NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/21/18
Here are Wednesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA.
9:32pm:
- The Warriors have recalled guard Quinn Cook and center Damian Jones from their affiliate in Santa Cruz, tweets Monte Poole of NBC Bay Area.
- The Cavaliers have assigned center Ante Zizic to their Canton affiliate, the team announced on its website.
- The Jazz assigned center Tony Bradley to their affiliate in Salt Lake City, according to the team website.
4:05pm:
- The Rockets have assigned Zhou Qi and Chinanu Onuaku to their Rio Grande Valley affiliate, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.
- The Celtics have sent Guerschon Yabusele to their affiliate in Maine, the team announced on Twitter.
- The Raptors have assigned Alfonzo McKinnie and Malachi Richardson to the G League, according to a tweet from Raptors905.
Poll: Which Team Will Earn No. 1 Seed In East?
Like the Rockets in the Western Conference, the Raptors entered the All-Star break on a hot streak that allowed them to claim the No. 1 seed in the East. With Toronto on a seven-game winning streak and Boston having lost three in a row, the 41-16 Raps now have a two-game cushion on the 40-19 Celtics.
While the Raptors currently hold the top spot in the East, they’re not a lock to hang onto it the rest of the way. The Celtics figure to bounce back, particularly when Marcus Smart returns to their lineup. And the Cavaliers aren’t going anywhere either — after a midseason swoon, a series of deadline-day trades have revitalized the Cavs, who have won four in a row to increase their record to 34-22, 6.5 games back of Toronto.
It would take a major slump for the Raptors to give up a 6.5-game lead with just 25 to play, but if that slump happens, we probably shouldn’t rule out teams like the Wizards (33-24), Pacers (33-25), and Bucks (32-25) either. Still, those clubs are very long shots for the No. 1 seed. The race for the top spot in the East looks like it will come down to three teams — and possibly just two if the Cavs dug too deep a hole during the first half.
Unlike in the West, where the Rockets and Warriors have been just as successful on the road as at home, a pair of top Eastern contenders have been much better when they’ve had home-court advantage. The Raptors have an NBA-best 24-4 mark at home, compared to 17-12 on the road. The Cavs, meanwhile, are 20-7 in home games and having a losing record (14-15) as visitors. Claiming the No. 1 seed and gaining home-court advantage throughout the playoffs could be a huge factor for those teams.
What do you think? Will the Raptors hang onto the No. 1 seed? Will the Celtics reclaim it? Will the new-look Cavs go on a hot streak to get back in the race to the top? Vote below in our poll and then jump into the comment section to share your thoughts!
Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.
Afflalo Could Be Target If Bought Out
Arron Afflalo could be a target for the Raptors if he reaches a buyout agreement with the Magic, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports tweets. Afflalo played for the Nuggets when Raptors president Masai Ujiri was there, while current Magic president Jeff Weltman is Toronto’s former GM, Lewenberg notes. The career 38.6% 3-point shooter would give the Raptors some insurance at the wing, Lewenberg adds. Afflalo has appeared in 43 games with the Magic, averaging 3.2 PPG in 12.9 MPG. He signed with Orlando last summer on a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal.
Vince Carter Reunion Put On Hold For Rest Of Season
- The Raptors have put a possible Vince Carter reunion on hold for at least the rest of this season, Josh Lewenberg of TSN tweets. Reports last week indicated that Toronto had interest in potentially bringing Carter back, but the Kings prefer not to buy out the veteran forward.
Atlantic Notes: Okafor, Crabbe, Casey, Celtics
The Nets‘ acquisition of Jahlil Okafor signaled a change of scenery for a talented yet displaced player. With 24 games left in the season, however, the Nets seem to be wasting their opportunity to audition Okafor as a potential long-term commodity, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes.
Since being traded to Brooklyn, Okafor has appeared in 22 games while averaging 6.2 PPG and 3.0 PPG. Okafor’s playing time has been inconsistent, which makes it difficult to assess both his value and interest in retaining him beyond this season.
“Getting on the floor is very important,” Okafor said. “As a basketball player we all want to be on the court. My minutes have been fluctuating up and down, but the coaches say it’s nothing on my end.”
