Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Magic Waive Shelvin Mack

June 25th, 2018 at 2:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The Magic are waiving veteran point guard Shelvin Mack before his salary becomes fully guaranteed for 2018/19, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). The team has confirmed the move in a press release.

Mack, who inked a two-year, $12MM with Orlando during the 2017 offseason, appeared in 69 games for the Magic, averaging 6.9 PPG, 3.9 APG, and 2.4 RPG as a backup to Elfrid Payton and D.J. Augustin.

Mack’s modest production and his non-guaranteed contract made him a candidate to be cut this offseason. His $6MM salary for 2018/19 is reportedly partially guaranteed for just $1MM, so the Magic will have the option of keeping that full $1MM charge on their cap for next season or stretching it across three years.

According to Basketball Insiders’ data, Mack’s contract called for his 2018/19 salary to become guaranteed if he remained under contract for more than four days after the 2018 NBA draft, which is why Orlando is making its decision now. Assuming Mack clears waivers, as expected, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent and will be able to sign anywhere.

Aaron Gordon Receives Qualifying Offer From Magic

June 25th, 2018 at 2:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The Magic have tendered a qualifying offer to power forward Aaron Gordon, officially putting him on track for restricted free agency, per RealGM’s NBA transactions log.

Players eligible for restricted free agency don’t become RFAs by default. A team must extend a qualifying offer to the player in order to make him restricted. That offer essentially functions as a one-year contract offer that the player can accept at any time. If the player signs his qualifying offer rather than inking an offer sheet with another team or a longer-term deal with his own club, he’d put himself in line for unrestricted free agency in a year.

In Gordon’s case, his qualifying offer is worth $7,260,330. However, he’s considered one of the top restricted free agents on the market and will likely attract a sizable offer sheet if Orlando doesn’t negotiate a new deal with him directly, so I wouldn’t expect him to sign his QO.

Gordon, 22, posted new career highs in PPG (17.6), RPG (7.9), APG (2.3), and 3PG (2.0) in 2017/18, with a shooting line of .434/.336/.698 in 58 games.

Grizzlies Release Omari Johnson

June 24th, 2018 at 4:30pm CST by clarkcrum

The Grizzlies have waived forward Omari Johnson, per an official release from the team. Johnson signed a multiyear deal, his first in the NBA, with Memphis late in the 2017/18 season, but his salary for this upcoming season was non-guaranteed, meaning the Grizzlies won’t be on the hook for any of his 2018/19 salary.

Johnson, 29, came off the bench in four games with the Grizzlies as a rookie last season and averaged 5.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 18.8 minutes per game.

He began the 2017/18 season as a member of the Grizzlies’ G League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle, where he appeared in 44 games and averaged 16.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.

Johnson also previously spent time with the G League’s Maine Red Claws and internationally with C.B. Valladolid of the Liga ACB after being undrafted out of Oregon State in 2011.

Hawks’ Mike Muscala Exercises Option

June 24th, 2018 at 12:22pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mike Muscala has picked up his $5MM option and will return to the Hawks next season, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The fifth-year center/power forward is coming off a career-best year, averaging 7.6 points and 4.3 rebounds in 53 games. An ankle injury limited his availability for the first two months of the season, but he played well once he recovered. Muscala, who turns 27 next week, was the 44th pick in the 2013 draft and has remained in Atlanta ever since.

Muscala follows teammate Dewayne Dedmon, who exercised his $7.2MM option on Wednesday. Their decisions leave the Hawks with about $20MM in cap space heading into free agency, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks, who adds that Atlanta could be a popular spot for teams willing to give up draft picks to unload unwanted contracts (Twitter link).

As our list of player option decisions shows, Muscala becomes the 16th NBA veteran to exercise a 2018/19 option this offseason, after just five vets picked up player options last summer.

Clippers’ Milos Teodosic Opts In

June 24th, 2018 at 8:21am CST by Arthur Hill

Serbian guard Milos Teodosic has opted in for another season with the Clippers, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. However, the decision doesn’t guarantee he will be back in L.A. next year. The final year of Teodosic’s contract carries just a $2.1MM guarantee on his $6.3MM salary if the Clippers waive him by July 15.

L.A. could decide that financial flexibility is preferable to another year of Teodosic, who was limited to 45 games in his rookie season because of injuries. Austin Rivers ($12.7MM) and Wesley Johnson ($6.1MM) have already exercised their options for next year, while DeAndre Jordan has until Friday to decide on his $24.1MM option. The Clippers also have to decide whether to guarantee Patrick Beverley‘s $5MM deal and will be well over the salary cap if all those players remain on the roster.

A report this week says L.A.’s front office is leaning toward unloading Teodosic before the start of free agency, in part due to concerns over a tear of the plantar fascia in his left foot that he suffered late in the season. The 31-year-old said during the year that he likes playing in the NBA, but it’s possible he could return to Europe if he gets a better offer there.

