Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Sign DeAndre Liggins

October 10th, 2017 at 11:23am CST by Arthur Hill

Swingman DeAndre Liggins has signed with the Heat, the team announced on its website.

The deal caps an eventful stretch for Liggins, who is joining his sixth team in six months. After playing 61 games for the Cavaliers last season, he was waived in April and claimed by the Mavericks. He played just one game in Dallas before the season ended and was traded to the Rockets in late June. Houston sent Liggins to the Clippers as part of the Chris Paul deal, then late last month, L.A. shipped him and with cash considerations to Atlanta, which immediately waived him.

This will be the second stint in Miami for Liggins, who signed two 10-day contracts and played one game for the team in 2014. He spent two seasons with Miami’s G League affiliate in Sioux Falls, twice earning Defensive Player of the Year honors.

Shawn Long Will Play In China

October 10th, 2017 at 9:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Former Sixers big man Shawn Long, who was briefly acquired by the Rockets this summer, has reached a deal with the Xinjiang Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association, tweets international writer David Pick.

The 24-year-old signed with Philadelphia last summer after going undrafted out of Louisiana-Lafayette. He was waived before the season started, but rejoined the team in March on a 10-day contract and earned a multi-year deal with a partial guarantee.

The Rockets traded for him in June when they were acquiring several low-salary deals without full guarantees for use in possible trades. Houston waived him September 26, just before a $50K guarantee for this season took effect.

Long got into 18 games for Philadelphia last season, averaging 8.2 points and 4.7 rebounds in 13 minutes per night.

Jazz Sign Torian Graham

October 9th, 2017 at 3:46pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz have signed Torian Graham to a contract, the team announced today in a press release. Details of the agreement weren’t released, but it figures to be a non-guaranteed deal.

Graham, a 6’4″ guard, spent last season at Arizona State. In 33 games, Graham averaged 18.6 PPG with 4.2 RPG, and was the team’s biggest threat from three-point range — he made outside shots at a 38.7% rate, pouring in 3.3 per game.

The Jazz had been carrying the maximum 20 players up until Saturday, when the club waived camp invitee Taylor Braun. That opened up one spot, which Utah has filled by signing Graham and getting back up to 20 players.

While the Jazz didn’t say as much in their announcement of the signing, they likely view Graham as a potential affiliate player for their G League squad, the Salt Lake City Stars.

Wizards Waive Daniel Ochefu

October 9th, 2017 at 2:41pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards have waived second-year big man Daniel Ochefu, a league source tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). The move reduces Washington’s roster count to 18 players, including two on two-way contracts.

Ochefu, who played his college ball at Villanova, signed with the Wizards last year as an undrafted free agent. The 6’11” forward/center was an unexpected addition to the club’s 15-man regular season roster and spent the year with the franchise, appearing in 19 games. Ochefu played sparingly in those contests, averaging 1.3 PPG and 1.2 RPG in 3.9 minutes per game.

Ochefu’s contract with the Wizards includes a $50K guarantee, so that figure will remain on the club’s cap for 2017/18. Washington won’t be on the hook for the rest of his minimum salary, however.

With Ochefu no longer in the mix, the Wizards have 16 players on NBA contracts, including 13 on fully guaranteed deals. The Wizards figure to part with at least one of Carrick Felix, Donald Sloan, and Sheldon Mac before the regular season begins to reach the 15-man limit. If Mac is the player waived, Washington will remain on the hook for his salary until he recovers from an Achilles tear.

Lakers Waive V.J. Beachem, Stephen Zimmerman

October 9th, 2017 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have begun to make cuts to their roster with the preseason nearing an end, announcing today in a press release that they’ve requested waivers on V.J. Beachem and Stephen Zimmerman. Beachem and Zimmerman will become unrestricted free agents on Wednesday, assuming they clear waivers.

Beachem and Zimmerman both signed contracts with the Lakers this summer, but saw very limited action during the preseason, and weren’t strong candidates to make the club’s 15-man roster.

Beachem, a 6’8″ forward who played his college ball at Notre Dame, averaged 14.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.4 3PG, and 1.1 BPG in his senior year last season. He received a $50K guarantee when he signed with the Lakers and looks like a candidate to join the club’s G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.

Zimmerman, the 41st overall pick in the 2016 draft, was waived by the Magic after just one year with the franchise, but had some success in the G League last season. In 21 games for the Erie BayHawks, the young center averaged 13.4 PPG and 8.9 RPG.

The Lakers’ roster is now down to 18 players, including one (Alex Caruso) on a two-way contract. The club will have to make at least two more roster moves before the regular season begins.

Magic Sign Rodney Purvis

October 9th, 2017 at 9:31am CST by Dana Gauruder

OCTOBER 9: The Magic and Purvis have officially finalized their agreement, with the team confirming it today in a press release. After initially announcing a 19-man preseason roster, the Magic are now at 20 players. Meanwhile, Purvis is expected to eventually play in the G League for the Lakeland Magic, tweets Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel.

AUGUST 28: Former University of Connecticut shooting guard Rodney Purvis has agreed to a partially guaranteed deal with the Magic, league sources told Ian Begley of ESPN.com. The contract includes an Exhibit 10 clause, which would give Purvis a bonus if he’s waived and then signs with the Lakeland Magic, their G League affiliate, Begley adds (Twitter links).