Head coach Kenny Atkinson noted that the team feels comfortable with 19-year-old Jarrett Allen playing at power forward with Okafor at center. As it stands, the team will have a decision to make in terms of Okafor’s playing time and future.
Check out other notes from the Atlantic Division:
- Nets shooting guard Allen Crabbe has been on a tear, averaging 25.3 PPG and 5.5 RPG over the team’s last four games. It has taken a while but Crabbe is finally playing and scoring the way the Nets hoped he would, Brian Lewis of the New York Post relays.
- Dwane Casey is headed to Los Angeles to coach Team LeBron this weekend, but his proudest accomplishment is entering the break with the Raptors wielding the best record in the Eastern Conference. Despite the improvements the franchise has enjoyed under Casey, there always seems to be a perception that the Raptors head coach is on the hot seat, Chris Mannix of Yahoo! Sports writes.
- After a rough stretch in which they’ve lost nine of their last 15 games, the Celtics may explore changing their lineup after the All-Star break, Chris Forsberg of ESPN writes.
Chris Bosh Still Hoping For NBA Comeback
1:03pm: ESPN has now posted a lengthier video of today’s First Take discussion with Bosh, which includes the former Heat and Raptors star addressing concerns about his health.
“Medicine is like law, I’ve come to find out,” Bosh said. “It’s a very gray area. Some people say yes, some people say no. Usually it’s about what the majority agrees to, and sometimes it’ll take somebody to have some revolutionary plan or something like that. I’m not going to be in a position where I’m risking my life, so if I ever get back on the court like that and people are worried, it’s not going to be a life-risking situation.”
Asked later in the discussion whether he hopes to make a comeback in 2018/19, Bosh said he hasn’t closed the door on returning this season. He also identified the Warriors, Rockets, and Raptors as teams that would interest him, and didn’t rule out the Cavaliers either.
11:57am: It has now been more than two years since Chris Bosh last played an NBA game, but the 11-time All-Star still hasn’t given up on the idea of resuming his playing career. Appearing on First Take (video link), Bosh told ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith today that he’s still making an effort to return to the NBA.
“I’ve been in the gym. I can still play basketball,” Bosh said. “No, I’m not done yet.”
Joking that he can’t call it a career when he sees how many current players are getting by shooting three-pointers and not playing defense, Bosh repeated a sentiment that he has expressed several times since his medical retirement. As recently as November, the former Heat star said he was keeping his options open as a player.
Although Bosh is still physically able to play basketball, concerns about his history of blood clots have made him medically ineligible to return to an NBA team. Doctors and teams have been unwilling to risk those blood clotting issues resurfacing.
Bosh last appeared in the NBA in 2015/16 for the Heat, averaging 19.1 PPG and 7.4 RPG in 53 games and earning an All-Star nod. He played his last game on February 9, 2016.
NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots
Now that the dust has settled on last Thursday’s trade-deadline deals and the first round of veteran buyouts and cuts has been completed, it’s worth taking stock of which NBA teams have the flexibility to add a player or two without waivers anyone else.
With the help of our roster counts page, which we update all season, here are the NBA teams with open spots on their 15-man rosters. Open two-way contract slots aren’t included here, since teams are ineligible to sign new two-way contracts at this point in the season.
Teams with a player on a 10-day contract filling their open spot:
- Phoenix Suns
- Utah Jazz
Both the Suns and Jazz have 14 players on fully guaranteed NBA contracts, leaving one potential opening. For now, Josh Gray is filling that 15th spot in Phoenix and Naz Mitrou-Long is doing the same in Utah. However, they’re only on 10-day contracts, so both of these teams could soon create an open spot if necessary.
Teams with one open spot:
- Charlotte Hornets
- Chicago Bulls
- Dallas Mavericks
- Indiana Pacers
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Note: The Pelicans currently have two open roster spots, but Emeka Okafor‘s second 10-day contract will fill one when it becomes official.
- New York Knicks
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Orlando Magic
- Sacramento Kings
- Toronto Raptors
The teams listed above represent a mix of playoff-bound squads and rebuilding non-contenders. Teams like the Bulls, Mavericks, and Knicks could use their open roster spots to take fliers on young players via 10-day contracts, while clubs like the Timberwolves, Thunder, and Raptors may be eyeing the buyout market for veterans who could fortify their respective benches.
