Magic Re-Sign Ish Smith
3:38pm: Smith's deal is for three years, but only the first year is guaranteed, tweets Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.
12:07pm: The Magic have re-signed point guard Ish Smith, the team announced today in a press release. Terms of the deal aren't known, so it's not clear whether Smith received a full guarantee, or whether he'll just be invited to training camp with a chance to earn a roster spot.
Earlier this month, the Magic were reportedly seeking a third point guard to provide depth behind Jameer Nelson and Chris Duhon, with Smith mentioned as a candidate. Of course, Duhon was since traded to the Lakers in the Dwight Howard blockbuster, and none of the six players Orlando received in the deal are point guards. While that should bode well for Smith's chances of landing a spot on the team, it also means the Magic are probably still in the market for another backup behind Nelson.
Smith, 24, has already played for the Rockets, Grizzlies, Warriors, and Magic in just two NBA seasons, but finished the 2011/12 season in Orlando, playing 8.6 minutes per game in 20 contests for the Magic.
Rockets Waive Josh Harrellson
3:09pm: The Rockets confirmed via press release that they've officially waived Harrellson.
2:52pm: The Rockets have waived Josh Harrellson, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (via Twitter). Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle confirms the move, noting that the Rockets had to clear room to sign Carlos Delfino (Twitter link).
Harrellson was acquired by the Rockets in the sign-and-trade deal that sent Marcus Camby to New York shortly after the July moratorium ended. Harrellson was on a non-guaranteed contract, so it won't cost the Rockets anything to drop him.
In his rookie season for the Knicks, Harrellson averaged 4.4 points and 3.9 rebounds in 14.6 minutes over 37 games, including four starts. The 23-year-old big man will be eligible to sign with any team except the Knicks if and when he clears waivers.
Suns Waive Brad Miller, Jerome Dyson
The Suns announced today that they have waived Brad Miller and Jerome Dyson, according to a team release. Miller and Dyson were both acquired from the Hornets in a three-team July deal that landed the Suns Wesley Johnson and a 2013 first-round pick.
Dyson was on a non-guaranteed contract, so the Suns won't take a cap hit by releasing the 25-year-old. Miller, however, had a buyout worth a reported $848K, which the Suns will have to pay. With the veteran big man planning to retire this summer, his contract was used as a trade chip twice this summer, with the Timberwolves sending him to the Hornets, who flipped him to the Suns.
Having waived Miller and Dyson and officially signed Jermaine O'Neal, the Suns now have 13 players on their roster.
Suns Sign Jermaine O’Neal
WEDNESDAY, 11:13am: The Suns have officially signed O'Neal, the team announced in a press release. According to Coro, the deal is for one year at the veteran's minimum ($1,352,181).
FRIDAY, 3:54pm: The Suns have agreed to terms with unrestricted free agent big man Jermaine O'Neal, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter). Salary details aren't yet known, but I'd be surprised if O'Neal was able to land more than the veteran's minimum.
A report earlier this week suggested that "winning a championship is the only goal" for O'Neal, so perhaps he's more bullish on the Suns' short-term prospects than most. Coro suggested as recently as this morning that O'Neal seemed like a long shot for Phoenix, given his desire to play for a contender, so perhaps the Suns were the only team showing serious interest in acquiring the 33-year-old.
The Lakers and Bucks were among the other teams that had watched O'Neal work out this summer. In 25 contests in 2011/12 for the Celtics, the 16-year veteran averaged 5.0 PPG and 5.4 RPG in 22.8 MPG before wrist surgery cut his season short. Given the reputation of the training staff in Phoenix, the Suns may believe they'll be able to keep O'Neal healthier in 2012/13.
Pistons Sign Khris Middleton
The Pistons have officially signed second-round pick Khris Middleton, the team announced today (Twitter link). Terms of the deal aren't known, but it's likely not worth much more than the rookie minimum this season, perhaps with additional non-guaranteed years. As Keith Langlois of Pistons.com notes (via Twitter), the signing brings the Pistons' roster to 15 players.
Middleton, a 6'8" forward, averaged 13.2 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in his junior year at Texas A&M before declaring for the draft a year early. Considered the 48th-best available prospect by ESPN.com's Chad Ford, the 21-year-old was selected 39th overall by the Pistons, and showed flashes of promise in Orlando Summer League action.
