.

The Cavs’ decision to hang onto Williams even after he had announced his retirement paid off as well. Cleveland was able to attach him to this deal, reducing the team’s tax bill and creating an open roster spot. The Hawks, who waived Ryan Kelly this week to create room to complete a two-for-one deal, will likely waive the veteran point guard at some point and eat his salary.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Cavaliers Finalizing Deal For Kyle Korver

January 6th, 2017 at 2:11pm CST by Austin Kent

JANUARY 6, 2:11pm: The Cavs are shipping out Mo Williams as part of the deal, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal confirms (Twitter link).

JANUARY 6, 9:08am: The Hawks and Cavs are working on finding a third team for Dunleavy, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets. If they can’t find a taker, Atlanta will keep the small-forward.

JANUARY 5, 8:13pm: The trade has not yet been finalized, but the way things appear to sit now involve the Cavaliers sending Mike Dunleavy Jr. and a 2019 first-round pick to the Hawks in exchange for Kyle Korver. It’s also been reported that Dunleavy could be flipped to a third team prior to Friday’s trade call. Earlier updates had Mo Williams and possibly Cedi Osman involved.

In a separate trade, the Cavaliers are sending their 2017 first-round pick to the Trail Blazers in order to re-acquire their own 2018 first-round pick that, per The Oregonian’s Tim Brown, they gave up in the Anderson Varejao deal last February.

JANUARY 5, 7:36pm: According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Cavaliers have also made a separate trade with the Trail Blazers. They’ll trade their 2017 first-round pick to Portland in order to get their 2018 first-round pick back. He also tweets that Cleveland’s 2019 first-round pick will be on its way to Atlanta.

JANUARY 5, 7:28pm: Wojnarowski now reports that the Cavs will send Mike Dunleavy Jr. to the Hawks and that he’ll likely move on to a third team, though it’s not clear what team that will be. Dunleavy Jr. makes $4.8MM this season, with a team option for next season.

JANUARY 5, 7:15pm: Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets that he hears that the retired – but still tradable – Mo Williams is Atlanta-bound, along with a heavily protected first-round pick from the Cavaliers. He also confirms on Twitter, that the Cavs can absorb Korver’s salary if they wish, via the Anderson Varejao trade exception.

JANUARY 5, 7:08pm: According to Hawks beat writer Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Hawks hadn’t confirmed the deal as of 6:47pm CST, but coach Mike Budenholzer had pulled Korver aside. Vivlamore adds that a Cavaliers executive was in Atlanta last week to watch the sharpshooter. Finally, Vivlamore tweets that Cedi Osman could be among the package going to Atlanta. The 2015 second-round pick is currently playing in Turkey.

JANUARY 5, 6:56pm: The Cavaliers are finalizing a deal that will land them Kyle Korver, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski. While the exact terms being discussed aren’t currently available, what’s known now is that wheels are in motion for the 35-year-old veteran to join the reigning champions.

Over the course of the last five years with the Hawks, Korver has established himself as an elite deep threat and was even named to the All-Star team in 2015. He’ll now join a Cavaliers team that’s seen three-point specialists like Channing Frye and J.R. Smith thrive thanks to the spacing created by its stars.

Korver is on the final year of a contract worth $5.3MM and while the Cavaliers are currently well over the cap, it’s worth noting that they hold four outstanding trade exceptions, including one worth $9.6MM that is set to expire in February.

According to Justin Verrier of ESPN, as of 6:52pm CST, Korver was still warming up on the court prior to Atlanta’s Wednesday night game against New Orleans.