Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Clippers Sign Brandon Davies

September 5th, 2013 at 3:54pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 5TH: The Clippers have offically signed Davies, the team confirmed today in a press release. The amount of his guarantee still isn't known.

JULY 2ND: In addition to inviting Brandon Davies to play on their Summer League squad, the Clippers have also signed the undrafted free agent to a partially guaranteed one-year contract, reports Sean Deveney of the Sporting News (via Twitter).

Davies, a 21-year-old power forward, played four seasons at BYU, averaging 17.7 PPG and 8.0 RPG in 36 contests during his senior year. The BDA Sports client was ranked 63rd among this year's prospects by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com and 90th by ESPN.com's Chad Ford, so it's not shocking that he wasn't selected on draft night.

Assuming the deal is finalized, as Deveney's tweet suggests, it wouldn't violate the July moratorium. Minimum-salary contracts for one or two seasons can be signed during the moratorium, and that's almost certainly the sort of deal Davies agreed to, though it's not clear what sort of guarantee he received.

Bobcats Sign James Southerland

September 5th, 2013 at 3:44pm CST by Zachary Links

SEPTEMBER 5TH: The Bobcats have officially announced the signing of Southerland in a press release.

AUGUST 24TH: James Southerland has accepted a training camp invitation from the Bobcats, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter). Southerland went undrafted in June despite interest from a number of clubs.

The Spurs were amongst the teams interested in the 6'8" sharpshooter and they considered taking him with the 58th overall selection. San Antonio asked Southerland if he'd play overseas if they grabbed him, but he declined. He'll now try to find an NBA home with his late invite to camp with the Bobcats, though Bonnell notes that nothing is signed yet.

The Syracuse forward had an impressive 39.8% success rate from beyond the arc in his final college season. He also averaged career highs in points (13.3 PPG) and rebounds (5.2 RPG).

Lakers Sign Xavier Henry

September 5th, 2013 at 2:52pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have officially signed Xavier Henry, the team announced today in a press release. Terms of the agreement weren't disclosed, but I'd expect it to be some form of non-guaranteed training camp invite.

Word of the Lakers' interest in Henry was reported yesterday by Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com, with fellow ESPN scribe Dave McMenamin adding (via Twitter) that the 6'6" guard was poised to become a camp invitee.

Henry, an Arn Tellem client, became an unrestricted free agent this summer because the Pelicans decided not to exercise the fourth-year option on his rookie contract. The Kansas product has yet to make a real impact in three NBA seasons with Memphis and New Orleans, averaging 4.5 PPG in 133 career contests. However, Henry was a lottery pick in 2010 and is just 22 years old, so there may still be some upside.

As our list of NBA roster counts shows, Henry becomes the 14th Lakers player under contract. That number doesn't include Marcus Landry, who is expected to receive a camp invite, and second-round pick Ryan Kelly, who has yet to officially sign with the team. With only 11 Lakers believed to be on fully guaranteed deals, Henry should have the opportunity to try to earn a roster spot next month.

E.J. Singler Accepts Blazers’ Camp Invite

September 4th, 2013 at 8:03pm CST by Luke Adams

WEDNESDAY, 8:03pm: The Blazers officially announced the signing, via press release.

FRIDAY, 4:34pm: Oregon's E.J. Singler has agreed to a deal with the Trail Blazers and will be in training camp with the team, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). It sounds like it'll be a fully non-guaranteed contract for the undrafted forward.

Singler, 23, took a step back in his senior year with the Ducks, with his averages falling in PPG (13.6 to 11.7) and FG% (.467 to .411), among other categories. He also didn't exactly stand out in Summer League play with the Pistons, averaging just 1.6 PPG in five games. Still, he'll get a look this fall from the Blazers, even if a regular-season roster spot is a long shot.

A year ago, the Blazers invited a few players to camp with an eye on retaining their D-League rights, and getting them onto the Idaho Stampede's roster. A stint with the Stampede could be in Singler's future, though that's just my speculation.