Teams with two open spots:
- Atlanta Hawks
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Portland Trail Blazers
- Washington Wizards
NBA rules generally prohibit teams from carrying fewer than 14 players on their 15-man squads. However, clubs are permitted to dip to 13 – or even 12 – in special circumstances, as long as they get back up to 14 within two weeks. Roster moves made last week by the Hawks, Cavaliers, Trail Blazers, and Wizards left them below the limit, so they’ll each have to add at least one player by the end of the All-Star break.
Note: Roster info current as of Tuesday, February 13 at 2:00pm CT.
Raptors Assign Malachi Richardson To G League
- Newly-acquired Raptors shooting guard Malachi Richardson has been assigned to the G League, the team announced today (via Twitter). Richardson doesn’t figure to get much run for a Toronto team with a deep bench, but he should have a chance to play major minutes for the Raptors 905 against Maine on Monday night.
Raps Okay Flirting With Luxury Tax Next Season
- The Raptors figure to be active in the buyout market, Josh Lewenberg of TSN tweets. The scribe also notes, in a second tweet, that general manager Bobby Webster reiterated that the franchise is willing to dip into the luxury tax next season.
Traded Player Exceptions Created In Deadline Deals
Before NBA teams started reaching trade agreements on Thursday, we published the latest entry in our Hoops Rumors Glossary, focusing on the traded player exception. As we explain in our breakdown, the traded player exception can allow over-the-cap teams to receive more salary than they send out in “simultaneous” trades.
The more common form of traded player exception is the one generated in a “non-simultaneous” trade, when a team send out a single player and takes back less salary – or none at all – in return. The team then has one calendar year to use that newly-created exception to acquire one or more players whose salaries fit into that exception.
For instance, the Raptors created a $11,800,000 trade exception in last July’s DeMarre Carroll trade with the Nets, meaning that on Thursday they could have acquired a player earning, say, $11MM without sending out any salary in return.
Not many teams took advantage of their outstanding trade exceptions on Thursday, but at least a couple teams appear to have completed trades with previously existing trade exceptions, or with disabled player exceptions. Nearly every trade completed on Thursday also generated at least one new trade exception, so we’ll round up those newly-created TPEs below.
With the help of tweets from cap experts Albert Nahmad and Bobby Marks, along with information from RealGM’s official transactions log, here’s a breakdown of the new TPEs, sorted by value. Not all of these exceptions have been confirmed with 100% certainty, but this is what we believe they’ll look like. These TPEs will expire if they’re not used by February 8, 2019:
- Utah Jazz: $3,708,883 (Joe Johnson to Kings)
- Portland Trail Blazers: $3,505,233 (Noah Vonleh to Bulls)
- Memphis Grizzlies: $3,028,410 (James Ennis to Pistons)
- Note: If the Grizzlies didn’t use their existing $3.4MM TPE to absorb Brice Johnson‘s salary, this TPE would instead be worth $1,697,250.
- Toronto Raptors: $2,451,225 (Bruno Caboclo to Kings)
- Utah Jazz: $2,386,864 (Rodney Hood to Cavs)
- New Orleans Pelicans: $2,300,000 (Dante Cunningham to Nets)
- Brooklyn Nets: $1,889,040 (Rashad Vaughn to Pelicans)
- Cleveland Cavaliers: $1,471,382 (Dwyane Wade to Heat)
- Detroit Pistons: $1,471,382 (Willie Reed to Bulls)
- Los Angeles Lakers: $1,471,382 (Larry Nance to Cavs)
- Chicago Bulls: $1,429,818 (Jameer Nelson to Pistons)
- Detroit Pistons: $1,331,160 (Brice Johnson to Grizzlies)
- Miami Heat: $1,312,611 (Okaro White to Hawks)
- Washington Wizards: $1,312,611 (Sheldon Mac to Hawks)
- Dallas Mavericks: $1,107,552 (Devin Harris to Nuggets)
- Note: This TPE is not listed by RealGM.
Our list of outstanding traded player exceptions has been updated, and will be adjusted if necessary once we’re able to confirm all the TPEs listed above.
If you have any corrections or questions, please let us know in the comment section.