Shelvin Mack

Shelvin Mack Signs Two-Year Deal With Magic

JULY 9, 12:22: The deal is official, according to a tweet from the Magic.

JULY 7, 6:51pm: The Magic are finalizing a deal with free agent guard Shelvin Mack, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. The two-year pact is said to be worth $12MM, at an even $6MM per year (according to Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune).

In 55 games for the Jazz last season, Mack posted 7.8 points per game, a far cry from the 12.7 he put up in ten extra minutes the year prior.

Over the course of a six-year career, Mack has established himself as a solid backup guard capable of playing both the one and the two. In Orlando he’ll fit in well behind Elfrid Payton, perhaps sharing spot starter duties with D.J. Augustin.

The move could signal that C.J. Watson, the team’s other point guard option, could be waived in the coming days. Watson’s deal isn’t guaranteed for 2017/18 if Orlando waives him prior to July 10, as is laid out in our official NBA Salary Guarantee Dates list.

Knicks Rumors: Rondo, Point Guards, Smart

The Knicks have been in touch with free agent point guard Rajon Rondo, according to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). However, the two sides haven’t set up a meeting at this point, per Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog (Twitter link).

While a report on July 1 indicated that New York had reached out to Rondo’s camp, Marc Berman of The New York Post suggests that the club didn’t formally make contact until today (Twitter link). Ian Begley of ESPN.com, who initially reported the team’s contact with Rondo on Saturday, reiterates that account, though he acknowledges that “no substantive conversation” happened over the weekend.

Regardless of when the Knicks first touched base with Rondo and his reps, it’s clear that the team continues to explore all its options as it contemplates adding a veteran guard to the roster. Here’s more on that search:

  • Some people who have been in contact with the Knicks recently got the impression that the team’s interest in Rondo isn’t particularly strong, per Begley.
  • The Knicks have heard from the Celtics, who are open to trading Marcus Smart, but it’s not clear whether or not New York is interested in Smart, writes Begley.
  • Derrick Rose and Shelvin Mack remain on the Knicks’ radar, according to Begley, who hears that the team is on the lookout for a mentor for rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina.

Free Agent Rumors: Wolves, Young, Knicks, Gay

Although the Warriors remain an option for Nick Young, several other teams are in the mix, per Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link). Oklahoma City and New Orleans have been mentioned as possible landing spots, and Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link) says the Timberwolves have also inquired.

As Wolfson notes in a separate tweet, Minnesota has reached out to Gerald Green as well. The Timberwolves are “casting a wide net” for wing options, in the hopes that a bigger name falls into their lap for the $4.3MM room exception, says Wolfson.

Here are more free agency updates from around the NBA:

  • According to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link), the Knicks have told multiple agents that they believe they’re closing in on a deal with a guard. Kyler suggests that mystery guard may be Derrick Rose or Shelvin Mack. Of those two, Mack seems like the more probable candidate, as a Sunday report suggested that Knicks GM Steve Mills isn’t bullish on bringing back Rose.
  • Rudy Gay was “impressed” by the Clippers‘ presentation to him on Sunday, but no deal is in place between the two sides, tweets Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. The team met with Danilo Gallinari on the weekend as well.
  • Appearing on Zach Lowe’s ESPN podcast for the first time, cap guru Bobby Marks expressed skepticism that the Nets will go after Pistons restricted free agent Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as aggressively as they pursued RFAs a year ago. Brooklyn has frequently been linked to KCP and Otto Porter, but there has been no word yet about a Nets offer for either player. Brooklyn was scheduled to meet with Porter today, according to Matt Moore of CBSSports.com.

Free Agent Notes: Waiters, Gallinari, Holiday

With the Knicks, Bulls, and Kings all reportedly expressing interest in unrestricted free agent Dion Waiters, Heat president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra are headed out west to Los Angeles to meet with the guard, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald relays. The duo want to convey to Waiters that the team is still very interested in retaining his services, even though it is in no position to make a large lucrative offer until Gordon Hayward decides among offers from Miami, the Celtics, and the Jazz, Jackson notes.

On the second day of free agency, here’s the latest news and notes from around the league:

  • Last summer’s free agent spending frenzy has taken its toll on this year’s crop of players on the open market, ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (on Twitter). There are still approximately 100 players who are unsigned and cap space is quickly drying up around the league, the scribe adds.
  • The Clippers are set to meet with unrestricted free agent Danilo Gallinari this evening in Los Angeles, TNT’s David Aldridge reports (via Twitter). The Nuggets also remain a potential landing spot for the forward, though, Denver is currently “all in” on signing Paul Millsap, Aldridge adds.
  • The Knicks are among several teams that have contacted unrestricted free agent Justin Holiday and New York has strong interest in re-signing the guard, Ian Begley of ESPN.com relays (ESPN Now link). It was reported earlier today that the Bulls have a contract offer on the table for Holiday, so the Knicks will certainly have some competition for his services.
  • There is mutual interest between unrestricted free agent point guard Shelvin Mack and the Knicks, Tony Jones of The Salt Lake City Tribune relays (via Twitter). In 55 appearances for the Jazz last season, Mack averaged 7.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 21.9 minutes per outing. His slash line on the campaign was .446/.308/.688.
  • The Thunder appear to be committed to re-signing Andre Roberson, per a tweet from ESPN’s Royce Young. The scribe notes that it’s a “virtual lock” that Roberson will return to OKC in 2017/18.

