Spurs Notes: Gasol, Roster Battle, Denmon, D-League
Pau Gasol may not be the best replacement for the retired Tim Duncan, cautions Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders. In the site’s season preview of the Spurs, Blancarte notes that while Gasol remains an effective passer and all-around player, most of his scoring comes from the midrange area, where San Antonio already produces much of its offense. Gasol left the Bulls to sign a two-year, $30MM deal with the Spurs in July. Although Blancarte picks San Antonio to repeat as Southwest Division champions, he expresses concern about the age of Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili and states that Kyle Anderson and Jonathon Simmons will have to be ready to take on larger roles.
There’s more news out of San Antonio:
- The Spurs have 14 players with guaranteed contracts and a four-way battle is shaping up for the final roster spot, Eric Pincus writes in the same story. Patricio Garino, Ryan Arcidiacono, Bryn Forbes and Ryan Richards are expected to compete for the 15th position, with the D-League looming as a consolation prize.
- San Antonio has waived its rights to Marcus Denmon, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. The Spurs made the former Missouri combo guard the 59th pick in the 2012 draft. He has spent his professional career overseas and played last season in the Turkish Basketball League.
- An Austin Spurs tryout Saturday attracted 110 players hoping to duplicate Simmons’ unlikely path to the NBA, writes Lorne Chen of NBA.com. Simmons was a semi-pro player who was thinking about giving up basketball when he came to the 2013 tryout. He impressed coaches enough to earn a contract with the D-League team, then graduated to the NBA two seasons later. “Jonathon came from this spot and has been a part of our group ever since,” said Austin GM Andy Birdsong. “And the thing is there are many stories like his coming out of the D-League. It’s a real story. It’s one that’s tangible. And it gives the guys here a lot of hope.”
Western Notes: Gobert, Durant, Gasol
A lesson from Gordon Hayward‘s free agency three years ago might affect the way the Jazz approach Rudy Gobert, writes Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders. Although Hayward and Utah were only a few million dollars apart in extension talks, the Jazz decided to let him become a restricted free agent. He signed an offer sheet with Charlotte that Utah eventually matched, but the shorter contract means the team lost a year of his services. Hayward is now in a position to opt out next summer. Gobert, who is eligible for an extension through October 31st, has a comparatively low cap hold and may be able to help Utah by holding off on extension talks until July. But the Jazz have to be concerned that he might sign an offer sheet before they can line up other free agents.
There’s more news from the Western Conference:
- Clippers coach Doc Rivers says Kevin Durant was intrigued by the team’s offer to make him the focus of its offense, relays Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Rivers adds that the Clippers’ representatives had a good feeling after their meeting with Durant and were disappointed when he chose the Warriors. “The Celtics and us and Oklahoma [City], we all thought we were going to get Kevin Durant,” Rivers said. “I don’t have a problem with that, I really don’t. I think the players have a right. They take the risk of being free agents. A lot of guys could sign early and play it safe. A lot of these guys take a risk because of their health. Durant did that, and when we left the meeting, we thought he was coming to us. When Boston left the meeting, they thought he was coming to them. I think Golden State knew where he was going. Good for them. But you’ve still got to play the game.”
- The Spurs picked up a top 10 center when they signed free agent Pau Gasol, according to A.J. Neuharth-Keusch of USA Today. Gasol is coming off an All-Star season in Chicago where he ranked fifth among centers in scoring, sixth in rebounding, first in assists and fourth in blocks. The Spurs will count on him to help fill the void left by Tim Duncan‘s retirement.
Pau Gasol Says He Turned Down Spurs In 2014
Veteran big man Pau Gasol is one of the newest members of the Spurs, and it sounds as if the union between the two sides was a long time coming. Speaking recently at an event in Madrid, Gasol admitted that he turned down an offer from San Antonio in the summer of 2014, opting to sign a two-year contract with the Bulls instead.
“Two years ago I declined the option of going to the Spurs,” Gasol said, according to a Eurohoops translation of a Marca.com report. “Now it was the right time to go to San Antonio. … [Gregg] Popovich has told me that I will contribute a lot, and along with LaMarcus Aldridge, without Tim Duncan any more, I will be one of the leaders of the team in the front line.”
