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D-League Moves: Spurs, Nets, Thunder, Cavs

February 28th, 2013 at 2:07pm CST by Luke Adams

We'll track today's D-League assignments and recalls here, with any additional moves listed at the top of the page:

The Spurs have assigned Aron Baynes to the Austin Toros and recalled Cory Joseph, the team announced today in a press release. Joseph has been the Toros' leading scorer this year, averaging 19.4 PPG in 26 games, while Baynes is right behind him with 18.0 PPG in his two D-League games.
The Nets have re-assigned Tornike Shengelia to the D-League, according to a team press release. It's the third assignment of the year for the rookie, who excelled in his three games with the Springfield Armor, averaging 28.3 PPG and 13.7 RPG.
Perry Jones, Jeremy Lamb, and DeAndre Liggins have been sent to the Tulsa 66ers by the Thunder, the club announced today in a press release. All three players have spent time in the D-League this season, with Lamb standing out most in his 14 games with the 66ers, averaging 21.1 PPG.
The Cavaliers have assigned Kevin Jones to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Jones has been with Cleveland for all of February, though he's only appeared in three games for the club this month. For the season, the 23-year-old has seen limited minutes in 18 games for the Cavs, but has been dominant in seven contests with the Canton Charge, averaging 23.0 PPG and 12.6 RPG.

Celtics Sign D.J. White

February 28th, 2013 at 11:31am CST by Luke Adams

THURSDAY, 11:31am: The Celtics have officially signed White to a 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release.

WEDNESDAY, 2:12pm: D.J. White has finally received his letter of clearance from China, opening the door for him to sign with an NBA team, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Now that he's been cleared, White will sign with the Celtics in the next 24 hours, tweets Wojnarowski.

White, 26, signed a contract to play in China this season, and averaged 21.6 PPG and 9.7 RPG in 32 games for the Shanghai Sharks before his team was eliminated from postseason contention. The 6'8" forward has played four NBA seasons with the Thunder and Bobcats, and was actually fairly productive for Charlotte last season, averaging 6.8 PPG and 3.6 RPG in 18.9 MPG over 58 contests.

Head coach Doc Rivers confirmed this past weekend that the Celtics were expecting to sign White once he became eligible, while GM Danny Ainge indicated on Monday night that the deal would be a 10-day contract.

Ainge also pointed out that 10-day deals are often timed to maximize a player's time with the team, so I wonder if the Celtics will wait until Friday to finalize White's deal — that would mean his 10 days would include five games rather than four. Boston may prefer to get him signed before then, however, in order to get him some extra practice time with the club.

Terrence Williams is also currently on a 10-day contract with the C's. His deal is set to expire after Friday's game.

D-League Moves: Jordan, Dupree, Greene

February 25th, 2013 at 7:50pm CST by Zachary Links

We had a pair of trades go down in the D-League today with several notable players changing teams. Let's take a look..

The D-Fenders have acquired center Jerome Jordan from the Reno Bighorns in exchange for forward Ronald Dupree and guard Orien Greene, according to Trevor Wong of the Lakers (on Twitter). Jordan appeared in 21 games for the Knicks last season.
The Idaho Stampede, the D-League affiliate of the Trail Blazers, announced that they have acquired JaJuan Johnson via trade with the Canton Charge. Johnson, 24, has been widely regarded as one of the D-League's top talents in 2012/13 but is considered to be a project. The 6'10" forward was taken by the Nets with the 27th overall pick in the 2011 draft before being shipped to the Celtics for the rights to MarShon Brooks.

Rockets Sign Tim Ohlbrecht

February 25th, 2013 at 5:38pm CST by Zachary Links

The Rockets announced that they have signed center Tim Ohlbrecht to a multi-year deal. Ohlbrecht's deal is for three years with team options for the final two, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). Our own Luke Adams predicted earlier today that the center would get that type of deal, similar to the structure of Greg Smith's contract.

