Hilton Armstrong To Play In Turkey
Former NBA lottery pick Hilton Armstrong has a deal with Besiktas of Turkey, agent Misko Raznatovic tweets (hat tip to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). The Warriors waived Armstrong last week just before his non-guaranteed salary for the coming season was to become fully guaranteed.
The 29-year-old is returning overseas, where he spent parts of 2011/12 and 2012/13 before briefly reviving his NBA career with Golden State this past season. The 12th overall pick in the 2006 NBA draft played in France and Greece, and he’s also seen time in the D-League over the past few years. His 15 games with the Warriors last season represented his only NBA regular season action since the 2011 lockout.
Armstrong isn’t the only highly drafted former NBA player heading to Besiktas this summer. Former Celtics power forward and 2011 27th overall selection JaJuan Johnson also hooked up with the club, according to Mark Porcaro of Secret Rival.
Cavs Sign Mike Miller
5:53pm: The team has followed with an official announcement.
AUGUST 5TH, 5:32pm: The team still hasn’t made a formal announcement, but the signing has taken place, according to Pincus (Twitter link). It’s for two years and $5.6MM and it includes a 15% trade kicker, according to Pincus, who confirms that it indeed features a player option for the final season.
JULY 15TH: Mike Miller has agreed to join the Cavs on a two-year deal with a player option for the final season, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s for a total of $5.5MM, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter), though Broussard says the Nuggets and Rockets offered more. Miller had been torn between Denver and Cleveland, as Wojnarowski reported earlier this afternoon (Twitter link). The Cavs are likely using their room exception on the sharpshooting swingman, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.
The Arn Tellem client was reportedly near a deal with the Nuggets when LeBron James decided to return to the Cavaliers, which allowed Miller a chance to play with James again. Miller was ineligible to sign with the Heat, since his previous contract with Miami, which the Heat amnestied, ran through next season. James had apparently reached out to Miller to see if he would be interested in joining him were he to leave the Heat this summer.
The Grizzlies, Clippers, Thunder, Blazers and Mavs were other teams reportedly interested in the 34-year-old, who showed this past season that his body is still capable of handling the rigors of the NBA. He played in all 82 games for the first time since he was a rookie, giving Memphis a valuable shooter in reserve. His 45.9% accuracy from behind the arc was the second-best mark of his career.
Miller’s camp appeared to try to ward off the possibility that the Cavs would claim him off amnesty waivers last summer by advancing talk about back surgery, but now Miller is willingly taking a discount to go to Cleveland, in a twist of events.
Cavs Sign James Jones
AUGUST 5TH: The signing is official, the team announced via its website.
JULY 16TH: The Cavs have struck a one-year deal with James Jones for the minimum salary, a source tells Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link). That means another ex-Heat teammate of LeBron James is headed to Cleveland. It’s unclear if the contract will be guaranteed.
Cleveland had been pursuing Jones, a favorite of LeBron’s, in conjunction with Mike Miller soon after it signed the four-time MVP. Cavs GM David Griffin also convinced Miller to take a discount to come to Cleveland, the same place he was reluctant to go last year, and now it seems the team will focus on its attempt to convince Ray Allen, also late of the Heat, to move north.
The Warriors, Wizards, Pelicans and Heat all made offers to the 33-year-old Jones, but LeBron’s recruiting effort led the Miami native to choose the Cavs instead, according to TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). Jones spent the past six seasons with Miami, never averaging more than 19.1 minutes per game, but his 4.9 points per contest this past season represents his second-highest scoring average in a Heat uniform. The Joel Bell client also serves as the secretary/treasurer for the players union.
Spurs Name Becky Hammon Assistant Coach
Becky Hammon has become just the second woman to hold a formal NBA assistant coaching position, as the Spurs announced in a press release today that they’ve hired her for their staff. Lisa Boyer was on the Cavs bench in 2001/02. Natalie Nakase served as an assistant coach in the summer league with the Clippers this year.
“I very much look forward to the addition of Becky Hammon to our staff,” Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich said in the team’s statement. “Having observed her working with our team this past season, I’m confident her basketball IQ, work ethic and interpersonal skills will be a great benefit to the Spurs.”
