Will Cherry

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Anthony, Karasev

The Raptors are strong favorites to repeat as Atlantic Division champs, as Hoops Rumors readers asserted last month, a feat that would be a first in franchise history. It’s easy for forget that a year ago, the team was on the verge of a tear-down as new GM Masai Ujiri was unsure about just what he had on the roster. The Raptors didn’t make any superstar additions in between now and then, and their sudden success story is a model that many other front offices would certainly like to duplicate. While we wait to see if Toronto can keep it up, here’s more on the Raptors and their rivals in the Atlantic Division:

  • The Raptors aren’t ready to commit to any of the three players seemingly competing for the final spot on the team’s regular season roster, coach Dwane Casey said, as Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun details. “We’re not in a hurry whatsoever,” Casey said. “All three men have done an excellent job in practice. Will Cherry is as tough a little competitor as you can find. Jordan Hamilton is a great scorer and really fighting on the defensive end and Greg Stiemsma is a solid, solid big man, veteran big man who has done some great things in the post. It may go down to the wire, the last day of camp because those guys have deserved it.”
  • Joel Anthony certainly had plenty of financial incentive when he opted into his $3.8MM salary this season, but he maintains that money wasn’t his primary motivation to stick with the Celtics, as Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald notes. “It was about wanting to get an opportunity to come into camp and get a chance to prove myself and get on the court,” Anthony said. “This was the best opportunity I had. I don’t know what would have happened in free agency or whatnot, but I just felt that coming back to the team after being here the last three months and knowing the coaches and knowing the players and everything like that, this was what was best for me. It just seemed like a better situation for me to come back here.”
  • The Nets had the chance to acquire a pair of second-round picks in this summer’s three-team trade with the Cavs and Celtics, but they insisted that they receive Sergey Karasev instead, NetsDaily’s Robert Windrem tweets.

Contract Details: Clarkson, Young, Powell

Eric Pincus has once more updated his Basketball Insiders salary pages, and included in his changes are a few tidbits of previously unreported news on players who’ve signed this summer. We’ll pass along those items here:

  • The two-year deal that Jerrelle Benimon signed with the Nuggets is for the minimum salary and is partially guaranteed for $35K this season, while his 2015/16 salary is non-guaranteed, Pincus reports (Twitter link).
  • The Blazers gave Diante Garrett a $30K guarantee in the first year of his two-year minimum salary deal, but the second year is non-guaranteed, Pincus notes on Twitter.
  • Patric Young‘s two-year deal with the Pelicans is a minimum-salary arrangement that’s partially guaranteed for $55K this season, but it’s otherwise non-guaranteed, Pincus notes (Twitter link). Darius Miller‘s deal with the team is partially guaranteed for $400K this year but otherwise non-guaranteed, Pincus adds.
  • Both Will Cherry‘s and Jordan Hamilton‘s salaries are guaranteed for $25K for the 2014/15 season, Pincus tweets, adding that Hamilton’s pact is for the minimum. The Raptors signed Cherry to a two-year minimum salary deal, and Hamilton to a one-year arrangement. Cherry’s salary for 2015/16 is non-guaranteed, Pincus adds.
  • Dwight Powell‘s deal with the Cavaliers is fully guaranteed for the first season, with the second year non-guaranteed, Pincus reports (Twitter link). The contract covers just those two seasons, as Pincus notes.
  • The Spurs‘ two-year deal with JaMychal Green is for the minimum salary and has a $60K guarantee for this coming season, Pincus reports (Twitter link). It’s non-guaranteed for 2015/16, according to Pincus.
  • Sim Bhullar‘s deal is for one year and comes with a guarantee of $35K, while Eric Moreland‘s three-year contract is guaranteed for $200K this coming season and is otherwise non-guaranteed, Pincus notes (Twitter link). Both players are with the Kings, and, according to Pincus, make the minimum.
  • The two-year, minimum-salary deal that Jordan Clarkson signed with the Lakers is fully guaranteed for this coming season, but the 2015/16 season is non-guaranteed, Pincus reports (Twitter link).

Raptors Sign Will Cherry

SUNDAY: The signing is official, the team has announced via press release. The exact terms were not disclosed.

