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Celtics Re-Sign Chris Johnson

February 6th, 2014 at 12:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 5:54pm: A multi-year contract with Johnson has been announced through a team press release.

WEDNESDAY, 12:29pm: Negotiations continue between the Celtics and Johnson, and Boston is considering attaching an extra season onto the deal, reports Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald. Johnson’s agent, Marc Cornstein, tells Murphy that other teams have shown interest in his client.

10:00am: The Celtics plan to give swingman Chris Johnson a deal for the rest of the season when his second 10-day contract expires after tonight, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Johnson has impressed the C’s during his stint with the club, but Boston was unsure about keeping him because of its proximity to the luxury tax.

The 23-year-old Pinnacle Management Corp. client jumped into Boston’s rotation in his first appearance after signing his initial 10-day deal, and averaged 7.6 points in 21.5 minutes per game while shooting 40.0% from three-point range. He had his shortest outing as a Celtic last night against the Sixers, playing slightly more than three minutes, but he’s apparently done enough to convince the team to keep him.

Boston is roughly $1MM away from the luxury tax threshold, and the addition of a minimum-salary deal for the rest of the season for Johnson would draw the team $353,717 closer to that $71.748MM line if the contract begins Friday. It would also give the C’s a 14th guaranteed contract, meaning they could only absorb one extra player in a deadline deal.

Othyus Jeffers To Rejoin D-League

February 5th, 2014 at 12:46pm CST by Chuck Myron

Recent Spurs 10-day signee Othyus Jeffers will return to the D-League’s Iowa Energy, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM.com. The Spurs terminated their deal with Jeffers a day early this past weekend so they could sign Shannon Brown. Jeffers has spent part of five of the last six seasons with the Energy, who retain his D-League rights.

The 28-year-old appeared in four games and even started one for injury-hit San Antonio, taking just five shots and scoring seven points in 34 total minutes. Jeffers has otherwise experienced his best season in the D-League this year, setting career highs of 22.8 points and 11.4 rebounds per game.

Charania suggests part of Jeffers’ motivation for heading back to the D-League is his desire to stay on the radar of NBA teams. Given his extensive D-League resume and lack of international experience, the move is no surprise.

Pelicans Sign Luke Babbitt

February 4th, 2014 at 11:43am CST by Cray Allred

TUESDAY, 11:43am: The Pelicans have officially announced the signing.

SATURDAY, 12:28pm: The deal is for two years, according to Chris Haynes of Comcast SportsNet (via Twitter).

10:04am: The Pelicans have a “done deal” with Luke Babbitt, per a tweet from Serbian journalist Djordje Matic. The Pelicans were reportedly close to adding Babbitt earlier in the week, but Russian team BC Nizhny Novgorod was stifling the process.

Babbitt spent three years with the Portland Trail Blazers before heading to Russia this year in hopes of proving his game to the NBA by playing more minutes for an overseas team. The 24-year-old forward has never averaged more than 5.1 points or 13.4 minutes per game, being used almost exclusively as a three-point specialist. He shot a career-best .430 from deep in 2011/12 before taking a step back statistically last year with decreases in field goal percentage, free throw percentage, rebounds, and minutes.

Grizzlies Sign Darius Morris To 10-Day Deal

February 3rd, 2014 at 11:10am CST by Zachary Links

MONDAY, 11:10am: The Grizzlies have signed Morris to a 10-day contract, according to a press release from the team

SUNDAY, 9:29pm: Darius Morris is meeting with Grizzlies coaches tonight in Oklahoma City and is expected to sign a 10-day deal with Memphis tomorrow, according to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal (via Twitter). Morris saw his second 10-day deal with the Clippers expire towards the end of January.

The Grizzlies worked Morris out in December after Quincy Pondexter was lost to injury so they have some level of familiarity with the guard. The 23-year-old appeared in 10 games for the Clippers averaging 5.4 MPG with 0.9 PPG and 0.5 APG.

If Morris puts pen to paper with the Grizzlies, it’ll be his fourth NBA stop in just two years. Morris has also seen stints with the Lakers and Sixers over the last two seasons.

Spurs Sign Brown To 10-Day, Release Jeffers

February 1st, 2014 at 10:37am CST by Cray Allred

The Spurs have signed Shannon Brown to a 10-day contract, per a team press release. Othyus Jeffers has been let go in conjunction with the addition of Brown. Brown figures to add depth to their depleted guard rotation. The Spurs have suffered a litany of injuries lately, with Kawhi Leonard, Manu Ginobili, Danny Green, and Tiago Splitter all missing extended time. Brown has played for five teams over his nine-year career, and hadn’t played anywhere this year after being traded to the Wizards from the Suns, and promptly released. He was reportedly considering joining a team in China over continuing his NBA career, but has opted for this route in San Antonio, where coach Gregg Popovich has consistently given role players opportunities to maximize their skills and contribute.

Jeffers’ 10-day contract wasn’t set to expire until this coming Sunday night, as our 10-day contract tracker shows. The 28-year-old shooting guard has struggled to stay in the league, spending more time in the D-League over his six-year career than on NBA teams.

Hawks Sign Cartier Martin To 10-Day Contract

February 1st, 2014 at 9:51am CST by Cray Allred

5:11pm: The Hawks have officially announced the signing, via Twitter.

9:51am: After letting go of James Nunnally at the end of his second 10-day contract, the Hawks are now adding small forward Cartier Martin on a short-term deal, according Shams Charania of RealGM. Martin recently played out consecutive 10-day contracts with the Bulls, who declined to extend him for the rest of the year.

