Raptors Sign Mickael Pietrus, Cut Dominic McGuire
After searching for a deal for nearly five months, Mickael Pietrus has finally found his new team. The Raptors officially announced today that the team has signed Pietrus. The deal will be a one-year, minimum-salary contract, with Toronto waiving Dominic McGuire to clear a roster spot.
Pietrus last played for the Celtics during the 2011-12 season, averaging 6.9 PPG and shooting 38.5% from the field in 21.9 MPG. The French swingman has career averages of 8.4 PPG, 42.7% FG shooting, and 35.7% shooting from beyond the arc.
The Raptors only had the veteran's minimum at their disposal to add a free agent, so it's a little surprising that they were able to land Pietrus, whose agent Bill McCandless asserted earlier in the offseason that his client "is not a veteran’s minimum player. There’s no chance he’ll ever sign for that." It seems that, despite talks with Rockets, Timberwolves, Bulls, and Hawks over the course of the offseason, no club was ever willing to commit more than the minimum to Pietrus.
McGuire, whose 2012/13 salary was believed to be fully guaranteed, is owed about $992K for this season and had a non-guaranteed year for 2013/14 worth $1.11MM. While that second year won't be a factor anymore, he should still receive his salary for this season, with the Raptors taking the cap hit for it.
Sam Amick of USA Today first reported that the Raptors and Pietrus had reached an agreement, with Chris Haynes of CSNNW and Shams Charania of RealGM.com (Twitter links) adding details. Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Celtics Recall Kris Joseph From D-League
The Celtics have recalled Kris Joseph from their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. The move adds a little depth to the C's roster with Rajon Rondo suspended and Jeff Green questionable to play tonight.
Joseph, 23, was the 51st overall pick in June's draft. He appeared in one game for the Celtics early in the month before being sent to the Maine Red Claws along with Fab Melo. In two games for Maine, Joseph averaged 25.5 PPG and 7.5 RPG, though he shot just 35.6% from the field.
Be sure to check out our complete list of D-League assignments and recalls to keep track of the latest moves.
Rockets Assign Jones, Machado To D-League
Terrence Jones and Scott Machado are heading to the Rockets' D-League affiliate, the team announced today. Machado will join the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for the second time this season, while for Jones it's his first D-League assignment.
Jones, 20, has appeared in seven contests for the Rockets so far in his rookie season, averaging 3.6 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 10.4 MPG. The 18th overall pick in the 2012 draft is one of a handful of mid-first-rounders to be assigned to the D-League this week — No. 12 pick Jeremy Lamb and No. 13 pick Kendall Marshall have also been sent to their teams' respective D-League affiliates in the last couple days.
Machado, meanwhile, finally made his NBA regular-season debut on Wednesday night against the Thunder. He was recalled from the Valley Vipers earlier this week, along with Donatas Motiejunas.
Cavaliers Waive Harangody, Sign Kevin Jones
5:11pm: It appears that Cleveland's main intention was to secure rights over Jones, as Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio tweets that the team has sent Jones back to Canton after calling him up.
4:56pm: Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe tweets that the Cavaliers have waived Luke Harangody and signed 6'8 forward Kevin Jones. Although Harangody had earned a roster spot over Jones before the start of the regular season, the former Celtic had not appeared in an NBA game this year. His contract for this season was fully guaranteed and worth $1.05MM.
Jones has been on a tear in the D-League recently, averaging 27.0 PPG, 13.7 RPG, 54.0% shooting from the field, and a 92.3% clip from the charity stripe in 41.3 MPG through the first three games for the Canton Charge.
Mavs Sign Derek Fisher
THURSDAY, 2:39pm: Fisher is officially a Maverick, as the team announced today in a press release that it has signed the veteran point guard.
WEDNESDAY, 9:41pm: Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said the team will sign Derek Fisher tomorrow, reports Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com (Twitter link). The team has a full roster, with 15 players, and will have to release someone before the signing becomes official. Troy Murphy, who is presumed to be on a non-guaranteed deal, seems the best bet to go. It's not clear what the terms of Fisher's deal will be, but the Mavs have $1,974,509 of their room exception available after using part of it to sign second-round pick Jae Crowder this summer.
Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News reported earlier tonight that the team was looking for a veteran point guard, and the 38-year-old Fisher fits that description. Fisher had narrowed his choices to three teams, as we passed along earlier tonight. Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, who broke that news, noted that Fisher was seeking to sign with a contender, but the Mavs, at 7-9 following a blowout loss to the Bulls tonight, seem outside of the championship picture, even with the return of Dirk Nowitzki looming. It could be that he chose the Mavs because they could give him more than the minimum, but the difference between the amount they can pay him and the $1.352MM he would earn as a 16-year veteran is not great.
Sefko wrote 10 days ago that the Mavs weren't interested in Fisher, but Carlisle told TNT's David Aldridge that the Mavs have been eyeing Fisher for "a while" (Twitter link). Darren Collison, who was benched for last night's game against the Sixers, missed tonight's contest with a sprained middle finger, and while X-rays are negative, there's no word on when he'll return.