Eastern FA Rumors: Lowry, Bogdanovic, Celtics

There’s a “growing sense” among executives around the NBA that Kyle Lowry will ultimately sign a new deal with the Raptors, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today (Twitter link). Zillgitt says not to be surprised if Lowry gets a three-year deal in the range of $27MM annually from Toronto, which would put him right in the neighborhood of his good friend and teammate DeMar DeRozan — DeRozan’s contract calls for an annual salary of $27,739,975 over the next three years, with a player option worth the same amount in 2020/21.

Here are more free agent updates from around the Eastern Conference:

  • The Hawks are among Bojan Bogdanovic‘s most “ardent” suitors, tweets TNT’s David Aldridge. As Aldridge observes, Bogdanovic is a restricted free agent, but it will be difficult for the Wizards to match a competitive offer sheet for the sharpshooter if they also have to match a max offer for Otto Porter.
  • The Knicks, who have already been linked to several point guards in the first 24 hours of free agency, have also expressed interest in Shelvin Mack, a source tells Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
  • Although the Heat‘s recruiting efforts today were focused on Gordon Hayward, the team also made time to show some love to Udonis Haslem, as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press details in a pair of tweets. A free agent again this summer, Haslem is probably a good bet to re-sign with Miami on a minimum salary contract.
  • The Celtics, Hayward’s other Eastern Conference suitor, have talked to multiple free agents besides Hayward, according to Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald (Twitter link). Murphy notes that the most notable conversation has been with Danilo Gallinari, though the two sides hadn’t yet set up a meeting as of this afternoon.

Cavaliers Notes: Shumpert, Mack, Sanders

Iman Shumpert has been the subject of trade rumors with the Wolves and Rockets among the teams showing interest, but coach Tyronn Lue believes the Cavaliers will keep him on the team, as Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com relays. “You wish you could trade and get all the people you say you can get, but it never happens. … If you hear about 200 trades, there’s probably two that happens,” Lue said.

Here’s more out of Cleveland:

  • Back-up point guard isn’t as much of a need for the Cavs as it was earlier in the season, Vardon writes in the same piece. “In the playoffs you can always get away with playing [LeBron James] at the backup point guard,” Lue said. “The backup point guard situation was more so to not play Bron and [Kyrie Irving] so many minutes throughout the regular season, but, I mean we just gotta go with what we got.”
  • The Cavs recently engaged in trade talks with the Jazz regarding a swap of Shelvin Mack and Jordan McRae, Chris Haynes of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). Haynes adds that the discussions have stalled out.
  • Lue said he was impressed with Larry Sanders, who worked out for the Cavs today, as Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal tweets. Lue added that the biggest question with the big man is whether he loves the game or not.

Cavs Notes: Shumpert, James, Irving, Carmelo Anthony Rumors

The Cavs haven’t completely closed the door on Carmelo Anthony. According to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com, the Cavs are exploring “the very slight possibility” of acquiring ‘Melo by the Feb. 23 deadline. Vardon also notes the likelihood of Cleveland acquiring Shelvin Mack– a move not aimed at postseason depth, but helping rest LeBron James and Kyrie Irving as the season winds down.

While the Cavs hold “basement-level low” expectations of completing a deal for Anthony, the Knicks could consider offers for lesser players in an attempt to move him by the deadline.

More from Cleveland…

  • Iman Shumpert carries “real value” on the trade market, Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com writes. Capable of filling in at the Two or Three, Shumpert has improved his long-range shooting to a career-high 42.5% from beyond the arc. While Shumpert is due to make $10.3MM in 2017/18, Pluto reminds readers of his value- citing Matthew Dellevedova’s $38MM deal as a comparable example. As of this morning, the Timberwolves were thought to have “strong interest” in Shumpert’s services.
  • LeBron James’ heavy workload has been a point of contention this season, and it appears the four-time MVP is ready to accept additional rest in the second half. “Me being a competitor, me playing the game that I love every single day, I don’t always have the right assessment of me playing a lot of minutes,” James told Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon Journal. “That’s why I have Coach Lue and the coaching staff and the training staff to be like, ‘Hey, LeBron, you’ve played six straight Finals, you’ve played this amount of minutes, let’s take it easy today. Let’s take today off.’ That’s what they’re going to do.” James has averaged 37.5 minutes per game this season, compared to 35.6 MPG in 2015/16 and 36.1 in 2014/15.
  • Learning to play alongside James was a humbling experience for Irving, Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon Journal writes. “I was trying to figure it out all at once so it took a while, it didn’t look perfect. A lot of the arrogance I had and the aura that I had I had to let go of completely,” Irving said. “Let go of that complete ego, the selfishness that we all want to have it and being that player every single night. The truth is you can still be that player with other great players, you’ve just got to figure out how to do it.” Averaging a career-best 24.4 points, Irving will suit up for his fourth All-Star game tonight in New Orleans.