Martin was released by the Hawks earlier this season, then performed well in his limited time with the Bulls, shooting over 60% from both the three and the floor overall. In his six seasons, the Andrew Vye client has career averages of 5.4 points and 2.0 rebounds on 14.4 minutes per game.

Pacers Sign Andrew Bynum

February 1st, 2014 at 9:22am CST by Cray Allred

UPDATE, 10:26am: Bynum’s contract is worth $1MM and will run through the rest of the season, per a tweet from USA TODAY’s Sam Amick. Indiana is using part of its mid-level exception to accommodate this salary, since $1MM is more than a prorated minimum salary would allow for Bynum.

Team president Larry Bird and head coach Frank Vogel both spoke with reporters about the deal. Bird said the idea that the perception that the move was to keep Bynum away from the Heat is “about the dumbest thing I ever heard. We dont have money like that,” according to a tweet from Stefan Bondy of New York Daily News. Vogel said he believes it will be weeks before Bynum actually plays, per another tweet from Candace Buckner of the Indy Star.

9:22am: Andrew Bynum has officially joined the Pacers, per the team’s press release this morning. The contract covers the remainder of the season. Larry Bird is quoted as saying, “He gives us added size, he is a skilled big man and he has championship experience. With the minutes he gets, he should be a valuable addition.” News of his meeting with the team broke yesterday, and the move is perceived by many to be as much about keeping Bynum off of a competitor’s roster as it is about improving Indiana’s.

The Pacers had been rumored as a potential landing spot for Bynum, but weren’t seen as the favorites until yesterday. Bynum will back up all-star center Roy Hibbert.

After winning two championships with the Lakers, the supremely talented 7-footer’s career has turned into a whirlwind. He was dealt to Philadelphia in the Dwight Howard blockbuster of 2012, but he never played a minute for the Sixers due to chronic knee issues and setbacks. The client of agent David Lee signed a unique, partially guaranteed contract with the Cavs this offseason, and had limited success in a small dose of minutes. His frustration with that situation led to his suspension and trade to the Bulls for Luol Deng. Chicago immediately cut him as a cap-saving maneuver to duck under the tax.

Since then, lukewarm interest has come from many rumored teams, but concerns over Bynum’s commitment to the game and his reported preferences — to make more than the minimum veteran’s salary, and compete for a title, and receive plenty of playing time — kept him a free agent for nearly a month.

Daequan Cook Signs To Play In Germany

January 30th, 2014 at 9:23am CST by Chuck Myron

Six-year NBA veteran Daequan Cook has signed a deal with Walter Tigers Tübingen of Germany, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). It’s not clear whether the contract includes an escape clause in case an NBA team comes calling. The 26-year-old has appeared in at least part of every NBA season since he was drafted 21st overall in 2007, but that streak is in jeopardy.

Cook didn’t draw significant NBA interest in the summer and wasn’t on a preseason roster. The client of BDA Sports Management latched on with Budivelnyk Kyiv of Ukraine in November, but the club let him go in December after he averaged 6.9 points per game and shot just 28.6% from three-point range in a total of eight appearances. That’s the same percentage of three-pointers the one-time long-range marksman hit in the NBA last season, which he split between the Rockets and the Bulls. His long-range shooting was once his calling card, as he drained 42.2% of his three-point attempts in 2010/11 with the Thunder, two seasons after winning the three-point contest during All-Star Weekend.

The 6’5″ swingman started 22 games for the 2011/12 Thunder, a team that went to the NBA Finals, so it’s been a precipitous decline. Still, if he can rediscover his outside shot while in Germany, it seems he has a decent shot of returning to the NBA, if not this season, then next.

Tyshawn Taylor Acquired By Maine Red Claws

January 29th, 2014 at 8:59pm CST by Eddie Scarito

After being waived recently by the Pelicans, Tyshawn Taylor has been claimed off waivers by the Maine Red Claws, according to Gino Pilato of D-League Digest.com. Taylor will play in the NBA D-League with the Celtics’ affiliate. Taylor has averaged 21.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 6.8 assists in 10 career NBA D-League games (two games this season and eight games last season). He had also spent time with the Nets this season, where he appeared in 29 games, averaging 3.9 points and 1.6 assists in 11.7 minutes per game.

The D-League will probably be a better place for the Jeff Schwartz client than heading overseas to play, since it might be his best chance to try and showcase what he has to offer, especially if Taylor hopes to land a 10-day contract this season. Taylor is also still collecting his NBA paychecks, as his salary of $788,872 was fully guaranteed for the year.

Royal Ivey To Sign With Chinese Team

January 29th, 2014 at 9:02am CST by Chuck Myron

TUESDAY, 9:02am: Ivey will play with the Guangdong Southern Tigers, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.

MONDAY, 8:58am: The Thunder’s reunion with guard Royal Ivey was brief, as the 32-year-old is accepting an offer from a Chinese team and won’t sign another 10-day contract with Oklahoma City, reports Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. The 10-day deal he signed with the Thunder on January 16th expired after Saturday’s win against the 76ers.

Ivey appeared in only two games for a total of five minutes in his latest stint with Oklahoma City. The Harlem native also played for the Thunder during the 2010/11 and 2011/12 seasons. The Thunder had ostensibly brought back Ivey to provide depth in the wake of Russell Westbrook‘s injury, though it doesn’t appear they needed to call on Ivey for any significant playing time. It’s unclear whether Oklahoma City had any interest in bringing him back on a second 10-day deal.

Slater doesn’t say which Chinese team Ivey is joining, but he could be eligible to return to the NBA as early as next month if his team in China fails to make the playoffs. Regardless of which Chinese team he signs with, the Jim Tanner client will have a shot at returning to American soil before the NBA regular season is over.