Now that Fisher is returning to the league, it presumably erases doubts about his ability to remain as president of the players union. Fisher has been under fire from the union's executive committee, which asked him to resign in April amid a feud between Fisher and executive director Billy Hunter.
Mavericks Release Troy Murphy
2:38pm: The Mavs have officially waived Murphy, according to a team release.
12:00pm: A day after reaching an agreement to sign Derek Fisher, the Mavericks will waive Troy Murphy in order to clear a roster spot, reports Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. Fisher's deal with the team is expected to be finalized once Murphy is released.
Murphy, 32, appeared in 14 games for the Mavericks, including one start. In 18.3 minutes per contest, he averaged 4.6 PPG and 3.5 RPG, shooting just 36.1% from the floor and 31.4% from downtown, well below his career rates (44.5% and 38.8%). Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram noted last night (via Twitter) that Murphy and his non-guaranteed deal would be a strong candidate to be waived for Fisher if Dallas felt Dirk Nowitzki was making good progress in his recovery.
Because he was on a non-guaranteed contract, Murphy won't remain on the books for the full veteran's minimum. However, having spent nearly four weeks with the team, he will earn a pro-rated portion of that salary, and the Mavs will take a cap hit for the same amount. Earlier today, I detailed Murphy's role in the revolving door that has been the Mavericks' 15th roster spot so far this season.
Suns Assign Kendall Marshall To D-League
THURSDAY, 12:32pm: The Suns made Marshall's assignment official today, as Stefan Swiat of Suns.com writes.
“Right now Kendall is our third point guard on the depth chart," Suns GM Lance Blanks said. "We made the judgment that it'd be better to get Kendall some live game repetitions and game-time experience in case coach [Alvin] Gentry wants to play him."
WEDNESDAY, 10:29pm: The Suns will send rookie point guard Kendall Marshall to their D-League affiliate, the Bakersfield Jam, tweets Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. The 13th overall pick in this year's draft had seen limited playing time behind Goran Dragic and Sebastian Telfair, and the Suns want to get him some time on the court, Coro says.
Marshall's demotion, however temporary, represents the wide chasm between his sitution and the one enjoyed by Damian Lillard, the other point guard taken in the lottery, who's drawing Rookie of the Year consideration with the Blazers. Portland chose Lillard with the sixth overall pick.
Marshall's assignment is the first for the Suns this year, who didn't send anyone down last season. New D-League rules this year allow teams to assign and recall a player as many times as they want, while the previous limit on demotions per season for a single player was three. To keep tabs on all the movement between NBA teams and their affiliate this year, bookmark our list, which we'll be updating throughout the season.
Thunder Assign Jeremy Lamb To D-League
The Thunder have assigned Jeremy Lamb to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Lamb will be in uniform for the Tulsa 66ers when the team hosts the Rio Grande Valley Vipers tomorrow night.
A week ago, Oklahoma City assigned Daniel Orton and DeAndre Liggins to the 66ers. As Larry Coon writes in his CBA FAQ, NBA teams are believed to be able to assign up to two players to the D-League at any one time, so it's unclear whether that rule has been modified or whether one of the previous assignees is rejoining the Thunder. Assuming there's no corresponding announcement, it seems Lamb, Orton, and Liggins will all be on the 66ers' roster.
Lamb, the 12th overall pick in June's draft, was sent to Oklahoma City in last month's James Harden trade. The 20-year-old has appeared briefly in eight games for the Thunder, scoring a total of 17 points and making four of his eight shots from three-point range.
Lakers Assign Robert Sacre To D-League
The Lakers have assigned a second rookie to the D-League, the team announced today (Twitter link). Robert Sacre will join Darius Johnson-Odom on the Los Angeles D-Fenders in time for the club's home opener tonight.
Sacre, the last player taken in the 2012 draft, has appeared in eight games so far for the Lakers, primarily in blowouts. In approximately 19 total minutes of playing time, he has recorded two points and committed eight fouls. The former Gonzaga center will get a chance to receive increased minutes with the D-Fenders.
The Lakers have already assigned Johnson-Odom to the D-Fenders twice this season, as our list of D-League assignments and recalls shows. For Sacre, it's his first D-League assignment.
Grizzlies Assign Tony Wroten To D-League
The Grizzlies have assigned Tony Wroten to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today in a press release. Wroten will join the Reno Bighorns of the NBADL.
Wroten, the 25th overall pick in this June's draft, hasn't cracked the Grizzlies' rotation in the first few weeks of the season, appearing in just three contests for Memphis. He has yet to record his first basket in an NBA regular-season game.
The Bighorns are shared as a D-League affiliate by three NBA teams — the Grizzlies, Kings, and Jazz. So far, the Kings have assigned Tyler Honeycutt to Reno, while Kevin Murphy was assigned to the Bighorns just yesterday by the Jazz. For a complete list of this year's assignments and recalls, be sure to check out our tracker.