Hammon will team with fellow Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, who joined the staff earlier this summer in an unusual, though not unprecedented, jump from overseas. David Blatt became the first coach to go from leading an overseas club to a head coaching position in the NBA when the Cavs hired him in June. The NBA also broke ground this year when the Nets signed Jason Collins, who became the first openly gay male athlete in the NBA, NFL or Major League Baseball.
The Spurs made Hammon an unofficial coaching intern of sorts this past season when she accepted their invitation for her to shadow the coaching staff during games, practices and meetings, as Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News detailed in February. The 37-year-old Hammon is in her final season as a WNBA player as she wraps up a 16-year career in the league. She’s spent the past eight summers as a member of the WNBA’s San Antonio Silver Stars, who fall under the same ownership umbrella as the Spurs.
Moore Puts Off Italy Deal Amid NBA Interest
TUESDAY, 11:41am: Two NBA teams have entered the mix, prompting Moore to hold off on signing with Olimpia Milano, Carchia reports. Moore went past the Monday deadline the Italian team had set for him to sign, and the club has begun to search for alternatives, as Carchia details. However, the team still hopes that Moore will ink his deal, Carchia tweets.
MONDAY, 3:43pm: Former Magic guard E’Twaun Moore will sign a one-year deal with Olimpia Milano of Italy, Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia reports. Fellow Sportando scribe Enea Trapani reported last week that the club had interest. The value of the deal isn’t immediately clear.
The Magic decided against a qualifying offer for the 25-year-old, and it appears he didn’t generate enough interest from other NBA teams as an unrestricted free agent to keep him from going overseas. That’s somewhat surprising, given that Moore was a part of Orlando’s rotation the past two seasons, averaging 7.1 points in 20.7 minutes per game over the course of his time with the Magic. It’s possible that Olimpia Milano’s offer was especially lucrative, though that’s just my speculation.
Moore has experience in Italy, having played for Benetton Treviso during the 2011 lockout, as Carchia notes. The Mark Bartelstein client joins a group of several other notable NBA free agents who’ve found deals overseas this summer, as our Free Agent Tracker shows.
Jan Vesely Signs To Play In Turkey
AUGUST 5TH: The deal is official, the team announced. Carchia’s translation refers to it as a two-year arrangement.
JULY 28TH: Vesely is set to head to Turkey to take a physical exam for Fenerbahce, Carchia reports.
JULY 19TH: Jan Vesely is close to signing a deal with Fenerbahce Ulker of the Turkish Basketball League, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Vesely, 24, finished last season playing for the Nuggets after a deadline deal sent him packing from the Wizards.
It’ll be a three-year pact with a player option on the final season, adds Carchia (on Twitter), who doesn’t specify whether or not there’ll be any sort of NBA opt-out clause. Vesely reportedly had fans in the Denver organization, but it’s unknown whether or not the two sides tried to work out a deal to bring the big man back to the Nuggets.
It was quiet around Vesely’s camp this summer, as evidenced by the lack of activity found on the former lottery pick’s rumor page. After being selected sixth overall in the 2011 draft, Vesely failed to meet expectations and was never able to crack a nightly average of at least 20 MPG.
Lamar Patterson Signs With Turkish Team
The 48th overall pick in this year’s draft is headed overseas, as Lamar Patterson has signed with Tofas Bursa of Turkey, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). The Hawks acquired the rights to Patterson on draft night, sending their 2015 second-round pick to the Bucks in exchange. The terms aren’t immediately clear, and whether the deal includes any sort of NBA escape clause is unknown.
“Lamar is in a good position to continue his development while playing meaningful minutes for a strong professional program next season,” Hawks GM Danny Ferry said in a statement from the team. “We have a great respect for the international game and will be closely monitoring Lamar’s progress with Tofas.”
The 22-year-old shooting guard acknowledged the chance that he would head overseas but indicated a preference for signing with the Hawks when he spoke last month with Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Patterson expressed excitement about the deal with Tofas Bursa while maintaining that his goal is to eventually play for Atlanta in his comments as part of the statement from the Hawks. It appears that the Hawks are content to stash both of their 2014 second-rounders overseas, since Edy Tavares, whom Atlanta drafted 43rd overall, is reportedly likely to stay with his team in Spain. Still, the Hawks brought 2013 second-round pick Mike Muscala aboard in the middle of last season, so there’s precedent for Atlanta to sign Patterson or Tavares before next summer.