Warriors Agree To Sign DeWayne Dedmon

September 4th, 2013 at 4:46pm CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors have reached an agreement with undrafted rookie DeWayne Dedmon, reports Sam Amick of USA Today (via Twitter). According to Amick, Dedmon will receive a partial guarantee on his deal with Golden State.

Dedmon, a 7'0" center, declared his intent for the draft this past spring, but wasn't one of the 60 players selected in June. After averaging 6.7 PPG and 7.0 RPG in his final year at USC, Dedmon ranked 74th among Chad Ford's list of 2013 prospects at ESPN.com. The 24-year-old worked out for a handful of teams in the weeks leading up to the draft, including the Trail Blazers, Suns, Lakers, Grizzlies, and Bucks.

The Warriors currently have 12 guaranteed contracts on their books, plus Seth Curry's non-guaranteed camp invite. Throw in partial guarantees for Dedmon and Kent Bazemore, and the club has 15 players lined up for camp, likely with more to come. Depending on how much money the team guarantees Dedmon, that commitment could give him the upper hand on earning a regular-season roster spot.

David Lighty Accepts Hawks’ Camp Invite

September 4th, 2013 at 8:11am CST by Luke Adams

Former Ohio State shooting guard David Lighty will be in camp next month with the Hawks, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Word that Lighty would accept a training camp invite from the team was first reported earlier in the summer by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.

Lighty, 25, went undrafted in 2011 as Chad Ford's 64th-best prospect in that year's rookie class. He has played overseas since then, most recently averaging 12.5 PPG and shooting 42.5% on three-pointers in 35 games for JSF Nanterre in France.

As Vivlamore notes, Lighty and Eric Dawson are the players confirmed to be camp invitees so far for the Hawks, while Shelvin Mack is on a non-guaranteed contract and Mike Scott only has a partial guarantee. Mack and Scott probably have a leg up on Lighty and Dawson for regular-season roster spots, but with only 12 guaranteed contracts on their books so far, the Hawks should have a few players competing for those last few openings next month.

Lakers Sign Shawne Williams

September 3rd, 2013 at 8:10pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 3RD: The Lakers finally made the signing official, as Mike Trudell of Lakers.com passes the news along via Twitter.

JULY 19TH: The Lakers and Shawne Williams have reached agreement on deal that will bring the veteran forward to training camp, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. The wording of Begley's tweet indicates that it's just a camp invitation, which would mean a one-year, minimum-salary deal with no guarantee, but the precise terms of the arrangement are unclear.

Marc Berman of the New York Post wrote last month that Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni, who had Williams on one of his Knicks teams, wanted to work with him again, and Begley notes that D'Antoni regards the 27-year-old highly. Williams reportedly worked out for the Lakers and several other teams this summer, including the Knicks. Agent Happy Walters said in June that Williams "loved his time" with New York but would make playing time a priority when he chose his next team.

The University of Memphis product has spent parts of five seasons in the NBA, last appearing with the Nets in 2011/12. He averaged double-digit minutes all five years, but he's put up just 5.7 points per game for his career.

Pacers Reach Agreement With Rasual Butler

September 3rd, 2013 at 3:51pm CST by Luke Adams

After not catching on with an NBA team last year, Rasual Butler has reached an agreement to join the Pacers, agent Joel Bell tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com. Indiana will sign Butler to a non-guaranteed contract, which figures to essentially amount to a camp invite.

Butler last appeared in the NBA for the Raptors in 2011/12, averaging a career-low 3.2 PPG and 4.8 PER in 34 contests. The 34-year-old participated in workouts last fall and this past spring, but didn't seem to draw much interest from NBA teams until now.

The Pacers have 13 players on guaranteed contracts, and, as our list of non-guaranteed deals shows, have also invited Ron Howard to training camp. Indiana will almost certainly add at least a couple more players to the team's camp roster, but as long as those guys are on non-guaranteed contracts as well, it seems Butler will be given the opportunity to earn a regular-season roster spot.