While Gasol viewed Chicago’s offer as the best deal for him at the time, and played well during his time with the Bulls, the team didn’t enjoy the sort of success he anticipated, missing the postseason this past year for the first time since the 2007/08 season. This time around in free agency, he made the Spurs a priority, reaching a deal with the team during the July moratorium.
With Gasol under contract in the NBA for at least two more years, the odds of him heading back overseas to finish his playing career in Spain are becoming more remote. Although the possibility of a return has long been the subject of much speculation in his home country, the 36-year-old essentially dismissed it, per Eurohoops. “It’s a nice idea, but becoming less and less possible,” Gasol said.
Spurs Sign Pau Gasol To Two-Year Deal
JULY 14, 10:34am: The Spurs have officially signed Gasol, the team confirmed today in a press release.
JULY 4, 1:48pm: While some contract details still have to be finalized, the Spurs and Gasol are in agreement, reports David Aldridge of NBA.com (Twitter links). Gasol’s new two-year deal will be worth $30MM, with a player option for the second year, tweets ESPN’s Marc Stein.
1:39pm: The Spurs are finalizing an agreement to bring aboard free agent big man Pau Gasol, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. While the Raptors, Trail Blazers, and Timberwolves had been among the teams in the hunt for Gasol, San Antonio was viewed as the frontrunner for the Spaniard after missing out on Kevin Durant.
Gasol, who signed with the Bulls in 2014, declined a third-year player option that would have paid him $7,769,520 in 2016/17 if he had opted into the final year of his previous contract. The former third overall pick continued to be productive during his time in Chicago, averaging 16.5 points and 8.9 rebounds per game last season, and earning All-Star nods in each of the last two years.
The Spurs have long been viewed as a potential fit for Gasol, one that even Pau’s brother has advocated for. Back in April, Marc Gasol advised his brother to sign with San Antonio. With Tim Duncan leaning strongly toward retirement, San Antonio reportedly pursued Pau heavily, making him a top priority when it became clear Durant wouldn’t become a Spur.
While San Antonio was aggressive in its pursuit of Gasol, the Spurs weren’t necessarily a slam-dunk choice. According to Wojnarowski, Pau may have received offers in the $20MM-per-year range from other suitors, including the Blazers.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Atlantic Notes: Sullinger, Simmons, Thomas
Jared Sullinger‘s struggles with his weight and conditioning were the main reasons the Celtics allowed the forward to depart as a free agent after rescinding their qualifying offer to him, Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald writes. The big man accepts that he was at fault, according to David Falk, his agent, Murphy notes. “Jared understands that if he had controlled his situation better, his options would have been better,” Falk said. “What happened the last two weeks has been major wake-up call for him. He’s in the gym twice a day. He knows what he has to do. Jared acknowledges that he put himself in this situation, and he has to get himself out of it”
Falk also noted that Sullinger had received interest from a number of teams before he inked a one-year deal with the Raptors, calling Toronto the best fit, Murphy relays. “I’ve always advised my clients not to be a slave to money, and Jared had a deal for twice the money from another team, but it wouldn’t have been as qualitative a situation as going to Toronto,” said Falk. “We turned down an offer of over $10MM. But my feeling is that in this market, when you look at the deals that players like Bismack Biyombo signed, Jared is a $20MM player because of his skill. He was Boston’s best big last year – a regular double-double guy. But first he has to show people. As my dad used to say, [betting on yourself] is the ultimate acid test.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Sullinger wasn’t Toronto’s first choice, as the team was in advanced discussions with Pau Gasol, who signed with the Spurs, and the Raptors were prepared to trade Terrence Ross to clear the necessary cap space to ink the Spaniard, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca relays. Toronto then nearly reached an agreement with the Bulls to acquire Taj Gibson and Tony Snell, but the deal fell through after Dwyane Wade chose Chicago, the scribe adds.
