Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nuggets Sign Bruce Brown To Two-Year Deal

July 1st, 2022 at 9:25am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 7: The deal is now official, the Nuggets announced in a press release.

JULY 1: The Nuggets have reached an agreement to sign free agent wing Bruce Brown to a two-year, $13MM+ contract, according to Malika Andrews of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal will include a second-year player option, Andrews adds (via Twitter).

Denver appears likely to use the taxpayer portion of its mid-level exception to complete the signing — a two-year deal worth the full taxpayer MLE would come in at around $13.3MM.

Brown became eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer after accepting his $4.7MM qualifying offer from Brooklyn a year ago. He spent his first two NBA seasons in Detroit from 2018-20 and has been a Net for the last two years.

Brown does a little bit of everything on the court, playing and guarding multiple positions while providing some scoring (9.0 PPG), play-making (2.1 APG), rebounding (4.8 RPG), and even three-point shooting (40.4%) in 2021/22.

The 25-year-old is the type of player who doesn’t need the ball on offense and can switch onto virtually anyone defensively, making him an ideal fit for a Nuggets team that has been looking to upgrade its defense around stars Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Michael Porter Jr.

According to Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter link), the Nuggets had Brown high on their list of targets and love his defensive versatility. As Singer notes (via Twitter), it looks like Brown will essentially take Austin Rivers‘ place on the roster, since Denver now has a projected 14 players under contract for 2022/23, plus restricted free agent Vlatko Cancar.

Cavaliers Sign Ricky Rubio To Three-Year Deal

July 1st, 2022 at 8:44am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 8: The Cavaliers have officially signed Rubio, the team announced in a press release. As we previously relayed, the team used its mid-level exception to complete the deal after a sign-and-trade didn’t materialize.

JULY 1: The Cavaliers have reached an agreement to bring back free agent point guard Ricky Rubio on a three-year, $18.4MM contract, sources tell Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The third year will be partially guaranteed, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Based on the financial details reported by Haynes, it appears Cleveland will use a portion of its mid-level exception to sign Rubio. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link) was the first to report the two sides were nearing a deal.

Cleveland acquired Rubio from Minnesota in a 2021 offseason trade and he played a key role in the Cavs’ first-half success this past season. Despite serving primarily as a reserve, the 31-year-old averaged a career-high 13.1 PPG to go along with 6.6 APG and 4.1 RPG in 34 games (28.5 MPG).

However, Rubio’s season came to an early end when he tore his left ACL in December. The Cavs subsequently used his expiring contract as a salary-matching piece in their trade for Caris LeVert, resulting in Rubio finishing the season with the Pacers.

There had been reports throughout the offseason indicating that there was mutual interest in a reunion between the Spaniard and the Cavs — that reunion has now come to fruition.

ACL tears can sideline NBA players for a full calendar year or more, and even when they return to the court, it often takes them some time to get back to full speed, so expectations for Rubio in 2022/23 – especially in the first half – should be tempered.

Given that Cleveland agreed to a three-year deal though, it seems as if the team is counting on him to be around for the long haul and will be patient as he recovers from his knee injury and gets his feet back under him.

Once Rubio is healthy, he figures to once again slot into the backup point guard role behind All-Star guard Darius Garland.

Trail Blazers Sign Gary Payton II To Three-Year Deal

July 1st, 2022 at 12:37am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: The Trail Blazers have officially signed Payton, according to a press release from the team.

“We are excited to have Gary join us in Portland,” general manager Joe Cronin said. “Gary brings an elite defensive acumen and championship pedigree that will be essential to how we play basketball. His competitiveness and toughness will accent Coach (Chauncey) Billups’ style of play.”

JULY 1: The Trail Blazers are finalizing a three-year contract agreement with free agent guard Gary Payton II, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the deal is expected to be worth $28MM. It will include a player option and incentives, per Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report first reported that Portland was in hot pursuit of Payton with a deal believed to be worth in the range of $8MM annually. The price tag reported by Charania comes in a little higher than that, as the Blazers have apparently committed to using most of their non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign the 29-year-old.

Payton, who has never signed an NBA contract worth more than the minimum salary, caught on as the Warriors’ 15th man last fall, then secured a regular spot in the rotation, carving out a niche as a defensive stopper.

While most of Payton’s value stems from his ability to slow down perimeter scorers, he had his best offensive season in 2021/22 too, chipping in 7.1 PPG in just 17.6 MPG and shooting an impressive 61.6% from the floor. He played a key role in the Warriors’ championship run, returning from a fractured elbow in the NBA Finals to defend the likes of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart.

As Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets, Golden State wanted to bring back Payton but was unwilling to match Portland’s offer, which would have cost the Warriors exponentially more due to the subsequent luxury tax penalties.

Payton is on track to join a Portland team that has made it a priority this offseason to upgrade its defense and struck a deal last week to acquire forward Jerami Grant from Detroit. The Blazers were also linked earlier today to versatile free agent wing Bruce Brown, but he may be out of their price range now that they’re using their MLE on Payton.