Suns Buy Out Michael Beasley

September 3rd, 2013 at 3:19pm CST by Luke Adams

3:19pm: Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic has the details on Beasley's buyout (via Twitter): He'll earn $7MM overall, instead of the $9MM he had been guaranteed.

Beasley's 2013/14 salary (and the Suns' cap hit) will be reduced from $6MM to $4.67MM. His second-year salary will be reduced from $3MM to $2.33MM — both the payment and the cap hit for that $2.33MM will be spread over the next three years (starting in 2014/15), according to Coro (via Twitter).

2:28pm: The Suns have officially waived Beasley, the team announced today in a press release. The release notes that the two sides reached a buyout agreement, meaning the overall amount the Suns owe him for the next two seasons will be reduced, along with the cap hits.

"The Suns were devoted to Michael Beasley’s success in Phoenix," said president of basketball operations Lon Babby in a statement. "However, it is essential that we demand the highest standards of personal and professional conduct as we develop a championship culture. Today’s action reflects our commitment to those standards. The timing and nature of this, and all of our transactions, are based on the judgment of our basketball leadership as to how best to achieve our singular goal of rebuilding an elite team."

1:55pm: Michael Beasley's stint in Phoenix will come to an end in the near future, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, who reports that the Suns will waive Beasley in the coming days. Stein indicates that Phoenix will likely make the move official this week, with the 24-year-old forward on track to clear waivers and become an unrestricted free agent shortly thereafter.

Beasley signed a three-year, $18MM contract with the Suns last summer, but underwhelmed on the court in his first season in Phoenix, and was plagued by off-court issues as well. Most recently, the Kansas State product was arrested on suspicion of marijuana possession, making his release a near certainty.

The Suns have elected to wait until after August 31st to officially release Beasley, meaning the team will pay his full $6MM salary for 2013/14 in normal intervals. Had Phoenix waived Beasley between July 1st and August 31st, the remaining guaranteed money on his contract ($9MM) would have been paid over the next five years. By clearing about $5.5MM in salary in last week's Caron Butler trade with the Bucks, the Suns made it more palatable to waive Beasley and eat his full salary this year, getting his contract off the books sooner rather than later.

The second overall pick in the 2008 draft, Beasley had the least productive year of his career in 2012/13, setting career-lows in PPG (10.1), RPG (3.8), PER (10.8), and FG% (.405), among other categories. He almost certainly won't be claimed on waivers, meaning he'll be free to sign with any NBA team after the Suns officially cut him. While a player with Beasley's talent will likely get another chance, I imagine many teams will steer clear due to concerns about a potential negative locker-room influence.

After trading Butler for multiple players and signing first-round pick Alex Len, the Suns are up to 17 players on guaranteed contracts. They'll reduce that number by one when Beasley is formally released, but will still need to make at least one more cut (or trade) before opening night to get down to the regular-season maximum of 15.

Raptors Release Quentin Richardson

September 3rd, 2013 at 2:09pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 3RD: The Raptors have waived Richardson, the team announced in a press release. Assuming the transaction didn't become official until today, that means the stretch provision, which I mentioned below, wouldn't apply to Richardson.

AUGUST 30TH: The Raptors have waived swingman Quentin Richardson, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Richardson was a salary throw-in in last month's Andrea Bargnani deal with the Knicks, and wasn't expected to still be on Toronto's roster by opening night.

Because of a trade kicker in Bargnani's contract, Steve Novak's and Marcus Camby's salaries weren't quite enough to allow the Knicks to take back the former first overall pick. So the team also signed-and-traded Richardson to the Raps as part of the transaction. The veteran's minimum-salary contract for 2013/14 is guaranteed, but the next two years of his deal are fully non-guaranteed.

There's virtually no chance Richardson is claimed on waivers, so Toronto will be on the hook for his full '13/14 salary. However, because the Raptors cut Richardson prior to August 31st, the team can use the stretch provision, extending the cap hits and salary payments for the 33-year-old over the next three seasons.