Cavaliers Face Two Important Deadlines Monday

Monday is an important day on the Cavaliers’ calendar for two reasons, notes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com.

It’s the expiration date for a trade exception the team acquired when it dealt Anderson Varejao to Portland last season. Currently at nearly $4.4MM, the exception started out at more than $9.6MM, but the Cavs used about $5.2MM when they acquired Kyle Korver from the Hawks in January.

Pluto speculates that Jazz point guard Shelvin Mack could be a good pickup with Cleveland searching for a veteran backup to Kyrie Irving. Mack has dropped out of the rotation in Utah, but he is averaging 7.3 points through 46 games and is shooting 36% from 3-point range, which would be an asset in Cleveland’s offense. Mack’s salary is a little more than $2.4MM, and he will be a free agent when the season ends.

Monday also marks the first day that Varejao could potentially return to Cleveland. NBA rules state that players who are traded must wait at least a full calendar year before rejoining their original team.

The Warriors waived Varejao two weeks ago to free up a roster spot to sign Briante Weber. Pluto writes that the 34-year-old big man could be on the Cavaliers’ radar as a fallback choice as they look for a replacement for the injured Chris Andersen. First they will see if any centers are realistic trade options, then they wait to see who gets bought out. Pluto says they prefer Andrew Bogut to Varejao, but it seems likely the Mavericks will keep him.

Shelvin Mack Latest PG Linked To Cavaliers

The Cavaliers are in the market for a point guard and Marc Stein of ESPN has explored two potential fits. Given Cleveland’s abundance of trade exceptions, the team could make a deal for a veteran point guard and absorb the player’s contract that way. With their Anderson Varejao trade exception, which expires on February 20, the club could deal for Jazz point guard Shelvin Mack.

In 42 games for the Jazz, Mack has averaged 7.9 points and 2.9 assists. He’s owed $2.4MM on a deal that will expire this offseason.

Another option at the point, one that has been discussed previously this week, is Nuggets guard Jameer Nelson. The 34-year-old is owed $4.5MM this season, which would necessitate the use of the $4.8MM trade exception the team procured in last month’s Kyle Korver trade.

Nelson has averaged 8.8 points and 4.6 assists per game in 45 tilts with Denver so far in 2016/17.

Western Notes: Exum, Wroten, Rubio, Bjelica

Jazz coach Quin Snyder isn’t sure how much Dante Exum will be able to contribute after missing an entire season with a torn ACL, writes Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. Exum, who averaged 4.8 points and 2.4 assists as a rookie in 2014/15, was cleared for full-contact basketball activity last month. He decided not to join the Australian team for the Olympics and will concentrate on getting ready for training camp. “I think that’s an injury that he’ll be back from, but it’s not a simple thing,” Snyder said. “… We don’t really have a specific timetable on that as far as where he is, but I know he’s missed playing. He loves to play and I think this will be an opportunity for him to start doing that again and I know he’s excited and we’re excited for him.” Exum will face competition for playing time from George Hill, who was acquired in a trade from the Pacers last month, and Shelvin Mack, who became the team’s starting point guard late in the season after joining the team in a deal with the Hawks.

There’s more from the Western Conference:

  • Point guard Tony Wroten could agree to return to the Grizzlies, tweets international journalist David Pick. Memphis waived Wroten on Tuesday, but Pick hears that a reunion is still possible. It was the second trip to the waiver wire this summer for Wroten, who was cut loose by the Knicks after the Derrick Rose deal.
  • Trade rumors involving Ricky Rubio have been simmering since the Timberwolves drafted Kris Dunn, but owner Glen Taylor expects the team to hold on to the Spanish point guard, relays Sid Hartman of The Star Tribune“I don’t see that as a likely possibility,” Taylor said of a deal. “I just think the coach, everybody, likes Ricky. I think we want him to come in and improve on his shooting. But his other things, he plays defense, he gets assists, he helps the others get better. He has some wonderful qualities. I think the coach wants to bring an assistant coach to help Ricky on his shooting and I think that’s where we’re going to start out and go and we’ll see how good Kris Dunn is.” Rubio has spent his entire five-year NBA career in Minnesota and is under contract through 2018/19.
  • Wolves power forward Nemanja Bjelica will have to miss the Olympics as he rehabs an injury to his right foot, according to Eurohoops. Doctors say the Serbian star needs at least three more weeks to heal before trying to play again. Opening ceremonies for the games in Rio de Janeiro are August 5th.