Cavaliers Claim Livingston, Waive Sloan
The Cavaliers have claimed Shaun Livingston off waivers from the Wizards, according to a team release. To clear a roster spot for Livingston, the Cavs have waived Donald Sloan, the club announced.
Sloan earned a spot on the Cavs' roster out of training camp, but wasn't playing on a guaranteed contract, meaning Cleveland will only be on the hook for a portion of his minimum-salary deal. Livingston, meanwhile, was signed by the Wizards earlier in the season to what was also assumed to be a minimum-salary contract, and was released this weekend. The Cavs will take on that deal, and if they hold on to Livingston past January 10th, his deal will become guaranteed for the season.
Sloan, 24, appeared in 20 games for the Cavs, averaging 4.1 PPG and 1.9 APG, and seeing a bit of a bump in playing time when Kyrie Irving was on the shelf. Livingston, meanwhile, averaged 3.7 PPG, 2.2 RPG, and 2.2 APG in 17 contests for the Wizards, including four starts.
Wizards Waive Earl Barron, Shaun Livingston
8:01am: The team is planning on filling the open roster spots with backcourt reinforcements, sources tell Michael Lee of The Washington Post.
1:28am: The Wizards waived a pair of minimum-salary players overnight, cutting center Earl Barron and point guard Shaun Livingston, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. The team confirmed the moves on its website. Barron's contract was non-guaranteed, and Livingston's likely was as well. Washington is left with the minimum of 13 players on its roster.
It's clearly a sign of cost-cutting for the Wizards, as both players made starts for the team within the last week. The release of Livingston is surprising, though, since that leaves the Wizards without any healthy point guards. Swingman Jordan Crawford has assumed much of the ball-handling duties while A.J. Price is on the mend from a broken hand, and John Wall remains out indefinitely with a stress fracture in his left kneecap. Unless either of them is ready to return, the Wizards may once more look to the free agent market, as they did when they brought in Ben Uzoh and Blake Ahearn for workouts earlier this month.
The timing of the moves is a bit curious, since it wouldn't have cost the Wizards much to keep Livingston and Barron around until January 10th, when contracts become guaranteed for the rest of the season. The prorated amount the team paid for each per day was only about $5K, a relative pittance. If Price makes it back at the early end of his initial recovery prognosis of four to six weeks, he would do so before January 10th, which would make the case for the Wizards to keep Livingston, unless they simply prefer another short-term option. Derek Fisher was waived by the Mavericks today, but he reportedly wants to retire and spend time with his family in L.A., so it would make no sense for him to move across the country to play for the 3-22 Wizards.
Southwest Notes: McHale, Livingston, Mavs, Rivers
The Rockets announced that coach Kevin McHale's daughter Sasha died Saturday afternoon, and Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports the 23-year-old had recently been hospitalized with a condition related to lupus, a disease she had long battled. Assistant coach Kelvin Sampson has been in charge of the team since McHale took a leave of absence on November 10th to tend to his daughter. The news is especially jarring, considering Sampson indicated a few days ago that the situation was improving. Hoops Rumors sends its sincere condolences to the McHale family. Here's more from the Southwest Division.
- Anthony Davis could be out two more weeks while recovering from a stress reaction in his ankle, reports Jimmy Smith of the Times-Picayune.
- Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports hears Wizards point guard Shaun Livingston, who was in camp with the Rockets, often outplayed Jeremy Lin while in Houston, where several Rockets players and coaches tried to convince the front office not to let Livingston go.
- Mavs coach Rick Carlisle has shuttled offseason acquisitions Elton Brand and Chris Kaman in and out of the starting lineup, but neither player is pouting as they've put their trust in the coach, observes Tim McMahon of ESPNDallas.com.
- Paul Flannery of SB Nation examines the struggles of Hornets rookie Austin Rivers, and agrees with coach Monty Williams that it's too soon to judge this year's 10th overall pick.
- Flannery also passes along Williams' praise of former Hornets power forward David West, who's playing improved ball for the Pacers, and points to the emergence of Marcus Morris for the Rockets this year as a sign the D-League's true value is in the seasoning and development it provides for NBA first-round picks.
Southeast Notes: Smith, Livingston, Beal, Wade
A pair of Southeast teams will be in action tonight, with the Wizards aiming to finally record their first win of the season against the Jazz while the Heat look to extend their division lead in Phoenix. As we wait for the start of those games, let's round up a few notes out of the Southeast….
- Following up on yesterday's Marc Stein report that indicated the Hawks have no interest in trading Josh Smith, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld agrees, suggesting in a series of tweets that it's far more likely that Smith will re-sign in Atlanta next summer.
- Wizards head coach Randy Wittman pushed for Washington to sign Shaun Livingston when he became available, reports Michael Lee of the Washington Post. According to Lee, Livingston attracted interest from a few other teams, but chose the Wizards because they provide the opportunity to play in a familiar system.
- Bradley Beal spoke to Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld about the expectations he places upon himself in his first season with the Wizards.