Patterson averaged just 6.0 points in 25.3 minutes per game across six summer league appearances in July for Atlanta, but he was an all-around threat as a senior for the University of Pittsburgh this year. He notched 17.1 PPG in 32.6 MPG while also putting up 4.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists per contest with 38.8% three-point shooting in his final campaign for the Panthers.
James Anderson Signs To Play In Lithuania
Free agent swingman James Anderson has officially signed a one-year contract with Zalgiris Kaunas of Lithuania, the Euroleague announced. The move is somewhat surprising, since the former 20th overall pick was a significant part of the Sixers roster last season, having started 62 games. Tolis Kotzias of the Greek news outlet SportDay originally reported the news (Twitter link).
The 20th overall pick from 2010 departs the NBA after his strongest season in the league. He averaged 10.1 points and 3.8 rebounds in 28.9 minutes per game for Philadelphia, though his 10.9 PER demonstrates a lack of efficiency. Anderson had difficulty establishing a toehold in the league, as the Spurs declined the third-year team option on his rookie scale contract and his next two deals were minimum-salary arrangements. The Sixers acquired him when they claimed him off waivers from the Rockets last summer, but Philadelphia waived him in June before his minimum salary for the coming season would have become fully guaranteed.
The deal to play in Lithuania is the first overseas venture for the ASM Sports client. It’s unclear whether the contract will allow Anderson, 25, an avenue to return to the NBA at any point this season.
Vasilije Micic To Play In Germany
AUGUST 4TH: The deal is official, as Bayern Munich announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). It’s a three-year contract with an option for the final season, though it’s not entirely clear whether that’s a team option or a player option. The team also apparently makes no mention of an NBA buyout that would allow Micic to join the Sixers next summer.
JULY 21ST: Micic told Aco Lazarević of MVP.rs that the deal isn’t quite done yet, though he confirms he’s in the process of finalizing it (translations via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia and Orazio Cauchi of Sportando, on Twitter).
JULY 15TH: Sixers second-round draft pick Vasilije Micic has an agreement to play for Bayern Munich in Germany, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). The Serbian point guard was the 52nd selection in this year’s draft.
Remaining overseas was the likely outcome for the 20-year-old, who’s played the past few seasons with KK Mega Vizura in his native Serbia. Philadelphia will have no shortage of rookies for the coming season, even without No. 10 overall pick Dario Saric, who’ll also stay in Europe.
Metta World Peace, Chinese Team Agree To Deal
MONDAY, 7:55am: World Peace took to Twitter to confirm the deal, posting a photo of what appears to be him next to Blue Whales officials, set to put pen to paper on a contract.
FRIDAY, 10:01am: Multiple sources tell David Pick of Eurobasket.com that World Peace’s contract will only be worth $700K (Twitter link).
THURSDAY, 2:40pm: The deal is worth $1.43MM, according to Shams Charania of RealGM. It’s indeed for just one season, and World Peace will look for work in the NBA once it’s done, Charania hears (Twitter links).
11:18am: Free agent forward Metta World Peace has an agreement in principle with the Sichuan Blue Whales of the Chinese Basketball Association, the team’s GM confirms to Sina.com (hat tip to Sportando’s Enea Trapani). It’s a $1.3MM arrangement, according to Trapani. Presumably it covers one season. Ian Begley of ESPN.com wrote earlier this week that the sides had been close to a deal.
The Knicks had been thinking about giving World Peace an invitation to training camp, and the 34-year-old has expressed regret about buying out his contract with New York last season before the team hired Phil Jackson as president. The Marc Cornstein client had also been eyeing the Lakers and the Clippers, but it didn’t seem like those teams reciprocated that interest.
The deal with Sichuan will give him slightly less than the $1,448,490 he would have made on a veteran’s minimum deal with an NBA team, but his Chinese salary appears to be guaranteed. Going to China will also probably give World Peace the chance to return to the NBA for the stretch run, since China’s season ends as early as February.
World Peace put up career lows in several categories thanks to a drastic cut in minutes this past season. He averaged just 13.4 minutes per game compared to 33.7 in 2012/13, which helps to explain why he engineered the buyout.