Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Celtics Sign Jonathan Holmes, Devin Williams

September 26th, 2017 at 5:02pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics have finalized their training camp roster by signing Jonathan Holmes and Devin Williams to fill their last two roster spots, the team announced today in a press release. Boston is now carrying the maximum 20 players.

Holmes, 24, went undrafted out of Texas in 2015 and saw his rookie season derailed by a torn labrum. Last fall, Holmes joined the Cavs for camp but didn’t make the team’s regular season roster and spent most of the season playing in the G League for the Canton Charge, Cleveland’s affiliate. The power forward’s rights were traded to the Maine Red Claws this week, signaling that the C’s expect him to play for their G League squad.

As for Williams, the 23-year-old power forward played his final game for West Virginia in 2016, forgoing his senior year to enter the draft. He went undrafted last June and spent last season with Melbourne United in Australia and with the Greensboro Swarm in the G League.

The two signings signal that the Celtics won’t carry Daniel Dixon on their training camp roster at this time. Multiple outlets reported in August that Dixon had reached an agreement with Boston, but that deal either fell through or will be finalized at a later date.

Suns Sign T.J. Warren To Four-Year Extension

September 26th, 2017 at 4:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

SEPTEMBER 26: The Suns have officially signed Warren to a rookie scale extension, the team announced today in a press release.

“We are excited about extending T.J.’s contract,” Suns GM Ryan McDonough said in a statement. “T.J. has improved every year and we think he has the potential to continue to grow as he just begins to approach his prime. We view T.J. as an important part of our young core going forward and we are glad that we were able to reach an agreement on this extension.”

SEPTEMBER 25: The Suns and forward T.J. Warren have come to terms on a four-year, $50MM extension, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

Warren will make $3.15MM this season and was eligible to become a restricted free agent next summer. The deadline for the extension was October 16.

Warren became a starter last season, averaging 14.4 PPG and 5.1 RPG in 31.0 MPG. He appeared in 66 games, 59 as a starter, and missed 13 games in November and December due to a head injury. The 6’8” Warren, who is expected to be Suns’ starting small forward again this season, has made 50.2% of his shots during his three-year career but needs work on his 3-point game (31.2%).

Phoenix can afford to extend a young player on the rise, as it has just $62.7MM on guaranteed commitments for the 2018/19 season, not including Warren’s new deal.

The Suns only lose $2MM on cap space because Warren had a $9.5MM free agent cap hold next offseason, Bobby Marks of ESPN notes.

With Warren in the fold, the Suns should have a stable roster in the next couple of years. The only significant player headed to unrestricted free agency next summer is center Alex Len, who recently signed his qualifying offer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rockets Waive Shawn Long

September 26th, 2017 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have formally waived big man Shawn Long, the team announced today (via Twitter). Long will clear waivers and become an unrestricted free agent on Thursday, assuming no other NBA team places a claim on him.

An undrafted free agent out of Louisiana-Lafayette, Long appeared in 18 games for the Sixers in his rookie season, and was productive in limited minutes. The 6’9″ center averaged 8.2 PPG and 4.7 RPG in just 13.0 minutes per contest. He was even better in the G League, averaging a double-double (20.2 PPG, 11.1 RPG) in 39 games for the Delaware 87ers.

Despite his solid rookie year, Long wasn’t viewed as part of Philadelphia’s long-term plans, and was sent to Houston in a June trade when the Rockets were collecting non-guaranteed salaries with an eye toward including them in a bigger deal.

Ultimately, the Rockets never found a use for Long in a trade, and are now waiving him before they’re committed to paying any of his 2017/18 salary — the 24-year-old would have seen his non-guaranteed contract become partially guaranteed for $50K if he had remained under contract beyond today.

Houston now has 19 players on its training camp roster.

Jazz Sign Taylor Braun

September 26th, 2017 at 1:59pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz have filled the final spot on their 20-man training camp roster by signing free agent swingman Taylor Braun, the team announced today in a press release.

Braun, who went undrafted out of North Dakota State in 2014, has caught on with a couple NBA teams for Summer League action since then, but has mostly spent his time playing overseas. Braun played in Belgium during his first professional season, and has spent the last couple years in Germany.

