Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Warriors Sign Quinn Cook To Two-Way Contract

October 17th, 2017 at 2:55pm CST by Luke Adams

2:55pm: Cook has officially signed a two-way contract with the Warriors, the team confirmed today in a press release.

8:10am: The Warriors will fill the open two-way slot on their roster by signing free agent guard Quinn Cook, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical, who reports (via Twitter) that Cook has agreed to a two-way contract with the defending champions.

Cook, 24, went undrafted in 2015 and spent training camp with the Cavaliers that season, then with the Pelicans in 2016. He finally earned a shot in the NBA regular season earlier this year, when he signed a 10-day contract with the Mavericks, then two 10-days and a rest-of-season deal with New Orleans. Appearing in 14 total games, Cook averaged 5.6 PPG and 1.9 APG for the Mavs and Pelicans.

Having been waived by the Pelicans in July, Cook spent training camp and the preseason with the Hawks before being cut on Friday. Now, he’ll have an opportunity to return to the G League, where he excelled last season, averaging 26.0 PPG and 6.7 APG in 39 games for the Canton Charge. He’ll suit up for the Santa Cruz Warriors this year, and will be eligible to spend some time with Golden State.

Once Cook makes it official with the Warriors, there will be just 10 two-way slots still open around the NBA.

Thunder Sign P.J. Dozier To Two-Way Deal

October 17th, 2017 at 12:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

OCTOBER 17: The Thunder have officially signed Dozier to a two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release.

OCTOBER 16: The Thunder are in talks with guard P.J. Dozier on a two-way contract after he cleared waivers on Monday, ESPN’s Royce Young tweets.

The Mavericks waived the 6’6” rookie on Saturday. He went undrafted after playing two seasons at South Carolina. Doziers played for the Lakers’ Summer League team in July before receiving a partially guaranteed contract from the Mavs.

In three preseason games with the Mavs, Dozier averaged 5.7 PPG and 2.3 RPG. Dozier averaged 13.9 PPG and 4.8 RPG last season for the Gamecocks.

Swingman Daniel Hamilton received the first of the two allotted two-way contracts with the Thunder.

Bucks Sign Gary Payton II To Two-Way Contract

October 17th, 2017 at 11:05am CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks have filled one of their open two-way slots by signing free agent guard Gary Payton II to a two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release. Milwaukee had entered the day as the only NBA team without a player on a two-way deal.

Payton, the son of Hall-of-Famer and former SuperSonics guard Gary Payton, went undrafted out of Oregon State in 2016, but caught on with the Rockets for training camp. After being cut by Houston last October, the 24-year-old spent most of the season with the club’s G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. In 49 G League games, Payton averaged 14.1 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 3.3 APG, and 2.0 SPG.

Having signed a multiyear deal with Milwaukee near the end of the 2016/17 campaign, Payton was a candidate to make the Bucks’ regular season roster, but was ultimately cut on Saturday. His contract didn’t include an Exhibit 10 clause, making it ineligible to be converted into a two-way deal, but the Bucks were eligible to re-sign him to a two-way contract once he cleared waivers.

Payton will suit up for the Bucks’ new G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, once the season begins. Milwaukee, meanwhile, still has one more two-way spot to fill.

Spurs, LaMarcus Aldridge Agree To Extension

October 16th, 2017 at 11:07pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 16th, 11:07pm: The signing is official, per team release.

4:11pm: Charania clarifies in his full report on the trade that Aldridge’s extension will actually add just two years to his current deal, with the 2018/19 player option representing the third year. In total, Aldridge will be under contract for four years, with a partial guarantee in year four.

3:26pm: The Spurs have reached an agreement with big man LaMarcus Aldridge on a contract extension, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Wojnarowski first reported earlier today that the two sides were engaged in discussions on a possible extension.

Aldridge’s new contract is a three-year extension worth $72.3MM, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter) that the third and final year is only partially guaranteed. The 32-year-old exercised his 2018/19 player option as part of the agreement, per Wojnarowski (via Twitter), so the new deal will begin in 2019/20 and will lock him up for five years in total.

Aldridge, who initially joined the Spurs as a free agent in the summer of 2015, saw his production drop off a little last season. His 17.3 PPG, 7.3 RPG, and .477 FG% were all below his career averages, while his 18.6 PER was his lowest mark since 2009/10.

The dip in Aldridge’s performance makes the timing of the contract extension somewhat surprising. Wojnarowski noted in his piece earlier today that the relationship between Aldridge and the Spurs has been rocky over the last two years — both sides have been unhappy at times, and the team explored trade scenarios involving the former Blazer earlier this year.

