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Trevor Keels Returning To Knicks On Two-Way Deal

July 19th, 2023 at 8:29pm CST by Rory Maher

Guard Trevor Keels has re-signed with the Knicks on a two-way deal, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter). According to Fred Katz of The Athletic, it’s a one-year contract (Twitter link).

The 42nd pick of the 2022 draft after one college season at Duke, Keels spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Knicks, who gave him a qualifying offer last month in order to make him a restricted free agent. Based on the reported terms, it seems likely that Keels simply accepted his one-year QO in order to return to New York.

Still just 19 years old (he turns 20 in late August), Keels only appeared in three games for the Knicks in 2022/23 for a total of eight minutes. He was a starter for their G League affiliate in Westchester, however, averaging 13.9 points, 3.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 steal with a .425/.355/.710 shooting line in 25 regular season games (30.2 minutes per contest).

Once their two-way deal with Nathan Knight is official, the Knicks will have all three two-way slots filled, as former Overtime Elite guard Jaylen Martin occupies the third. That means Duane Washington might be the odd man out — he was given a qualifying offer last month, but the Knicks won’t have any spots available.

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12 Two-Way Restricted Free Agents Remain Unsigned

July 18th, 2023 at 10:24am CST by Luke Adams

The action on the NBA’s free agent market has slowed since the start of July, but there are still many FAs seeking new deals, including a notable group of under-the-radar players whose situations will need to be resolved in the coming days, weeks, and months.

A total of 12 two-way restricted free agents are still available, as our up-to-date list shows. Those players are as follows:

That group doesn’t include a 13th player, Neemias Queta, who is also a restricted free agent after finishing last season on a two-way deal. Although he remains eligible to sign another two-way contract, Queta was ineligible for a two-way qualifying offer after having played on a two-way with the Kings for consecutive seasons — his QO is a one-year, minimum-salary contract with a small ($75K) partial guarantee.

For the rest of these players, their qualifying offer is simply another one-year, two-way deal, which limits their leverage to negotiate a more lucrative standard contract.

Some two-way RFAs have managed to earn standard deals this offseason. A.J. Green of the Bucks was one. Julian Champagnie of the Spurs was another. Ty Jerome (Warriors) and Jack White (Nuggets) received standard contract offers from the Cavaliers and Thunder, respectively, that their former teams were unwilling to match, so Golden State and Denver simply withdrew their respective qualifying offers, making Jerome and White unrestricted free agents.

Offer sheets for two-way restricted free agents essentially never happen though. And in general, unless a team has earmarked a 15-man roster spot for a two-way free agent, it’s an uphill battle for these players to earn offseason promotions.

As a result, the majority of the dozen restricted free agents listed above will likely end up accepting their qualifying offers and hoping that their play in 2023/24 forces their clubs to find 15-man roster spots for them later in the season.

Still, it’s worth keeping an eye on this group to see if any of them can do better than another two-way — and to see how long some of them might be willing to wait in the hope of earning that opportunity.

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Atlantic Notes: C. Johnson, Petrusev, Bamba, Keels

July 12th, 2023 at 10:18am CST by Luke Adams

Cameron Johnson‘s new four-year contract with the Nets is front-loaded, with a cap hit of approximately $25.7MM in 2023/24. His cap charges in the subsequent three seasons will all be lower than that, including a drop to $21.6MM in ’25/26.

Discussing his new deal on Tuesday, Johnson explained that he hopes the structure of the contract will help the Nets be more financially flexible in future years than they would have been if he had agreed to traditional annual raises.