WEDNESDAY: The Raptors have agreed in principle to sign Will Cherry to a two-year minimum deal, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). It had been previously reported that both Toronto and the Cavaliers were interested in the guard’s services. Cherry went undrafted out of Montana in 2013, and he wasn’t in an NBA training camp last fall.

The 6’1″ 23-year-old averaged 12.8 PPG and 4.0 RPG while logging  25.3 minutes per contest in five games for the Cavs Summer League team in Las Vegas. Cherry also played for the Cavs’ D-League affiliate last season, when he provided 11.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, and 4.5 APG in 30.4 MPG.

The Raptors currently have 13 guaranteed contracts on their roster and Cherry will provide depth in the backcourt, primarily behind Kyle Lowry and Greivis Vasquez at the point guard position.

Cavs, Raptors Eye Will Cherry

Will Cherry‘s strong summer league showing for the Cavs this month has Cleveland strongly considering a more substantial arrangement with the free agent guard, and the Raptors also have serious interest in him, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). It appears as though the teams are envisioning him as a training camp invitee, though it’s conceivable he could wind up with at least a partial guarantee, given the competition for his services.

The 6’1″ 23-year-old averaged 12.8 points and 4.0 rebounds in 25.3 minutes per game in five appearances for the summer Cavs in Las Vegas. Cleveland is also familiar with Cherry from his work for its D-League affiliate last season, when he notched 11.6 PPG and 3.7 RPG in 30.4 MPG. He also dished out 4.5 assists per contests in his time with the Cavs affiliate.

Cherry went undrafted out of Montana in 2013, and he wasn’t in an NBA camp last fall. The Raptors have 13 guaranteed contracts and the Cavs have only 12, but Cleveland’s roster is in flux as a potential Kevin Love trade looms, leaving it uncertain whether Cherry would have a better shot in Cleveland or Toronto.

Draft Workout Updates: Thursday

We're now just three weeks away from the 2013 draft, so teams are busy bringing in prospects to meet with them and work them out, while we do our best to keep tabs on as many of those workouts as we can. Here's the latest:

  • Tom Housenick of The Morning Call reported that C.J. McCollum will visit Portland at some point for a workout before June 20th.
  • Chris Haynes of CSNNW tweets that Trevor Mbakwe will visit the Trail Blazers tomorrow. 
  • The Kings released a list of players who have worked out for them via their team website, noting that guards Will CherryTravis Releford, Brandon Triche, forward Chris Evans, and centers Rudy Gobert and Aziz N'Diaye took part in workouts this past Monday. Former Michigan star Trey Burke is scheduled to come in tomorrow. 
  • The Wizards plan to bring in C.J. Aiken, Junior Cadougan, Ella Ellis, Lamont Jones, A.J. Matthews, and Mike Muscala in for Friday workouts, as per the team's official website
  • Jody Genessy of the Deseret News tweets that Steven Adams, Jack Cooley, Richard Howell, Kenny Kadji, Dennis Schroeder, and Peyton Siva are all scheduled for a pre-draft workout with the Jazz on Friday. 

Earlier updates:

  • Mason Plumlee, Shabazz Muhammad, Kelly Olynyk, Norvel Pelle, and Scott Wood worked out for the Sixers today, tweets Tyler R. Tynes of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
  • Plumlee will also work out for the Trail Blazers on June 19th and for the Pistons on June 21st, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com and Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link).
  • Michael Lee of the Washington Post reports that Otto Porter will work out for the Wizards on June 14th.
  • The Timberwolves expect to bring in C.J. McCollum for a workout, says Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (via Twitter).
  • Working out for the Suns today, according to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (via Twitter): McCollum, Trey Burke, Michael Carter-Williams, Mouhammadou Jaiteh, Shane Larkin, Zeke Marshall, and Korie Lucious.
  • Gorgui Dieng's agent confirms that his client will work out for both the Nets and Knicks, as Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com details.
  • The Grizzlies announced in a press release that James Southerland, Will Clyburn, B.J. Young, Dewayne Dedmon, Colton Iverson, and Sherwood Brown will work out for the club tomorrow.
  • The Knicks will work out the following prospects tomorrow, per the team's Twitter feed: Ricky Ledo, Tahj Tate, Adonis Thomas, Christian Watford, Tony Mitchell, and Grant Jerrett.
  • Jeff Withey worked out for the Bulls yesterday, according to Aggrey Sam of CSNChicago.com (via Twitter).