In his final college season back in 2013/14, Braun averaged 17.6 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 3.8 APG, and 1.5 SPG, making 41.4% of his three-point attempts. He was named the Summit League Player of the Year and helped North Dakota State pull off an upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Having signed Braun, the Jazz now have 20 players under contract, including 15 on guaranteed deals and two on two-way contracts. Braun figures to be one of the three players in Utah camp on non-guaranteed contracts, along with Naz Mitrou-Long and Raul Neto.

Kings Sign Marcus Williams

September 26th, 2017 at 1:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Former first-round pick Marcus Williams is back on an NBA roster, according to the Kings, who issued a press release today announcing that they’ve signed the veteran point guard to a contract. Terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed, but a non-guaranteed pact seems likely.

Williams, 31, was the 22nd overall pick in the 2006 draft, but the UConn product spent just four years in the league, appearing in 203 total games for the Nets, Warriors, and Grizzlies. He hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since the 2009/10 season, making the signing a curious one for the Kings.

Although he hasn’t been playing in the NBA since 2010, Williams has continued his professional career overseas, spending time with clubs in Russia, China, Spain, Serbia, and Montenegro. Most recently, he signed a deal in March with Cholet Basket in France.

The signing of Williams may have been influenced by Kings assistant general manager Ken Catanella. The veteran executive worked in the Nets’ front office from 2006 to 2008, which were the same years that Williams spent with the club.

Williams should not be confused with the former Arizona forward of the same name, who last played in the NBA for the Spurs in 2008/09.

Cavaliers Sign JaCorey Williams

September 26th, 2017 at 1:37pm CST by Luke Adams

1:37pm: Williams’ deal with the Cavs is now official, the team confirmed in a press release.

8:24am: The Cavaliers will fill the final spot on their 20-man training camp roster by signing undrafted rookie JaCorey Williams, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. According to McMenamin, Williams will likely ink an Exhibit 10 deal, which could be converted into a two-way contract next month.

Williams, a 6’8″ forward, played his first three college seasons at Arkansas, but didn’t see much action for the Razorbacks, averaging just 11.9 minutes per game in 96 total contests for the program. After transferring to Middle Tennessee State for his senior year, Williams enjoyed a breakout season, averaging 17.3 PPG and 7.3 RPG. He was named the Conference USA Player of the Year for 2016/17.

After Williams went undrafted in June, it initially appeared that he may end up in camp with the Warriors, but his agreement with Golden State only spanned Summer League play. Rather than joining the defending NBA champions, Williams will head to camp with the Eastern Conference champs, and the Cavs are intent on having him develop with the Canton Charge, their G League affiliate, McMenamin notes. Williams may end up as an affiliate player if he doesn’t land in one of the club’s two-way slots.

While the Cavs will have a full 20-man roster after finalizing Williams’ deal, the signing won’t preclude a pursuit of Dwyane Wade, who is on track to clear waivers on Wednesday. Cleveland would need to waive or trade a player to add Wade, but such a move would have been necessary by opening night anyway if Wade chooses the Cavs, since the team already has 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts.

Bulls Re-Sign Nikola Mirotic

September 26th, 2017 at 12:17pm CST by marksuleymanov

SEPTEMBER 26: The Bulls have officially re-signed Mirotic, the team announced today in a press release. The club’s roster count is now at 19 players, including 13 on guaranteed deals.

SEPTEMBER 24: The Bulls have agreed to re-sign Nikola Mirotic to a two-year, $27MM deal, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical. Mirotic has a right to veto any trade in the first year of his new Bulls deal, Charania adds. Mitrocic’s second year will include a team option, per Vincent Goodwill of CSN Chicago (Twitter link).

Mirotic, 26, has been a steady scoring presence for Chicago the last three seasons. The Montenegro native averaged 10.6 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 70 games (15 starts) for the Bulls last season. The 6’10” forward was one of the last restricted free agents on the market — with Mirotic returning to Chicago and Alex Len signing his qualifying offer in Phoenix, Grizzlies forward JaMychal Green is now the final unsigned RFA.

Earlier this week, we noted that Mirotic had not made any progress but that his qualifying offer remained on the table. Now, he has a multiyear deal that will keep him in Chicago.

Pacers Sign Forward Jarrod Uthoff

September 25th, 2017 at 5:35pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 25, 5:35pm: The signing is official, per team release.