- Of the three Heat stars with an early termination option available in the summer of 2014, Dwyane Wade is probably the least likely to opt out, opines Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Wizards Sign Shaun Livingston, Cut Jannero Pargo
The Wizards have signed Shaun Livingston to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but I would guess it's a one-year deal, likely not fully guaranteed. According to team president Ernie Grunfeld, Livingston's "size and playmaking ability will give [the Wizards] more flexibility in the backcourt."
It's not the first time the Wizards have signed Livingston as a free agent. During the 2009/10 campaign, Washington inked the 6'7" guard to a pair of 10-day contracts before signing him for the rest of the season. Livingston's PER with the Wizards over the course of 26 games was 14.4 PER, which would have been a career high over a full season.
The Wizards, off to an 0-7 start, have struggled to get solid production from the point guard position with John Wall sidelined. A.J. Price has assumed the role of starting point guard, and has averaged 10.1 PPG and 6.9 APG, but has only shot 32.9% from the floor. Backup Jannero Pargo, who was released by the Wizards to make room for Livingston, was having even more trouble from the field, shooting 25.0%.
Pargo's contract was believed to be partially guaranteed for $300K, so that amount will count against the Wizards' cap this season.
Rockets Waive Lazar Hayward, Shaun Livingston
3:32pm: Berman confirms (via Twitter) that the Rockets have waived Hayward. In addition to Hayward, Forbes, Brockman, and JaJuan Johnson, Houston has also released Shaun Livingston, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). Livingston was under contract for $3.5MM this season, but only $1MM was guaranteed.
2:10pm: Shortly after acquiring him from the Thunder, the Rockets are expected to waive Lazar Hayward, according to Mark Berman of the FOX 26 Houston (Twitter link).
With 19 players under contract, Houston has to release four players today in order to reduce their roster to the 15-man regular-season limit. We've heard previously that Gary Forbes and Jon Brockman are expected to be cut. If the team makes that official, and releases Hayward, it would still need to waive one more player.
Hayward, 25, has appeared in 68 total games for the Timberwolves and Thunder since being drafted 30th overall in 2010. He has averaged just 2.9 PPG on 35.4% shooting in his two NBA seasons. Like Forbes and Brockman, Hayward has a guaranteed contract for 2012/13, so the Rockets will need to eat some salary in order to waive him. The Marquette product is owed $1,174,080 for the coming season, and had a team option for $2.12MM, which it seems won't be picked up.
Southwest Notes: Rockets, Hornets, Mavericks
- Jonathan Feigen of Ultimate Rockets gives an injury update from Houston, writing that the team is without Donatas Motiejunas (due to an infection) and Shaun Livingston (groin muscle injury). In another piece, Feigen pointed out how Carlos Delfino's veteran experience will significantly help the team's young core of players. Lastly, Jason Friedman of Rockets.com relayed his observations from the team's third day of camp, specifically highlighting Delfino, Kevin Martin, and Jeremy Lin.
- Jim Eichenhofer of Hornets.com sheds light on New Orleans forward Hakim Warrick, who hopes to replicate the same success he had as a key reserve with the Grizzlies after recent subpar seasons in Phoenix. Separately, Eichenhofer writes about how Roger Mason will be relied on for his leadership and three-point shooting ability. John Reid of the Times-Picayune discusses his take on what will be expected from both Warrick and Mason this year.
- Earl K. Sneed of NBA.com provided a brief rundown of the sixth official day at Mavericks camp as the team prepares for its first pre-season game in Berlin. Tim Cowlishaw of SportsDay DFW thinks that while the team will be fun to watch this year, they won't be in the discussion for title contention.
- Ronald Tillery of The Memphis Edge notes his observations from the Grizzlies practice session today after an emotional Wednesday in which the team learned that VP of Basketball Operations Dana Davis had passed away.
Bucks Acquire Samuel Dalembert
5:01pm: The swap also includes a future second-round pick heading to the Bucks, according to the team's official PR Twitter feed.
2:31pm: The Bucks have acquired Samuel Dalembert in a trade with the Rockets, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). Dalembert heads to Milwaukee along with the No. 14 pick, in exchange for Jon Brockman, Jon Leuer, Shaun Livingston, and the No. 12 pick, tweets Wojnarowski.
Bucks May Not Be Done Dealing
Even after pulling off a five-player blockbuster that landed them Monta Ellis, the Bucks may not be done dealing. Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times reports (via Twitter) that Milwaukee continues to explore another deal, with Luc Mbah a Moute and Shaun Livingston as the likely candidates to be moved.
Considering the Ellis deal put the Bucks in a better position to make a run at the postseason this year, I'd guess the trade they're discussing would bring in short-term help. Mbah a Moute's contract isn't especially burdensome, since its annual value declines each year, but it does run through 2015. It will be interesting to see whether Milwaukee would have to take back another long-term deal, or whether they'll look to add another expiring contract to Kwame Brown's. With Bogut gone and Mbah a Moute potentially on the move, it seems the team hopes to clear cap space to re-sign Ersan Ilyasova.
One Buck who won't be on the move today or tomorrow is Brandon Jennings, who the team removed from the trade block this week.