Houston is one of 14 NBA teams with at least one open roster spot, so they will not have to waive a player to make space for the big man. Ohlbrecht has spent the season playing for the Rockets' D-League affiliate Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

In 32 games for the Vipers this season, the 6'11" German averaged 13.4 PPG and 7.4 RPG in 26.6 minutes per contest. He also earned a spot in the D-League's All-Star Game earlier this month.

Agent Tyler Glass told Emiliano Carchia of Sportando last week that Ohlbrecht had turned down a 10-day contract offer from the Celtics, which makes sense given the multi-year opportunity being presented to him by the Rockets.

In a related move, the Rockets announced that they have assigned Tyler Honeycutt to the Vipers. The forward was acquired by the Rockets from the Kings prior to the deadline in the Patrick Patterson deal.

Thunder Sign Derek Fisher For Rest Of Season

February 25th, 2013 at 10:16am CST by Luke Adams

10:16am: The Thunder confirmed the signing via press release.

7:16am: The Thunder and Derek Fisher have reached an agreement on a contract for the remainder of the 2012/13 season, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Dave McMenamin and Marc Stein of ESPN.com first reported that the two sides were closing in on a deal.

Fisher, 38, played 20 regular-season games and 20 postseason contests for the Thunder last year after being traded to and bought out by the Rockets. It was suggested that the veteran point guard's brief stint with the Mavericks earlier this season was designed to ensure he remained an "active' player, keeping his spot as president of the players' union. But it appears Fisher and the Thunder feel he has at least one more playoff run left in him, despite early-season knee issues.

The longtime Laker will take over the backup point guard spot that opened up when Oklahoma City traded Eric Maynor to the Trail Blazers last week. A corresponding roster move won't be necessary, since the Thunder had been carrying 14 players, leaving one open spot.

Neither the Yahoo! report nor the ESPN report indicated how much Fisher's deal with OKC will be worth. The Thunder still have a portion of their mid-level exception and bi-annual exception available, but a minimum-salary deal may be more likely. Fisher's deal is expected to be finalized later today.

Magic Waive Hakim Warrick

February 23rd, 2013 at 1:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Magic have officially released Hakim Warrick, reports Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). Warrick came over in a deadline deal from the Bobcats, and USA Today's Sam Amick reported at the time that Orlando was expected to waive Warrick. The move leaves 14 players on the Magic roster, one less than the maximum, freeing the team to either bring in players on 10-day contracts or sign someone for the rest of the season.

The Magic will be on the hook for Warrick's full $4MM salary unless another team claims him off waivers, though Orlando could recoup some of that money through the set-off provision if he signs another professional contract this year. The 30-year-old power forward also has a $4MM team option on his contract for next season, but that will disappear unless he's claimed.

Warrick has been traded or released four times within the last seven months. He went from the Suns to the Hornets in July's Robin Lopez deal, and New Orleans shipped him to the Bobcats for Matt Carroll in November. Warrick and New Orleans were reportedly working on a buyout prior to that trade, but it doesn't appear as though the Magic were able to convince Warrick to take less money this time around.

Knicks Sign Kenyon Martin To 10-Day Contract

February 23rd, 2013 at 10:53am CST by Sean Highkin

SATURDAY, 10:53pm: The Knicks have officially added Martin, per John Schuhmann of NBA.com (via Twitter).

THURSDAY, 4:20pm: The New York Knicks will sign veteran forward Kenyon Martin to a 10-day contract, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reports (via Twitter). The team had cleared a roster spot earlier Thursday by moving forward Ronnie Brewer to the Thunder for a future second-round pick.

Martin, 35, last played in the NBA for the Clippers in 2011/12, averaging 5.2 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 42 games.

Bucks To Acquire Redick In Six-Player Deal

February 21st, 2013 at 3:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have agreed to trade J.J. Redick to the Bucks, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski, Milwaukee will send Doron Lamb, Beno Udrih, and Tobias Harris to Orlando in the deal (Twitter link). Along with Redick, Gustavo Ayon and Ish Smith are heading to Milwaukee, tweets Wojnarowski.