SEPTEMBER 21, 1:53pm: The Pacers have reached an agreement on a deal with free agent forward Jarrod Uthoff, reports Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). When Indiana finalizes the signing of Uthoff, it will bring the team’s roster count to 20 players, the offseason maximum.

Uthoff, 24, played his college ball at Iowa before going undrafted in 2016. After spending some time in the G League, Uthoff signed a 10-day contract with the Mavs in March, then stuck around for another 10-day contract and a rest-of-season deal. He was traded to the Rockets after the season when Houston was collecting non-guaranteed contracts, and was subsequently waived before his 2017/18 salary became guaranteed.

Although Uthoff played sparingly during his end-of-season run with the Mavs, he put up excellent shooting numbers in the G League. In 37 games for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Raptors 905, and Texas Legends, the 6’9″ forward made an impressive 46.2% of his attempts from three-point range, averaging 11.1 PPG.

The Pacers only have 13 players on fully guaranteed contracts, so it’s possible Uthoff will get an opportunity to earn one of the club’s final two roster spots. He’ll compete with the likes of DeQuan Jones, Trey McKinney-Jones, Ben Moore, and Damien Wilkins.

Bulls Buy Out Dwyane Wade

September 25th, 2017 at 4:25pm CST by Austin Kent

SEPTEMBER 25, 4:25pm: Wade has been formally placed on waivers, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets. He will clear waivers on Wednesday, Charania adds.

SEPTEMBER 24, 8:36pm: The Bulls and Dwyane Wade have reached an agreement on a buyout, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets.

The early favorites for Wade’s services are the Spurs, Cavaliers and Heat, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. Miami is currently positioned to pay him the most money this season.

Within minutes, Wojnarowski followed up with another tweet saying that Cleveland was a “clear frontrunner.”

Per Bobby Marks of ESPN, the Heat can sign Wade for $4.2MM and the Spurs can sign him for $3.3MM. The Cavaliers at $2.5MM could pay little over the veteran’s minimum.

The idea of Wade suiting up elsewhere in 2017/18 has been a popular topic ever since the organization traded Jimmy Butler to the Timberwolves earlier this summer.

It’s been said that Wade felt misled by the organization at the beginning of the offseason, given assurances that the team would remain competitive in his final year with the squad should he opt into his 2017/18 player option.

Wade, of course, did opt in but the Bulls soon changed course, trading Butler for a package centered around Zach LaVine and Minnesota’s No. 7 overall pick.

In the months since, the Bulls and Wade have gone back and forth in seemingly amicable negotiations.

Per Wojnarowski (also on Twitter), Wade will forfeit about $8MM of his $23.8MM contract, leaving the Bulls on the hook for around $16MM through 2017/18.

Considering that Chicago currently runs the risk of falling below the salary floor for the season, keeping the bulk of the veteran’s deal on their books isn’t particularly cumbersome.

Chicago came to an agreement with Nikola Mirotic earlier today that would have pushed the Bulls above the $89.2MM floor but the Wade buyout will drop them below yet again as training camps around the league begin in earnest.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Raptors Sign Andy Rautins

September 25th, 2017 at 12:50pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 25: The Raptors have officially signed Rautins to complete their roster for training camp, the club confirmed today in a press release.

SEPTEMBER 22: The Raptors will fill the final spot on their roster with former Syracuse sharpshooter Andy Rautins, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Rautins has agreed to a camp deal with Toronto. Wojnarowski notes that Rautins’ shooting made an impression on the Raptors in workouts.

Rautins, the 38th overall pick in the 2010 draft, only appeared in five NBA games with the Knicks, and hasn’t played in a regular season contest since the 2010/11 season. Since then, the 6’4″ shooting guard has played for a handful of teams overseas, in addition to spending time in the G League.

Most recently, Rautins has spent the last two seasons in Turkey playing for Gaziantep. In 2016/17, he appeared in 30 Turkish League games for the team, averaging 11.9 PPG and 4.7 APG to go along with a .391 3PT%.

While Rautins won’t enter training camp as a favorite to earn a regular season roster spot with the Raptors, the team is only carrying 13 guaranteed salaries, leaving up to two slots available on the roster. K.J. McDaniels, Kyle Wiltjer, Alfonzo McKinnie, and Kennedy Meeks also figure to be in the running for those spots.

It’s also worth noting that Rautins is the son of Leo Rautins, who has been covering the Raptors as a broadcaster since the team’s inception.