Teodosic averaged 9.5 points and 4.6 assists during his first NBA season, starting 36 of the 45 games.

Kornet, Hicks Receive Qualifying Offers From Knicks

June 23rd, 2018 at 9:43am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks have extended qualifying offers to both Luke Kornet and Isaiah Hicks, according to RealGM’s Transactions log. Those moves make them restricted free agents next month.

That duo signed one-year, two-way contracts last season. According to the latest CBA, the qualifying offer is a two-way contract, with $50K guaranteed.

At least one of them would have to eventually sign a regular contract for next season, since the club has reached an agreement with Arizona guard Allonzo Trier for one of their two-way deals.

Kornet, a 7’1” power forward/center out of Vanderbilt, appeared in 20 games with the Knicks last season. He averaged 6.7 PPG, 3.2 RPG and 1.3 APG in 16.4 MPG. Hicks, a 6’9” forward from North Carolina, saw action in 18 NBA games and posted averages of 4.4 PPG and 2.3 RPG in 13.3 MPG.

Wilson Chandler Opts In With Nuggets

June 23rd, 2018 at 9:07am CST by Dana Gauruder

JUNE 23rd, 9:07 am: Chandler has officially opted in, according to RealGM’s Transactions log.

JUNE 22nd, 5:11 pm: Nuggets forward Wilson Chandler will opt in for the final year of his contract, Chris Haynes of ESPN tweets. Chandler will make $12.8MM rather than test the free agent market.

Chandler had until Sunday to make a decision on his option. With Gary Harris‘ extension kicking in next season, the Nuggets now have a handful of players making between $12.8MM-$29.7MM.

Chandler started 71 of the 74 games in which he played last season but his role diminished. He averaged just 8.5 shots per game, his lowest total since his rookie year with the Knicks in 2007/08. His 10 PPG were his lowest since 2011/12, when he played just eight games.

That was a stark contrast to the previous season, when Chandler averaged 15.7 PPG – second-most in his career – and a career-high 6.5 RPG.

The 6’9” Chandler could see an even bigger dip in playing time if the team’s draft pick, Michael Porter Jr., is healthy enough to play regularly. Porter slipped to the No. 14 overall spot because of long-term health concerns after he underwent back surgery in his lone college campaign at Missouri.

Clippers’ Austin Rivers Exercises 2018/19 Option

June 23rd, 2018 at 9:03am CST by Arthur Hill

JUNE 23, 9:03am: Rivers has officially opted in, according to RealGM’s Transactions log.

JUNE 21, 2:37pm: Clippers guard Austin Rivers plans to opt in for next season on a $12.65MM contract, tweets Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times.

Rivers’ move is one of three major player option decisions for the Clippers, who are also waiting to hear from DeAndre Jordan ($24,119,025) and Milos Teodosic ($6.3MM).

Rivers, 25, put up career-best numbers in his third full season in L.A., averaging 15.1 points and 4.0 assists in 61 games. He became a full-time starter this season, but missed six weeks with an injured right ankle.

Warriors Waive Chris Boucher

June 22nd, 2018 at 7:30pm CST by Luke Adams

7:30pm: The move is official, according to a team press release.

3:13pm: The Warriors will waive forward Chris Boucher, opening up a two-way slot on their roster, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

Boucher, 25, signed a two-way contract with the Warriors last offseason after going undrafted out of Oregon. Although he was a member of the team’s 17-man roster for the entire 2017/18 season, he appeared in just one NBA game, spending most of his time with Golden State’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz.

As Anthony Slater and Tim Kawakami of The Athletic observe (via Twitter), the Warriors are looking to fill their two-way contract slots with young players who are capable of earning NBA minutes, as Quinn Cook did last season. Boucher probably isn’t at that point.

With Cook now on the NBA roster and Boucher headed for waivers, both of the Warriors’ two-way slots will be open for 2018/19.

Cougars Guard Rob Gray Gets Invite From Rockets

June 22nd, 2018 at 6:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

University of Houston guard Rob Gray will play for the Rockets’ summer league team and apparently has a training-camp invite, according to Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle.

Gray revealed the agreement in a text to Duarte.

“I will be playing summer league/training camp with them trying to earn a roster spot for the upcoming season,” Gray said.

Gray did not get drafted despite being a prolific scorer the past two seasons. He averaged 19.3 PPG, 4.4 APG and 3.7 RPG in his senior year while leading Houston to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, where it lost on a buzzer-beater to eventually national championship runner-up Michigan. Gray averaged 31.0 PPG and 9.0 RPG in those tournament games.

The 6’1” Gray shot 35.9% from long range last season after making 38.2% of his 3-point attempts as a junior, when he averaged 20.3 PPG.