The Exhibit 10 clause also gives Orlando the ability to convert Purvis’ camp deal into a two-way contract prior to the season, Jared Weiss of CelticsBlog.com tweets. Currently, the Magic have just one player on a two-way deal (Adreian Payne), leaving the second spot open.

Purvis, who began his college career at North Carolina State, is a longshot to make the Magic’s opening-day roster. He went undrafted after his senior year with the Huskies. The 6’4” Purvis averaged 13.8 PPG, 4.2 RPG and 2.5 APG last season. He appeared in two games with the Jazz’s summer-league team in Las Vegas but only scored one point.

Once they finalize Purvis’ deal, the Magic will have 18 players under contract.

Bucks Waive Kendall Marshall

October 8th, 2017 at 11:02am CST by Arthur Hill

11:02am: The Bucks confirmed the move in a tweet.

10:46am: The Bucks have waived veteran point guard Kendall Marshall, tweets Matt Velazquez of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Velazquez noted Marshall’s absence from this morning’s Fan Fest scrimmage, as the team only had 19 players participating.

Marshall, 26, signed a training camp deal with Milwaukee last month. He was a lottery pick in 2012, but hasn’t been able to find an NBA home, going through brief stays with the Suns, Lakers, Bucks and Sixers. He put up good numbers with the Reno Bighorns last season and may be heading back to the G League.

This is the third roster move of the week for Milwaukee, which waived James Young Wednesday and signed Xavier Munford Thursday. Y0ung officially become a free agent after clearing waivers Saturday.

Raptors Sign Norman Powell To Extension

October 8th, 2017 at 10:22am CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 8, 10:22pm: The extension has been finalized, according to a tweet from the Raptors.

OCTOBER 5, 12:54pm: The Raptors have reached an agreement on a contract extension with swingman Norman Powell, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. According to Wojnarowski, the deal – which will go into effect for the 2018/19 season – will be worth $42MM over four years, and includes a player option for the final season.

Powell, 24, is entering his third year in the NBA, but wasn’t a first-round pick when he entered the league, which makes him eligible for a contract extension a year earlier than many of his fellow 2015 draftees.

For a player in Powell’s position, the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement allows for an extension with a starting salary worth up to 120% of the estimated average salary, with subsequent 8% annual raises. It looks like that’s the deal he’ll get — Josh Richardson, another 2015 second-rounder, signed a similar extension with the Heat earlier in the offseason.

A former UCLA standout, Powell took on a more significant role in his second season with the Raptors, averaging 8.4 PPG and 2.2 RPG in 76 regular season contests (18.0 MPG). Powell’s minutes increased following the February trade of Terrence Ross, and he was a key contributor in the postseason, upping his averages to 11.7 PPG and 3.1 RPG to go along with a .441 3PT% in nine playoff games.

With P.J. Tucker, DeMarre Carroll, and Cory Joseph among the offseason departures for the Raptors, Powell figures to become an even more crucial part of the club’s rotation going forward, giving him a chance to enjoy a breakout season in 2017/18. According to Jake Fischer of SI.com (Twitter link), the Raps were concerned about being unable to afford Powell as a restricted free agent next summer and even quietly shopped him around prior to the draft — the team is likely thrilled to lock him up at a price just above the mid-level exception.

While the Raptors secured Powell at a fair price, the franchise will now have to worry about luxury tax payments in future seasons. Assuming Toronto picks up its 2018/19 options on Jakob Poeltl, Delon Wright, and Pascal Siakam, the team was already projected to have more than $115MM in guaranteed salary on its ’18/19 cap even before the Powell extension. Powell’s deal will add another $10MM to that total, pushing the Raps over the projected tax threshold.

If staying out of the tax – or even just creating more cap flexibility – is important to the Raptors, Masai Ujiri and the front office may push to eventually find a taker for Jonas Valanciunas, who is set to earn $16.5MM+ in 2018/19.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Chasson Randle Set To Play In Spain

October 7th, 2017 at 4:24pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 7, 4:24pm: Randle has signed a one-year deal with Real Madrid, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.

OCTOBER 2, 9am: A week after being waived by the Knicks, point guard Chasson Randle appears to have secured a new job. According to a report from Spanish outlet Gigantes (English link via Orazio Cauchi of Sportando), Randle will sign with Real Madrid for the coming season.

Randle, a former Stanford standout, went undrafted in 2015 and began his professional career with a Czech team in 2015/16. Last season, Randle bounced around between a pair of Atlantic division clubs. After spending the preseason with the Knicks, he was waived and later caught on with the Sixers. When Philadelphia waived him, the 24-year-old returned to the Knicks to finish the year.

In 26 total NBA games last season, Randle averaged 5.3 PPG and 1.3 APG in 11.5 minutes per contest. He had been set to open camp with the Knicks, but when the club acquired two players in exchange for Carmelo Anthony last week, an extra roster spot was required, and Randle was cut.

If and when Randle finalizes a deal with Real Madrid, he’ll be playing alongside former NBA players like Anthony Randolph, Gustavo Ayon, and Jeffery Taylor. He’ll also be teammates with top prospect Luka Doncic.

Jazz Waive Taylor Braun

October 7th, 2017 at 3:19pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Less than two weeks after signing Taylor Braun to a training camp deal, the Jazz have waived the swingman, according to the team’s website.

The North Dakota State product appeared in two games for Utah this preseason. He saw just four minutes of action, scoring a total of four points.

Utah’s roster now sits at 19 and the team has two more preseason games before it has to make further roster cuts.