“Yes, that’s a big part of it,” Johnson said, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “I want to be surrounded by the best players possible. I want to be on the best team possible. So as to how the contract is weighted, it’s not like they’re taking or adding anything to it, it’s just a distribution of it. So I was trying to be as flexible as possible in allowing the best for the team situation.”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

  • Will draft-and-stash prospect Filip Petrusev sign his first NBA contract with the Sixers this offseason? Head coach Nick Nurse seemed to suggest as much during an appearance on Tyrese Maxey‘s Maxey on the Mic podcast, referring to the 2021 second-rounder as a player “who’s going to be on the roster this year” (hat tip to Eurohoops). With James Harden‘s trade request still unresolved and Philadelphia bringing back Paul Reed and Montrezl Harrell to go along with new addition Mohamed Bamba, it would be a little surprising if the team is fully committed to bringing Petrusev – another center – stateside for 2023/24, but it sounds like it might happen.
  • Speaking of Bamba, he spoke to reporters on Monday about his decision to sign with the Sixers and the role he expects to play with his new NBA team. As Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer details, the former lottery pick will be looking to show that he can be relied upon as a regular rotation player. “The next step for me is just consistency,” Bamba said. “Barring any injuries, just being out there and, you know, doing what I do best, protecting the rim, touching the floor and being so much more of a lob threat.”
  • Restricted free agent guard Trevor Keels is looking to show the Knicks with his Summer League play that he deserves to be part of the team’s plans going forward, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. He’s off to a shaky start, scoring just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting during his first two games in Las Vegas — New York has been outscored by 52 points during his 33 minutes on the floor, per Braziller.
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No QOs For Suns’ Bazley, Cavs’ Windler, Heat’s Yurtseven

June 29th, 2023 at 4:52pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns opted not to issue a qualifying offer to forward Darius Bazley, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). As a result, Bazley will become an unrestricted free agent rather than restricted.

The decision doesn’t come as a huge surprise, since Bazley’s qualifying offer would have been worth approximately $6.2MM. While it’s not clear if Phoenix is interested in re-signing the former first-round pick, the team will hold his Bird rights and could probably re-sign him at a more team-friendly rate.

Cavaliers wing Dylan Windler also didn’t receive a qualifying offer and will become an unrestricted free agent, reports Scotto (Twitter link).

Windler was never considered likely to get a QO, which would’ve been worth just shy of $6MM. He has been limited by injuries in his first four NBA seasons and hasn’t become a rotation player in Cleveland, appearing in just 84 total games.

Heat center Omer Yurtseven is another player who was eligible for a qualifying offer but didn’t receive one, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link).

Yurtseven’s QO is only worth a projected $2.22MM ($200K more than his minimum salary), but the Heat will be cost-conscious about how they fill out their roster, given that their team salary projects to go well beyond the luxury tax line.

The following players did receive qualifying offers and will be restricted free agents:

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Contract Details: Dunn, Merrill, Leonard, Keels

March 16th, 2023 at 11:14am CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz dipped into their mid-level exception in order to sign Kris Dunn to his new contract, Hoops Rumors has learned. If Dunn had signed for the veteran’s minimum, he would’ve made $356,646 for the rest of the season, but he instead received more than double that amount ($735,819) via Utah’s MLE.

Dunn’s two-year deal also includes a minimum salary ($2,586,665) for 2023/24, but that figure is entirely non-guaranteed. The veteran Jazz guard would get his full guarantee if he isn’t waived on or before October 23.

Here are more details on contracts recently signed around the NBA:

  • The Cavaliers‘ new contract agreement with Sam Merrill covers three seasons, Hoops Rumors has learned. Cleveland used a portion of its mid-level exception to give Merrill a third year and to pay him $850K for the rest of this season, well above the minimum. The Cavs will control Merrill at the veteran’s minimum rate in 2023/24 and ’24/25, with both of those years non-guaranteed.
  • As expected, Meyers Leonard‘s new deal with the Bucks is worth the veteran’s minimum and covers only the rest of this season, so he’ll return to unrestricted free agency again this summer. As we noted on Wednesday, Leonard’s rest-of-season contract will pay him $409,916, while the Bucks will take on a cap hit of $284,911 (though the actual cost of the signing will exceed $1MM due to tax penalties).
  • Trevor Keels‘ new two-way contract with the Knicks is just a rest-of-season deal, so he’ll be eligible for restricted free agency if he finishes the season with the club.
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Knicks Waive Moses Brown, Re-Sign Trevor Keels

March 12th, 2023 at 7:19pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks are waiving center Moses Brown, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. They’ll replace him by bringing back guard Trevor Keels on a two-way contract, Steve Popper of Newsday tweets.