- No. 1 overall pick Ben Simmons has performed well in summer league play, but if the talented forward is to reach his full potential, the Sixers will need to learn from past mistakes and surround him with solid outside shooters, Bob Cooney of The Philadelphia Inquirer opines. The scribe points to how the lack of such players has hampered the development of Nerlens Noel, pointing to the big man’s improvement once Ish Smith was added to the roster this past season.
- Isaiah Thomas‘ deal with the Celtics is an extremely team friendly one given the contracts handed out this summer, a fact that hasn’t escaped the point guard, who says he intends to cash in when he hits free agency in 2018, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes. “They better bring out the Brinks truck,” quipped Thomas. “They’re paying everybody else. I gotta get something. I’m trying not to worry about it. It’s out there. I’m just being myself and play and hopefully that takes care of everything else.“
Spurs Won’t Match Offer For Boban Marjanovic
The Spurs have decided not to match the three-year, $21MM offer sheet the Pistons gave to center Boban Marjanovic, tweets David Mayo of MLive. Marjanovic should serve as a backup to Andre Drummond, whom Detroit expects to sign later this summer.
The 7’3″ Serbian native played sparingly during his first NBA season after signing with the Spurs last summer. He averaged 9.4 minutes over 54 games, but made an impact with 5.5 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting better than 60%.
Marjonic became expendable in San Antonio with the additions of Pau Gasol and Dewayne Dedmon.
Lakers Sign Timofey Mozgov To Four-Year Deal
JULY 8: The Lakers have formally announced their deal with Mozgov, via a press release.
JULY 1: The Lakers have reached an agreement with free agent center Timofey Mozgov on a four-year contract worth $64MM, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). We heard earlier tonight that the two sides were in serious discussions and were nearing a deal.
It’s an eye-popping payday for Mozgov, who will turn 30 later this month. He was a part-time starter and rotational piece for the Cavaliers’ championship team this past season, averaging 6.3 PPG, 4.4 RPG, and 0.8 BPG in 17.4 minutes per contest. However, he was essentially a non-factor in the playoffs, averaging less than six minutes per game in the 13 postseason contests in which he played.
A year ago, Mozgov was a full-time starter in the postseason for the Cavs, averaging 14.4 PPG, 9.9 RPG, and 2.4 BPG during the team’s 2015 playoff run. That’s the sort of production the Lakers will likely be hoping for from the seven-footer going forward.
Before agreeing to sign Mozgov, the Lakers had been linked to a number of other free agent centers, including Al Horford and Hassan Whiteside, among others. However, it’s not clear how much interest there was from the players’ sides in those cases. For what it’s worth, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com tweets that Pau Gasol wouldn’t have been entirely opposed to a Lakers reunion.
By reaching a non-max deal with a center, the Lakers will also now have a little extra cap flexibility to address other positions.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Southwest Notes: Mavs, Beaubois, Duncan, Rockets
Unlike a year ago, the Mavericks don’t anticipate any snags before the moratorium is lifted on Thursday, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. Last summer, Dallas looked like a huge winner in free agency before DeAndre Jordan changed his mind and re-signed with the Clippers. This year should feature a lot less drama, as Dallas is expected to finalize a trade sending Jeremy Evans to Indiana before moving on to its committed free agents. The Mavericks will complete deals with Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bogut and re-sign Deron Williams and Dwight Powell. The team may decide to shed some more salary, with Sefko mentioning backup center JaVale McGee as a possibility.
- Former Maverick Rodrigue Beaubois will be given a chance to make the roster next season, posts Tim McMahon on ESPN Now. The 28-year-old point guard spent four years in Dallas at the start of the decade, but hasn’t played in the NBA since 2013. He spent this season with Strasbourg in France.
- Tim Duncan hasn’t made an official announcement about his future, but Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News notes that his career could end with him being waived by the Spurs. Waiving Duncan and stretching his $6.4MM salary over the next three seasons would not only help San Antonio’s cap situation, it would make sure Duncan gets all the money owed to him. All signs point toward Duncan retiring, but McDonald says if he comes back the Spurs will be able to fit him and new free agent signee Pau Gasol under their cap.