After a flurry of Redick rumors leading up to the deadline, the Bucks emerged as the frontrunners in the hours leading up to 2:00pm, as the Spurs, Pacers, and other suitors fell out of the running. While it initially appeared that Milwaukee was targeting Redick to replace Monta Ellis if Ellis was part of a Josh Smith trade, the club ultimately pulled the trigger on Redick anyway, meaning the sharpshooter will join a backcourt that features Ellis and Brandon Jennings.

Meanwhile, the Magic had been seeking a first-round pick in exchange for Redick, but will instead acquire a pair of young prospects in Lamb and Harris, along with Udrih's $7.37MM expiring contract, which will come off the books this summer. According to various reports, the only first-round picks Orlando was offered for Redick would have been very late in the first round. Given the value of draft picks and rookie-scale contracts in the new CBA, teams seemed reluctant to give up any picks better than that.

Warriors Send Jenkins To 76ers, Tyler To Hawks

February 21st, 2013 at 3:15pm CST by Luke Adams

3:15pm: The Warriors acquired a pair of second-round picks, one from the Sixers and one from the Hawks, in their respective deals, according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). The Sixers' pick is top-55 protected, GM Tony DiLeo tells Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com (Twitter link).

2:59pm: The trade deadline was nearly an hour ago now, but news of a couple deals is still trickling in. According to Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links), the Warriors reached agreements to send out Charles Jenkins and Jeremy Tyler in two separate trades. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that Jenkins is heading to the 76ers while Tyler is going to the Hawks.

Golden State had been looking for a way to get under the luxury-tax threshold, and was able to do so by moving two minimum-salary players like Jenkins and Tyler. As such, no players will be coming back to the Warriors in either deal.

Jenkins, the Warriors' second-round pick in 2011, was notoriously kept on the team's roster in place of Jeremy Lin prior to the '11/12 season. He has played in 47 games for the team this year, though he averages just 6.2 minutes per contest. He's on an expiring contract, so the Sixers will have the option of offering him a qualifying offer and making him a restricted free agent at season's end.

Tyler, 21, hasn't seen as much playing time for the Warriors this season, though he's averaged 15.0 PPG and 8.0 RPG in a handful of games for the D-League's Santa Cruz Warriors. The 6'10" youngster, who was selected five picks ahead of Jenkins in the 2011 draft, has a non-guaranteed contract for next season, so the Hawks will have a chance to decide whether or not to bring him back at a reasonable price.

Both Jenkins and Tyler are earning $762,195 this season, so moving them takes the Warriors about $300K below the tax. That gives them enough wiggle room to add players on 10-day contracts or perhaps a rest-of-season deal.

Grizzlies Acquire Dexter Pittman From Heat

February 21st, 2013 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

2:54pm: The Heat have confirmed in a press release that they've sent Pittman to Memphis. The Grizzlies also received cash considerations from the Heat, according to the release.

12:48pm: The Grizzlies and Heat have agreed to a deal that will send Dexter Pittman and a second-round pick to Memphis, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports that the Heat will acquire the rights to Ricky Sanchez, who is currently playing in Argentina, in the trade (Twitter link). Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal first reported that the two sides were in serious talks about a swap.

For the Grizzlies, Pittman represents another piece of frontcourt depth off the bench. Memphis had been carrying just 12 players, and would have been required to add a 13th man in the very near future had the team not acquired a player via trade today. The team had intended to make use of one of its seven trade exceptions, but likely won't need to do so, since the third-year big man is making the minimum salary of $854,389.

From Miami's perspective, the trade allows the club to open a roster spot for a potential free agent addition later in the season. According to Windhorst (via Twitter), the Heat have kept in touch with Kenyon Martin, but will likely wait until March to explore all their options.

Moving Pittman also reduces the Heat's tax bill slightly, and the cost to do so wasn't exactly exorbitant — Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reports (via Twitter) that the second-rounder is Miami's 2013 pick, which is currently projected to be 59th overall, as our projected draft order indicates.

I would assume that Sanchez, who was drafted by the Trail Blazers in 2005, will never see the floor for the Heat. The Grizzlies simply had to include a piece in the deal so that they weren't acquiring Pittman and a pick for nothing. Miami will also obtain a trade exception worth $854,389 (Pittman's salary) in the move.