The Knicks have made the moves official, announcing them in a press release, Popper adds in a separate tweet.

Keels appeared in two games with the NBA’s Knicks this season, most recently on March 1. Keels was on a two-way contract with New York, then was signed to a standard 10-day contract on Feb. 23.

Brown was signed to a two-way contract on Wednesday. Brown appeared in one game for the G League’s Westchester Knicks, where he enjoyed an 18-point, 17-rebound game.

Keels has spent most of the season with the Westchester club. The second-round pick out of Duke has averaged 15 points and 3.4 assists in 22 games with the NBAGL squad.

Brown, a 23-year-old center, began this season on a two-way contract with the Clippers. He appeared in 34 games, averaging 4.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in 8.5 minutes per night, before being waived on February 17.

Brown began his NBA career with the Trail Blazers in 2019 after going undrafted out of UCLA. He also had short stays with the Thunder, Mavericks and Cavaliers.

The Knicks had a two-way slot open after promoting DaQuan Jeffries to a 10-day contract a week ago.

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Trevor Keels Signs 10-Day Contract With Knicks

February 23rd, 2023 at 3:49pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Shooting guard Trevor Keels has signed a 10-day contract with the Knicks, the team announced via a press statement (Twitter link). This represents a promotion for the rookie guard, who had been on a two-way deal.

After being drafted with the No. 42 pick out of Duke by the Knicks last summer, Keels joined New York on a two-way contract, appearing in just one game for the club to date.

Keels has been playing much more frequently with Knicks’ Westchester NBAGL affiliate. For Westchester, the 6’5″ swingman has been averaging 14.9 PPG, 3.6 APG and 2.9 RPG across 17 contests during the regular 2022/23 G League season.

As we outlined earlier in the week, Thursday was the final day New York could carry just 13 players on its standard roster, which in part seems to explain the decision to sign Keels to this 10-day deal now. New York’s plan for the 19-year-old beyond this short-term contract remains to be seen.

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Trevor Keels Signs Two-Way Contract With Knicks

July 10th, 2022 at 6:36pm CST by Rory Maher

Trevor Keels, the 42nd pick of last month’s draft, has signed a two-way contract with the Knicks, the team announced (via Twitter).

The news was anticipated, as Ian Begley of SNY.tv reported last month that Keels was likely to receive a two-way contract once Jericho Sims was promoted to a standard deal, which occurred yesterday. New York’s two-way slots are now full, with Feron Hunt occupying the other.

Keels was one of the youngest players in the draft at just 18 years old and won’t turn 19 until late next month. He spent a single college season at Duke, averaging 11.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 steals in 36 games (30.2 minutes per contest).

At 6’4″ and 221 pounds, Keels is a combo guard, with some scouts questioning his conditioning, which may have impacted his draft status. He was considered a fringe first-round pick but ultimately fell to the middle of the second round.

Another knock against Keels was his efficiency, as he posted a .419/.312/.670 shooting line with the Blue Devils. That has carried over to Summer League action thus far, with Keels shooting just 3-18 through a couple of games.

However, Keels is young, physically strong, and considered a versatile player on both ends of the court, with a knack for making good decisions. He was also a highly-touted prospect entering college and was the third-leading scorer on a stacked Duke team that reached the Final Four of the NCAA tournament.

If Keels remains on a two-way deal for all of 2022/23, he’ll earn about $509K, be limited to 50 games in the regular season and ineligible for the postseason. He will need to be promoted to a standard contract at some in order to be playoff-eligible.