- Today’s deal with Nene makes the Rockets‘ battle for roster spots more interesting, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Houston now has 13 players under contract for 2016/17, and must decide by August 1st whether to pick up a $1,015,696 option on reserve point guard Andrew Goudelock. The 27-year-old appeared in just eight games after signing with the Rockets in March when he completed his season in China. Combo forward Michael Beasley is in the same position, but a source told Feigen that Houston intends to keep him. The 13 roster spots don’t include restricted free agent Donatas Motiejunas or second-round draft pick Chinanu Onuaku (Twitter link).
- There is “growing skepticism” that Alessandro Gentile will join the Rockets next season, tweets international journalist David Pick. It was reported last month that the Italian wing player, whose rights belong to Houston, was interested in playing for new coach Mike D’Antoni.
Tim Duncan Strongly Leaning Toward Retiring
WEDNESDAY, 1:28pm: The Spurs tentatively expect to hear from Duncan regarding his retirement decision by this weekend, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
MONDAY, 12:34pm: While one longtime Western Conference star changes teams, another may be close to calling it a career. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, despite picking up his player option for the 2016/17, Spurs big man Tim Duncan is “leaning strongly” toward retiring.
[RELATED: Manu Ginobili to play next season]
Duncan hasn’t finalized that decision or made any sort of announcement at this point. However, Wojnarowski reports that the longtime Spur has left team officials, friends, and close associates with the “strong belief” that he’ll make a retirement announcement sometime in the near future.
The future Hall-of-Famer saw his production decline this past season, as he averaged a career-low 8.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.3 blocks in 25.2 minutes per contest over 61 regular-season appearances. He also shot just 48.8% from the floor, his lowest mark in 10 years.
Duncan’s player option had been worth $5,643,750, but he reportedly earned $750K in incentives based on the Spurs’ win total, meaning his 2016/17 salary is now in the $6.4MM range. As Wojnarowski notes, San Antonio may still pay that money to Duncan even if he decides to retire — the club could waive him and stretch his salary over the next three seasons.
With Duncan potentially headed for retirement, and Kevin Durant off to the Bay Area, the Spurs are “lasered in” on signing Pau Gasol, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter link). Gasol was one of the club’s top free agent targets headed into the offseason, and would be a nice fit in San Antonio if the club has to replace Duncan’s production and role.
Free Agent Rumors: Hornets, Blazers, Pachulia
Having tried to move Spencer Hawes‘ contract in a trade prior to the draft, the Hornets continue to explore a possible deal involving Hawes, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter links). According to Wojnarowski, Charlotte would like to create the cap room to add a center in free agency. Roy Hibbert and Zaza Pachulia are at the top of the Hornets’ wish list, with Festus Ezeli and Jordan Hill among the other players the team is eyeing, says Wojnarowski.
Here are several more free agent rumors and updates from around the NBA:
- The Trail Blazers kicked the tires on Ezeli and Nene, but won’t pursue those players, instead focusing their attention on Pachulia, reports Jason Quick of CSNNW.com (Twitter links). According to Quick, the Blazers were concerned they’d have to renounce one or two of their restricted free agents to go after Ezeli, and they aren’t willing to do that for Allen Crabbe, Meyers Leonard, or Maurice Harkless at this point.
- Quick also has an update on veteran free agent Gerald Henderson, tweeting that the Trail Blazers are one of “seven to eight teams” to show interest in Henderson so far.
- A reunion between Lance Stephenson and the Pacers isn’t out of the question, according to Nate Taylor of The Indianapolis Star, who reports that Stephenson has discussed the possibility of agreeing to a multiyear contract with Indiana. The veteran free agent is considering a few teams, but a source tells Taylor that Stephenson “absolutely loves the town and the [Pacers] organization.”
- Before Cole Aldrich agreed to sign with the Timberwolves, he was receiving interest from the Magic and the Suns, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (via Twitter). Orlando struck a deal with Bismack Biyombo, but Phoenix could still be in the market for a free agent big man.
- Portland reportedly offered Pau Gasol a higher salary than he ultimately accepted from the Spurs, and it sounds like the Timberwolves did too. Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reports (via Twitter) that Minnesota’s first offer was $36MM for two years, and the team may have increased that offer within the last day or so.