Raptors Sign Thaddeus Young To Two-Year Extension

June 30th, 2022 at 11:22pm CST by Rory Maher

11:22pm: The Raptors’ new deal with Young is already official, according to NBA.com’s transactions log. That signals that the team technically signed Young to a veteran extension on June 30, rather than waiting for him to reach the open market and signing him to a free agent contract.

For practical purposes, the outcome is the same — the Raptors have locked up Young to a deal reported to worth $16MM over two years. One notable difference is that he’ll become trade-eligible immediately instead of on December 15 like a free agent signee.

5:47pm: The Raptors are re-signing forward Thaddeus Young, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), who hears from agents Jim Tanner and Max Wiepking that Young will get a two-year, $16MM deal that includes incentives.

Toronto held Young’s Bird rights after acquiring him from San Antonio at February’s trade deadline, giving the Raptors the ability to exceed the salary cap to retain him.

Young, who turned 34 on June 21, averaged modest totals of 6.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.0 SPG on .518/.354/.469 shooting in 52 regular season games between the two teams last season (16.3 MPG). Still, he was productive on a per-minute basis, and is a smart player on both ends of the court who provides veteran leadership to a fairly young Raptors team.

The 15th pick of the 2007 draft, 2021/22 was Young’s 15th NBA season. He played for Philadelphia during his first seven seasons before bouncing around a little bit, making stops in Minnesota, Brooklyn, Indiana and Chicago prior to last season.

Young holds career averages of 12.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.8 APG and 1.4 SPG on .502/.332/.663 shooting in 1085 games (29.3 MPG). He’s unlikely to find a large role with Toronto over the next couple of seasons, but the Raptors traded their first-round pick in the draft (and got back an early second-rounder) to acquire him, so obviously they made re-signing him a priority.

Mike Muscala To Return To Thunder

June 30th, 2022 at 10:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Veteran center Mike Muscala will return to the Thunder on a one-year veteran’s minimum contract, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (via Twitter).

The club declined its $3.5MM team option on Muscala prior to the start of free agency. The veteran’s minimum for a player with nine years of NBA service is projected to be $2,641,682.

Initially drafted by the Hawks with the No. 44 pick in 2013 out of Bucknell, Muscala eventually evolved into a modern floor-spacing power forward/center. He split the 2018/19 season between the Sixers and Lakers. Muscala first signed with the Thunder in 2019.

The longtime vet, who turns 31 tomorrow, has spent his last three seasons with Oklahoma City. In 43 games last year for a rebuilding Thunder club, Muscala averaged 8.0 PPG and 3.0 RPG during 13.8 MPG. On offense, the 6’10” big man has carved out a niche as a bench shooting threat, boasting a career three-point conversion rate of 37.7% on 2.5 tries a game. Last season, he connected on 42.9% of his 3.8 looks a night.

Muscala joins fellow re-signed OKC veteran Luguentz Dort in returning to a rebuilding Thunder club loaded with present and future young assets.

Oklahoma City enjoyed one of the most active drafts among any NBA team this year, selecting Gonzaga power forward/center Chet Holmgren, NZ Breakers wing Ousmane Dieng, and Santa Clara guard Jalen Williams in the lottery. Ever the completist, team president Sam Presti also grabbed Arkansas power forward Jaylin Williams with the No. 34 pick in the second round. They join a team loaded with other exciting young players in Dort, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Tre Mann, and Darius Bazley.

Bulls Sign Andre Drummond

June 30th, 2022 at 9:21pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

JULY 6: The Bulls have made it official with Drummond, announcing the deal on Twitter.

JUNE 30: The Bulls will add veteran center Andre Drummond to bolster their frontcourt, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports (Twitter link) that Chicago will ink Drummond to a two-year, $6.6MM contract, with a player option for 2023/24. A two-year deal at the veteran’s minimum would be worth $5.95MM, so presumably the Bulls – who don’t have the bi-annual exception available this season – are dipping into their mid-level to complete the signing.

The Drummond deal is the first reported free agent addition for Chicago during the 2022 offseason. The team is still hoping to re-sign two-time All-Star shooting guard Zach LaVine, an unrestricted free agent. Unsigned veteran free agent forward Danilo Gallinari has also been mentioned as a possibility for Chicago.

Additionally, the Bulls have a $5MM trade exception left over from a Daniel Theis sign-and-trade during the 2021 offseason it must use (or lose) by July 7.

Drummond, 28, is coming off an impressive bounce-back season split between the Sixers and Nets, and Chicago no doubt hopes he can help shore up the team’s frontcourt depth.

Selected by the Pistons with the ninth pick out of Connecticut in 2012, the 6’10” Drummond blossomed into a two-time All-Star for Detroit. Drummond agreed to a five-year maximum-salary contract with Detroit in 2016. He was eventually traded to the Cavaliers, before signing a one-year veteran’s minimum deal with the Lakers ahead of the 2020/21 season.

Playing as a reserve behind Sixers All-Star Joel Embiid to start the 2021/22 season on another minimum deal, Drummond saw limited touches on offense, but was still able to feast on the glass in limited minutes. Across 18.4 MPG, he averaged 6.1 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.1 SPG and 0.9 BPG in 49 contests with Philadelphia.

