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Delonte West Signs With Chinese Team

October 1st, 2013 at 6:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Delonte West has signed a one-year deal with Fujian of China, according to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com (on Twitter). The guard last played in the NBA in 2011/12 when he was with the Mavs.

The 30-year-old averaged 9.6 PPG, 3.2 APG, and 1.3 SPG in a shade over 24 minutes a night in that last go-round with Dallas. West would obviously like to make his way back to the NBA this season and the shortened season in the CBA will allow him to sign a mid-season deal here in the states – provided that a team wants him.

Talent doesn't appear to be the issue with West but behavior certainly is. After being cut by the Mavericks for his off-court activity in training camp last fall, West lasted just eight games with the D-League's Texas Legends for being late to practice. The Knicks and Grizzlies had some level of interest in West earlier this summer, but things never seemed to develop. West even made it known that he'd take a non-guaranteed deal and still didn't get an NBA opportunity.

In eight seasons with the Celtics, Sonics, Cavs, and Mavericks, West averaged 9.7 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 3.6 APG, and 1.1 SPG. As always, you can keep track of deals all around the globe with Hoops Rumors' International Player Movement Tracker.

Lester Hudson Joins Jazz For Camp

October 1st, 2013 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz have finalized their roster for camp by adding a 20th player, the maximum allowed before the regular season gets underway. The 20th man on the preseason roster is free agent guard Lester Hudson, according to the team (via Twitter).

Hudson, 29, has played parts of three NBA seasons with the Celtics, Wizards, Cavs, and Grizzlies (twice). The 6'3" guard didn't play in an NBA regular season game last season, but had a successful stint with the Dongguan Leopards in China, for whom he averaged 27.5 PPG in 15 contests. Hudson worked out for the Knicks earlier this summer, and reportedly looked very impressive at a May D-League camp in Chicago.

Despite having 20 players on the training camp roster, the Jazz are only carrying 12 players on fully guaranteed contracts. Ian Clark, who has a $200K guarantee, looks like a decent bet to make the team as well. If he does, that would leave two potential openings for the likes of Hudson, Brian Cook, Mike Harris, Justin Holiday, Dwayne Jones, Scott Machado, and Dominic McGuire.

It had been reported that Weber State product Nick Covington would also be in camp with the Jazz, but with 20 players on board, it doesn't appear there's any room for him in Utah at the moment. It's not clear whether the Jazz opted not to sign Covington or whether he's still in their plans in some form, but for now, the club will move forward without him on the roster.

Pelicans Add Rodney Carney To Camp Roster

October 1st, 2013 at 11:50am CST by Luke Adams

After signing Lazar Hayward yesterday, the Pelicans have added another player to their camp roster, according to Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com. Eichenhofer tweets that free agent swingman Rodney Carney will join New Orleans for training camp.

Carney, 29, was selected 16th overall in the 2006 draft, and spent five NBA seasons with the Sixers, Timberwolves, Warriors, and Grizzlies. The Memphis product displayed decent scoring and shooting prowess during his time in the league, including a 44.7 3PT% in 2010/11, but hasn't appeared in a regular season game since before the lockout. Carney participated in camp with the Heat last fall before joining Antalya in Turkey, where he averaged 16.6 PPG in 10 contests.

With the addition of Carney, the Pelicans increase their preseason roster to 17 players, including four without fully guaranteed contracts. Since New Orleans could have two roster spots up for grabs, Carney figures to receive consideration for one of those openings.

Knicks Sign Josh Powell

September 30th, 2013 at 7:37pm CST by Michael Pina

SEPTEMBER 30TH: The team has officially announced Powell's signing.

SEPTEMBER 21ST: The Knicks will sign Josh Powell to a non-guaranteed training camp deal, according to a tweet from Bleacher Report's Jared Zwerling, who reports that the six-year NBA veteran has agreed to a deal with the team.

Powell worked out with the team last week, and has also recently auditioned for the Pelicans. The 30-year-old Powell has been out of the NBA for the past two seasons, and in 2011 he played for the Hawks.

Holding a career scoring average of 3.9PPG, Powell is best known for being a member of two championship winning Lakers teams in 2009 and 2010. He was waived by the Spurs last October, but didn't play a game for the team.

Knicks Sign Justin Brownlee

September 30th, 2013 at 7:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

MONDAY, 7:36pm: The Knicks have officially announced Brownlee's signing.

FRIDAY, 6:48pm: Zwerling clarifies that Brownlee has indeed accepted the camp invitation (Twitter link).

6:26pm: The Knicks have extended an invitation to small forward Justin Brownlee for their 20th and final preseason roster spot, tweets Bleacher Report's Jared Zwerling. The tweet seems to indicate that the 25-year-old former St. John's player has accepted the team's invitation, though that's not entirely clear. Brownlee was set to work out for the team as of last week.

Brownlee spent last season on the fringes of professional basketball with the San Diego Surf of the American Basketball Association, as our International Player Movement Tracker shows. He also has experience in the D-League and in Mexico. This is his first training camp invitation since he went undrafted in 2011, though he's been in summer league with the Knicks the past two years.

New York has only 12 players on fully guaranteed deals, but C.J. Leslie and Jeremy Tyler have partially guaranteed contracts. Cole Aldrich, Ike Diogu, Toure Murry, Josh Powell, and Chris Smith are all presumably on non-guaranteed deals, as Brownlee likely will be, so there will be plenty of competition for the open spots on the regular season roster.