However, according to Wojnarowski, Aldridge arrived at camp this year in better shape than usual, and has strengthened his relationship with Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich.

With Aldridge’s player option for 2018/19 now locked in, the Spurs have approximately $78.4MM in guaranteed money on their cap for next season. With the NBA salary cap projected to increase slightly to $101MM, the Spurs could have some flexibility. But their estimated team salary doesn’t include player options for Danny Green, Rudy Gay, and Joffrey Lauvergne, or possible new deals for free-agents-to-be like Tony Parker and Kyle Anderson.

Because Aldridge’s new contract exceeds the parameters of an extend-and-trade deal, he won’t be eligible to be traded for six months after signing his extension, meaning he won’t be the subject of trade rumors at this season’s deadline.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Jamel Artis Signs Two-Way Deal With Magic

October 16th, 2017 at 7:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

OCTOBER 16th, 7:34pm: The signing is official, per team press release.

OCTOBER 15th, 8:37am: Jamel Artis, who was waived by the Knicks in early October, has agreed to a two-way contract with the Magic, tweets Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders.

The 6’7″ swingman signed a partially guaranteed deal with New York in June after going undrafted out of Pitt. He played for the Knicks’ entry in the Orlando Summer League, averaging 8.8 points per game.

The move fills Orlando’s allotment of two-way contracts, with Adreian Payne holding the other one. The Magic trimmed their roster to the league limit on Friday by waiving Damjan Rudez and Kalin Lucas.

Grizzlies Waive Wade Baldwin, Rade Zagorac

October 16th, 2017 at 5:04pm CST by Luke Adams

One year after using their first-round pick to draft Wade Baldwin, the Grizzlies have parted ways with the young point guard. The Grizzlies have waived Baldwin, according to a team release. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported earlier in the day that Memphis intended to waive or trade him (Twitter link).

The Grizzlies also waived rookie forward Rade Zagorac to reach the 15-man regular season limit, the release adds. Wojnarowski had reported earlier (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies would be shedding Zagorac by waiving or trading him.

The Grizzlies’ decisions come as a bit of a surprise. At the start of camp, it appeared that forward Jarell Martin was on the chopping block for the club, and point guard Andrew Harrison was another player whose roster spot appeared to be in danger.

With Memphis waiving Baldwin and Zagorac, there will be room to carry both Martin and Harrison, along with veteran point guard Mario Chalmers, who has a small ($25K) partial guarantee on his contract. Wojnarowski has confirmed (via Twitter) that Chalmers and Harrison will remain on the roster as backups to starting point guard Mike Conley. Chalmers’ minimum salary deal will become fully guaranteed if he remains under contract through Wednesday.

The optics of the moves aren’t great for the Grizzlies, who drafted Baldwin a year ago using the 17th overall pick. He’s owed a guaranteed $1,874,400 salary this season, but the club won’t be on the hook for any future salary, since his $1,955,160 team option for 2018/19 hadn’t been picked up.

The Grizzlies will actually owe more guaranteed money to Zagorac, another 2016 draftee, who was stashed for one year and then signed a partially guaranteed three-year deal this offseason. The 35th overall pick in 2016, Zagorac will be owed $950K this season and $1,378,242 in 2018/19. His third-year team option for 2019/20 is non-guaranteed.

This marks the second straight preseason in which the Grizzlies have given up on a former first-round pick still on his rookie contract. A year ago, the team waived 2014 first-rounder Jordan Adams as part of its roster cutdowns.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bulls Claim Felder, Waive Eddie And Stone

October 16th, 2017 at 4:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Bulls have claimed point guard Kay Felder, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets. They will waive swingman Jarell Eddie, league sources told Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Chicago will also shed center Diamond Stone to reach the 15-man roster limit, Charania adds in another tweet.

The Cavaliers traded Felder along with veteran forward Richard Jefferson to the Hawks on Saturday in order to shed salary and create roster space. Atlanta then immediately waived both players.

Felder, a second-round pick in 2016, appeared in 42 regular-season games last season and averaged 4.0 PPG and 1.4 APG in 9.2 MPG. He had a $457K guarantee on his $1,312,611 salary for this season. There is a team option on his $1,544,951 contract for next season.

The Bulls have Kris Dunn and Jerian Grant as their top point guards but Cameron Payne was declared out for 3-4 months in September after undergoing foot surgery.

Eddie, 25, played for the Wizards and Suns over the last two seasons. He played sparingly in 26 games for Washington during the 2015/16 season.