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Knicks Notes: Brunson, Keels, Grimes, Gibson

July 10th, 2022 at 8:50am CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks are expected to add Jalen Brunson via cap space rather than trying to work out a sign-and-trade deal with the Mavericks, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. Brunson agreed to a four-year, $104MM contract with New York shortly after the start of free agency on June 30. But the signing hasn’t been made official yet as the Knicks review their options on the best way to add him to the roster.

Marc Stein confirms that a signing using cap room is the most likely option (Twitter link), and a source tells him that Monday is probably the soonest it will happen.

Brunson played an important role in helping Dallas reach the Western Conference finals, but Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tells Steve Popper of Newsday there are “no hard feelings” about his departure. Cuban said he never got a chance to make a final offer, but acknowledged that it may not have mattered given Brunson’s close ties to the Knicks organization.

“I wish him nothing but the best,” Cuban said. “You bust your [butt] and you have that choice. He deserves it. It happens. It’s the way this league works. It’s a business. You trade a player, you say it’s a business. You lose a player, it’s a business. It’s just the way it goes.”

There’s more on the Knicks:

  • Trevor Keels, who’s expected to fill a two-way slot in New York, admits having “chills” before his first Summer League game, per Zach Braziller of The New York Post. After sliding to No. 42 in last month’s draft, Keels is determined to prove that he should have been taken higher. “I didn’t think I was going to [get drafted] that low. But it is what it is,” he said. “Of course, I’m going to make sure all the teams pay that passed up on me. But I’m excited I’m a Knick. I wouldn’t change it for anything.” 
  • Quentin Grimes had eight assists along with a team-high 24 points in the Summer League opener and has been working on becoming a better play-maker, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. For the second straight year, Grimes spent part of the offseason working with University of Memphis coach Penny Hardaway. “He’s kind of like a big uncle to me,” Grimes said. “Just took me under his wing and helped me play the point guard position a lot better. Because that’s what I was in high school.”
  • After waiving Taj Gibson this week, the Knicks were hoping to bring him back on a veteran’s minimum contract, but he believed he had a better chance at playing time with the Wizards, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv.
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Jericho Sims Signs Three-Year Deal With Knicks

July 7th, 2022 at 11:58am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 9, 9:03pm: The new deal with Sims is official, the Knicks announced (via Twitter).

JULY 7, 11:58am: Sims’ new three-year deal will be worth a little under $6MM, according to Katz (Twitter link). A three-year minimum contract would be worth $5.66MM, so if it’s above the minimum, it’s not by much.

Half the contract is currently guaranteed, Katz adds. There are trigger dates in 2023 and 2024 that would make years two and three fully guaranteed.

JULY 7, 11:39am: The Knicks will promote big man Jericho Sims to their standard roster, having agreed to terms with him on a new three-year contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Sims spent the 2021/22 season on a two-way deal.

The 58th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Sims played in 41 Knicks games as a rookie, averaging 2.2 PPG and 4.1 RPG in 13.5 minutes per contest. He moved into the team’s starting lineup for five games down the stretch, registering his first career double-double (10 points, 13 rebounds) during the last week of the season vs. Brooklyn.

While the Knicks are trading away Nerlens Noel, the team fortified its frontcourt by re-signing Mitchell Robinson and agreeing to a deal with Isaiah Hartenstein. Sims will provide additional depth up front.

Ian Begley of SNY.tv reported last month that the Knicks would likely negotiate a standard contract with Sims, clearing a path for second-rounder Trevor Keels to take the newly opened two-way slot. Fred Katz of The Athletic confirms (via Twitter) that Keels remains on track to get a two-way deal.

The exact terms of Sims’ new deal aren’t known, but it will likely be a minimum-salary contract or something close to it. The third year will be a team option, per Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link).

As Katz tweets, the Knicks will complete the signing using either some leftover cap room or part of their mid-level exception, depending on whether or not they end up turning their deal with Jalen Brunson into a sign-and-trade.

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