The Knicks have been linked to a slew of players over the summer, but it appears their offseason search for end-of-the-bench options is at an end. DeSagana Diop, Hassan Whiteside and Ricky Davis are among the NBA veterans who were passed over.

Jazz Announce Three Camp Signings

September 30th, 2013 at 7:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Jazz have officially announced the signings of Brian Cook, Justin Holiday and Dwayne Jones. Agreements involving all three had been reported this month. The team has 19 players under contract, though that doesn't include Nick Covington's deal, which we heard about this weekend.

Cook, Holiday and Jones all have NBA experience, though Cook has by far the most among the three, and he ranks in the top 10 among all of this year's NBA camp invitees in games played. Holiday is the only one of the trio to have appeared in a game last season, as he saw action in nine contests for the Sixers, alongside younger brother Jrue Holiday.

The Jazz have only 12 fully guaranteed contracts and Ian Clark's partially guaranteed deal, but with a full contingent of players for camp, none of the players on non-guaranteed deals seem like safe bets for the opening-night roster.

Bucks Release Junior Cadougan

September 30th, 2013 at 6:56pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bucks officially announced the signing of Junior Cadougan four days ago to bring their camp roster to 19, but now the Bucks say the Canadian point guard won't be in training camp because of visa issues (Twitter link). The team notes that its training camp roster is at 18 players in another tweet, so it appears the team has cut ties with Cadougan.

Cadougan spent the past four years at Marquette and went to high school in Texas, and he appeared briefly in two summer league games for the Bucks this year, so it's curious that he wasn't able to secure a visa in time for camp. He was a long-shot to make the opening-night roster anyway, since the Bucks already have 15 fully guaranteed contracts.

The 23-year-old could try his luck in another country as he seeks employment for the 2013/14 season. He may also attempt to resolve his visa issues in time for the D-League draft in about a month.

Mavericks Sign Renaldo Balkman

September 30th, 2013 at 6:26pm CST by Alex Lee

SEPTEMBER 30TH: The Mavs have officially announced the signing via press release.

SEPTEMBER 25TH: The Mavericks have reached an agreement on a non-guaranteed contact with free agent Renaldo Balkman, reports Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas. Balkman, who was said to be considering Dallas' offer as of earlier today, was the 20th pick of the 2006 NBA draft by the Knicks.

Balkman will fill the Mavs' 20th and last roster spot for training camp and certainly fits the profile of the type of "active defensive-minded bodies" the team is said to be interested in. However, it will take some manuevering for Balkman, or any other Mav without a guarantee, to make the team considering Dallas already has 15 players with guaranteed deals on the roster.

Balkman, 29, last appeared in the league in 2011/12 with New York, where he played in only 14 games. Last season he averaged impressive numbers (25 PPG and 13.4 RPG) in the Philippine Basketball Association before he was banned for a year in March after choking a teammate. His career NBA averages are 4 PPG and 3.5 RPG over six seasons out of South Carolina.

Grant Jerrett To Sign With D-League

September 30th, 2013 at 6:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

Grant Jerrett is the highest remaining unsigned draft pick from this year's draft, but it appears he'll soon be under contract with a D-League team. Jerrett, whose NBA rights are held by the Thunder, is expected to join the Oklahoma City's D-League affiliate, reports Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. Players who aren't under contract with an NBA club, as is the case with Jerrett, usually have to enter the D-League draft before they can hook up with a specific D-League team, so it's not entirely certain that he'll be with the Tulsa 66ers, who are OKC's affiliate. In any case, the Thunder will retain his NBA rights while he plays in the D-League, making him something of a domestic "draft-and-stash" player.

Jerrett played one collegiate season at Arizona before the Blazers took him in the draft and promptly traded him to Oklahoma City. The 6'10" power forward saw just 17.8 minutes a game for the Wildcats, averaging 5.2 points and 3.6 rebounds, but he worked out for several teams prior to the draft and saw more action for the Thunder's summer-league team, notching 10.8 PPG and 3.5 RPG in 28.6 MPG.

The Thunder have just 17 players under contract and 12 fully guaranteed deals, so it isn't a numbers crunch that prevented the team from signing him for camp. Instead, it seems like the club views him as a project, and is content to watch him develop in the D-League for now.

Bobcats Sign Abdul Gaddy

September 30th, 2013 at 5:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bobcats have officially announced their training camp roster, which includes Abdul Gaddy, confirming that he accepted the team's invitation. Fellow camp invitees Troy Daniels, Patrick O'Bryant and James Southerland are also listed on the 18-man roster, as expected. They join Jeff Adrien, who signed with the team last season, as Bobcats with non-guaranteed contracts. Jannero Pargo's deal is partially guaranteed for $300K.

Gaddy played with Charlotte's summer league team this year after going undrafted out of Washington in June. The point guard averaged 5.3 points and 2.3 assists for the summer Bobcats, but may have authored his most impressive performance at the Portsmouth Invitational before the draft, where he dished out an average of 6.3 assists in a little more than 31 minutes a game.

Charlotte has only 12 fully guaranteed deals, which would, on the surface at least, give Gaddy a decent shot to make the opening-night roster. However, Pargo is in line to be the team's third-string point guard behind Kemba Walker and Ramon Sessions, so Gaddy would likely have to unseat the veteran and convince the team to waive Pargo despite his partial guarantee.