Eddie then played for the G League’s Windy City Bulls before hooking on with Phoenix late last season. He saw action in five games with the Suns last season after signing a pair of 10-day contracts.

Though he signed a contract for $1,471,382, most of the money was non-guaranteed. He collected a couple of extra days’ salary by remaining on the roster through Saturday.

Chicago still has plenty of shooting guards and small forwards on the roster, including Paul Zipser, Denzel Valentine, Justin Holiday, David Nwaba and rookie Antonio Blakeney. Zach LaVine and Quincy Pondexter are still rehabbing from knee injuries.

Stone received a modest guarantee after signing with Chicago in September. Stone, who played his rookie season with the Clippers, was also waived by the Hawks after Atlanta acquired him in late July. Robin Lopez, Christiano Felicio and rookie Lauri Markkanen are the main options at center.

Bucks Claim DeAndre Liggins Off Waivers

October 16th, 2017 at 4:34pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks have filled the 15th and final spot on their roster by claiming veteran swingman DeAndre Liggins off waivers, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Milwaukee opened up that roster spot by waiving Gerald Green on Saturday.

Liggins, 29, is coming off his most successful NBA season, having appeared in 62 total contests for the Cavaliers and Mavericks, starting 19 games with Cleveland. However, since being cut by the Cavs just before the end of the regular season, Liggins has been a fixture on the NBA’s transactions wire.

Since the start of April, Liggins has been claimed off waivers (from Cleveland) by the Mavericks, traded to the Rockets, traded to the Clippers, traded to the Hawks, waived by the Hawks, signed by the Heat, and now claimed off waivers from Miami by the Bucks.

We’ll see if Liggins sticks with the Bucks, since his contract is non-guaranteed. For now though, Milwaukee’s waiver claim of the well-traveled guard/forward appears to take the team out of the running for Richard Jefferson, as Marc Stein of The New York Times tweets. The Bucks and Nuggets were among the teams linked to Jefferson, who cleared waivers this afternoon.

Mavs Convert Gian Clavell To Two-Way Contract

October 16th, 2017 at 3:18pm CST by Luke Adams

3:18pm: The Mavs have officially converted Clavell’s deal to a two-way contract, the team confirmed in a press release. Dallas’ regular season roster is now set.

2:36pm: The Mavericks will get down to the regular season roster limit by converting Gian Clavell‘s NBA contract to a two-way deal, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Clavell’s contract with Dallas included an Exhibit 10 clause, giving the team the flexibility to turn it into a two-way pact before the regular season begins.

Clavell, who turns 24 next month, was named Mountain West Conference Player of the Year last season at Colorado State, averaging 20.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game with the Rams. The 6’4″ guard also has extensive international experience with the Puerto Rican National Team.

Although Clavell didn’t receive any guaranteed money when he signed with the Mavericks this offseason, he impressed the team during the preseason. Most notably, he recorded 19 points, five rebounds, and five assists in a win last Thursday over Atlanta. Teams reportedly inquired about his availability recently, but the Mavs opted to hang onto their rights to Clavell.

Once they officially convert Clavell’s contract, the Mavs will have 15 players on their NBA roster, with two on two-way contracts.

Raptors Exercise Options On Wright, Poeltl, Siakam

October 16th, 2017 at 2:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors have exercised three team options for the 2018/19 season, announcing today in a press release that they’ve picked up Delon Wright‘s fourth year option, as well as third-year options for Jakob Poeltl and Pascal Siakam.

Wright, the 20th overall pick in the 2015 draft, appeared in just 27 games for the Raptors last season, with Kyle Lowry and Cory Joseph ahead of him on the depth chart for most of the year. However, with Joseph no longer on the roster, Wright figures to be in line for a larger role as he and Fred VanVleet back up Lowry. His fourth-year option for 2018/19 will count for $2,536,898 on Toronto’s cap.

Poeltl and Siakam, meanwhile, will also be relied upon for more significant roles this season. The two 2016 first-rounders didn’t play a ton as rookies last season, but the offseason departures of Patrick Patterson, P.J. Tucker, and DeMarre Carroll will open up more frontcourt minutes in the Raptors’ rotation.

Poeltl, last year’s ninth overall pick, has the most expensive 2018/19 option of the three, at $2,947,320. Siakam’s is worth $1,544,951. The Raptors will have to decide next offseason on fourth-year options for 2019/20 for the duo. If those are exercised, Poeltl and Siakam will become extension-eligible in the summer of 2019, and would be on track to be restricted free agents in 2020.