The Sixers included Drummond to the Nets as part of the team’s trade package for All-Star guard James Harden. With Brooklyn, Drummond enjoyed an expanded offensive role. He started in all 24 of his games with the Nets, averaging 11.8 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 1.4 APG, 1.0 BPG and 0.9 SPG during 22.3 MPG.

Nuggets Sign Davon Reed To Two-Year Contract

June 30th, 2022 at 9:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 9: The Nuggets have officially re-signed Reed, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

JUNE 30: The Nuggets are re-signing Davon Reed to a standard two-year deal, Mike Singer of the Denver Post tweets.

Reed appeared in 48 regular season games with Denver last season, including five starts. He averaged 4.4 PPG in 13.9 MPG.

He was on a two-way contract and received a qualifying offer this week, making him a restricted free agent. The terms of his new contract aren’t yet known.

Reed couldn’t play in the postseason because of the two-way deal. However, he earned high praise from coach Michael Malone.

“Every time Davon Reed has gotten a chance to play this year, he’s found a way to help this team,” Malone said late in the regular season.

The 6’5” guard has made 39.1% of his 3-pointers in his 79-game NBA career.

Magic To Guarantee Moritz Wagner’s 2022/23 Salary

June 30th, 2022 at 8:51pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Reserve Magic center Moritz Wagner will have his $1.9MM non-guaranteed salary for the 2022/23 NBA season become fully guaranteed, per Khobi Price of the Orlando Sentinel (via Twitter).

Wagner was drafted by the Lakers out of Michigan with the No. 25 pick in 2018. He spent one season with Los Angeles as a little-used reserve, averaging just 10.4 MPG. The 6’11” center spent the next few years on the move, being flipped first to the Wizards in 2019, then the Celtics and Magic during the 2020/21 season.

The team drafted his younger brother, 2022 All-Rookie small forward Franz Wagner, with the eight overall pick in 2021. The Magic brought Wagner back on his current two-year, $3.6MM deal during the same offseason. Across 63 games with Orlando in 2021/22, the 25-year-old backup big man averaged 9.0 PPG, 3.7 RPG, and 1.4 APG in 15.2 MPG, playing behind the Magic’s jumbo-sized frontcourt of Wendell Carter Jr. and Mohamed Bamba.

With the advent of top 2022 draft pick Paolo Banchero out of Duke and the expected return of Jonathan Isaac near the start of the 2022/23 season, Wagner may struggle to make Orlando’s big man rotation on a night-to-night basis.

Pistons, Kevin Knox Agree To Two-Year Contract

June 30th, 2022 at 8:18pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Unrestricted free agent forward Kevin Knox will sign a two-year, $6MM deal with the Pistons, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

After being selected by the Knicks with the ninth pick in the 2018 draft out of Kentucky, Knox enjoyed a productive rookie season for a rebuilding 17-65 New York club. The 6’7″ forward averaged a career-best 12.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.1 APG and 0.6 SPG in a career-most 28.8 MPG, starting in 57 of his 75 healthy games.

Knox has never scaled those heights again in his successive three NBA seasons of action. The 22-year-old has yet to average better than half of that scoring mark across three unproductive seasons with New York and the Hawks, to whom he was traded in January.

After head coach Tom Thibodeau took over in 2020, Knox found himself a fringe rotation player, averaging 11.0 MPG in just 42 games during the team’s playoff-bound 2020/21 season.

Last year, Knox cameoed in just 13 games with the Knicks before being dealt to Atlanta. In 17 games with the Hawks, Knox averaged just 6.5 MPG. The Hawks did not tender a qualifying offer to Knox this summer, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Considering the Pistons’ youth movement, it makes sense for the team to take flyers on young lottery selections like Knox and Marvin Bagley III, as Detroit builds around star point guard Cade Cunningham and 2022 lottery picks Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren.

Wizards Sign Delon Wright To Two-Year Contract

June 30th, 2022 at 8:09pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 6: The Wizards have officially signed Wright, the team announced today in a press release.

“Delon’s versatility as a playmaker, scorer and defender will help us solidify our backcourt rotation,” Wizards president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard said in a statement. “His size allows him to play and defend both guard positions and will give us flexibility with our lineups.”

JUNE 30: The Wizards have agreed to a two-year, $16MM contract with point guard Delon Wright, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Both years are guaranteed, David Aldridge of The Athletic tweets.

The contract will eat up a good portion of Washington’s $10.49MM mid-level exception.

Wright is the second significant point guard acquisition made by Washington this week. The Wizards are acquiring Monte Morris in a four-player deal with Denver. Journeyman point guard Ish Smith is being shipped to the Nuggets as part of that deal.

A report surfaced earlier on Thursday that Washington was interested in Wright.

The 30-year-old has played for six organizations, most recently the Hawks. He was a regular in their rotation last season, appearing in 77 regular-season contests, including eight starts. He averaged 4.4 PPG, 2.4 APG and 1.2 SPG in 18.9 MPG.