Justin Hamilton Signs In Croatia
A few weeks after being selected 45th overall and acquired by the Heat on draft night, Justin Hamilton has decided to head overseas for the upcoming season. The former LSU big man has signed with Croatian club Cibona Zagreb, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
Hamilton, who averaged 12.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in his junior year at LSU, entered the draft a year early, despite being ranked just the 65th-best prospect of the class by DraftExpress and 76th by ESPN.com's Chad Ford. The 22-year-old was part of the draft-night trade that allowed the Sixers to acquire the Heat's first-round pick and select Arnett Moultrie. In exchange, Miami received the 45th overall pick, used to draft Hamilton, and the Sixers' lottery-protected 2013 first-rounder.
The Heat will hold Hamilton's rights if and when he returns to the NBA, but it appears the team didn't have a ton of interest in signing the 6'11" center, despite a lack of quality bigs. Heat president Pat Riley said earlier this month that he didn't feel like the club needed to add another center, so unless the Heat have another target in mind, it appears they're sticking to that stance.
International Moves: Uzoh, Andersen, James
As free agents continue to come off the board, not all of them are signing their new contracts with NBA teams. Here's the latest on a handful of notable names landing non-NBA deals:
- Ben Uzoh, who played for the Cavs and Raptors last season after spending 2010/11 with the Nets, has signed with Cholet Basket in France, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. The 24-year-old has averaged 4.0 points and 2.2 assists in 13.5 minutes per game in 60 career NBA contests.
- We heard a week ago that Australia's David Andersen hoped to receive a chance to play in the NBA this season, but it appears he'll remain overseas. Carchia passes along word that Andersen has signed a two-year deal with Turkey's Fenerbahce Ulker. The 32-year-old big man played 103 games for the Rockets, Raptors, and Hornets from 2009 to 2011.
- After spending a good chunk of last season with the Tulsa 66ers, Rhode Island product Delroy James has signed a one-year deal in Italy, FMC Ferentino announced (link via Sportando).
Lakers Sign Jodie Meeks
4:37pm: Meeks' agent David Bauman tells Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com that his client could earn up to $2MM in the second year of his deal, via incentives. In order for that to be possible under cap rules, I believe there'd have to be incentives in year one that Meeks would have to achieve first.
MONDAY, 3:31pm: The Lakers have officially announced the signing of Meeks, tweets Mike Trudell of Lakers.com.
FRIDAY, 3:24pm: The Lakers and Jodie Meeks have agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth about $3MM, tweets Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. The second year of the contract is a team option, according to Bresnahan.
Meeks was reportedly uninterested in signing for the veteran's minimum, while the Lakers were reluctant to use their full $3.09MM mid-level exception, so it seems the two sides reached a compromise. Meeks' deal will pay him more than the minimum, but only a portion of Los Angeles' mid-level.
The acquisition of Meeks is far from the Lakers' biggest move of the day, but it's a solid signing that helps solidify an ever-improving bench and provides some wing depth behind Kobe Bryant. When I examined some of the Lakers' free agent options last week, I suggested Meeks could be the best fit for the team, given his skill-set and likely price tag. The 24-year-old is a career 37.1% three-point shooter in three seasons with the Bucks and Sixers.
According to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld, Meeks received larger offers from the Bucks and Wizards, but wanted to compete for a title with the Lakers (Twitter link).
Lakers Re-Sign Devin Ebanks
The Lakers officially announced today that they've re-signed Devin Ebanks, according to Mike Trudell of Lakers.com (via Twitter). Ebanks' re-signing had been anticipated for over a month, with the team and player waiting until after there was resolution Dwight Howard to make things official, in case the 22-year-old needed to be included in a deal as a signed-and-traded piece.
Ebanks, a restricted free agent, elected to sign his qualifying offer and return on a one-year deal worth $1,054,389, so he'll hit free agency again next summer. In 2011/12, the 6'9" forward played in 24 games, starting half of them, with averages of 4.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 16.5 minutes per game.
The Lakers also announced today that they've signed Jodie Meeks.
Craig Smith Signs In Israel
Craig Smith has signed with Hapoel Jersualem of the Israeli league, according to Sportando.net. The power forward spent last season with the Trail Blazers, where he averaged 3.3 PPG in 47 appearances, a career low.
In late July, it was reported that Smith was in dicussion with the Pacers on coming to Indiana, but it appears their likely one-year, veteran's minimum offer was less than he can make playing overseas. the 6'7" Boston College graduate has proven to be a useful contributor in the past, posting a .556 FG% and 16.4 PER in 356 games from 2006/07 to 2010/11.