Aaron Brooks To Sign With Rockets
Aaron Brooks and the Rockets have finalized their agreement, and the point guard will sign with Houston when he clears waivers, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Wojnarowski first reported earlier tonight that Brooks would likely sign with the team. Houston has a full 15-man roster, so to clear room, the Rockets will have to waive someone before the deal with Brooks becomes official.
The Kings bought out Brooks today after signing him to a two-year, $6.646MM deal this past offseason. The 28-year-old was deciding between the Kings and the Rockets this summer, tweets HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy, but Brooks and Houston were far apart in negotiations, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle noted. It's unclear how much Brooks forfeited in the buyout, but he probably had to give up at least the amount of next season's $3.396MM player option, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors surmised.
Brooks has started 20 games for the Kings this season, but averaged just 10.9 minutes per game in February as he fell behind Isaiah Thomas and Jimmer Fredette in coach Keith Smart's playing rotation. As a result, his scoring (8.0 PPG) and assists (2.3) averages are at their lowest since his rookie season. Brooks spent that year in Houston after the Rockets made him the 26th pick in the 2007 draft, and in his third season he averaged 19.6 PPG and 5.3 APG for the team.
Houston traded him to Phoenix midway through the 2010/11 season, and he spent last year playing in China. The Suns held his rights when he returned, but they couldn't reach a deal, and this summer, Phoenix pulled its qualifying offer to Brooks, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Kings Buy Out Aaron Brooks
The Kings have bought out Aaron Brooks' contract, according to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (via Twitter). Grant Napear of CBS Sacramento first tweeted that Brooks had been released by the team, while Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee reported that the two sides were working on a buyout.
Brooks' contract included a 2013/14 player option worth about $3.4MM, but he likely gave that up as part of the buyout. The 28-year-old point guard will become an unrestricted free agent when he clears waivers, but isn't close to reaching an agreement with another team, according to Kennedy, who tweets that Brooks will weigh his options before signing.
Because Brooks was released before tonight's buyout deadline, he'll be eligible to play in the postseason for whichever team he joins next. Kennedy suggested (via Twitter) that the Rockets, Knicks, and Jazz might be potential fits for the veteran. Those teams have either had interest in Brooks in the past or could use a point guard now — or both.
D-League Moves: Varnado, Scott, Jones, Baynes
We'll track today's D-League assignments and recalls here, with any additional moves added to the top of the page throughout the day:
- Jarvis Varnado has been sent to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Heat announced today in a press release. Varnado averaged a double-double in the D-League earlier this season, recording 14.0 PPG, 10.0 RPG, and 3.9 BPG for Sioux Falls.
- The Hawks have assigned rookie Mike Scott to the D-League, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Consitution. Scott will join the Bakersfield Jam, who have a home-and-home set against the Los Angeles D-Fenders on Saturday and Sunday this weekend.
Earlier updates:
- The Cavaliers have recalled Kevin Jones from the D-League just a day after re-assigning him, the team announced in a press release. Jones led the Canton Charge with 24 points and nine rebounds in last night's game, helping the team defeat the Idaho Stampede, 115-109. The rookie forward will be available for the Cavs tonight against the Clippers.
- Aron Baynes also led his D-League team to victory last night during his one-game assignment. The Spurs announced today in a press release that Baynes had been recalled from the Austin Toros after recording 16 points and nine boards in the club's Thursday win.
- The Celtics have assigned Fab Melo to the Maine Red Claws, according to a team press release. With D.J. White and Shavlik Randolph expected to be ready to play tonight, the C's didn't need Melo on the bench in Boston.
Celtics Sign Shavlik Randolph
10:39am: The Celtics have officially announced the signing in a press release.
8:47am: Shavlik Randolph has received his letter of clearance from China and has signed a 10-day contract with the Celtics, agent Joel Bell tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com. According to Charania, Randolph is participating in the Celtics' morning shootaround today, so it sounds as if the team will announce the signing later today, making Randolph eligible for tonight's game against the Warriors.
Randolph, 29, has been out of the NBA since the 2009/10 season, when he briefly appeared in three games each with the Heat and Trail Blazers. However, as Ryan Raroque of Hoops Rumors noted last night, the former Duke Blue Devil had a tremendous season in the Chinese Basketball Association in 2012/13, averaging 32.0 PPG and 14.6 RPG in 28 games for the Foshan Long Lions.
The Celtics now have a full roster of 15 players, though three of those 15 are currently on 10-day contracts, as our 10-day tracker shows. Terrence Williams' deal is set to expire after tonight's game, while D.J. White and Randolph are locked up until next weekend. All three players landed in Boston after spending the season with Chinese clubs.
Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge first reported yesterday (via Twitter) that Randolph was seeking his letter of clearance from China and was close to signing with an NBA team.
D-League Moves: Spurs, Nets, Thunder, Cavs
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
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
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
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
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
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.