Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Gary Neal Signs With Spanish Team

September 23rd, 2017 at 1:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

Veteran shooting guard Gary Neal, who played briefly for the Hawks last season, has reached an agreement in Spain, according to Sportando. Neal will play for Tecnyconta Zaragoza.

Neal appeared in two games for the Hawks after signing a 10-day deal in January. He scored four points in 18 total minutes and wasn’t re-signed. He returned to the G League, first with the Texas Legends, then the Reno Bighorns.

Neal, who will turn 33 next month, played for six teams in six NBA seasons. His best year was 2013/14, when he averaged 10.5 points per game while splitting time with the Bucks and Bobcats.

Thomas Robinson Signs To Play In Russia

September 23rd, 2017 at 10:44am CST by marksuleymanov

Former first-round pick from the 2012 NBA Draft, Thomas Robinson, has agreed to a deal to play for Khimki Moscow in Russia, according to basketball journalist David Pick (Twitter link).

Robinson, 26, was selected fifth overall by the Kings in 2012. However, in five NBA seasons, Robinson has played for six teams, including the Kings, Rockets, Blazers, Sixers, Nets, and most recently the Lakers. In 48 games (one starts) in Los Angeles last season, Robinson averaged 5.0 PPG and 4.6 RPG.

Last month, Robinson worked out for the Celtics as the team looked to fill a roster spot, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Robinson told HoopsHype earlier this offseason that he just wanted a chance and that he could be a top-10 rebounder in the NBA.

Robinson joins a Khimki roster that includes former NBA players Alexey Shved, Charles Jenkins, James Anderson, and Tyler Honeycutt. In 2013, Robinson was traded along with Honeycutt and Francisco García to the exchange for Patrick Patterson, Toney Douglas, and Cole Aldrich. Khimki’s roster also features Marko Todorović, the Blazers’ 45th overall pick from 2013, who once was traded to the Rockets in a deal to acquire Robinson.

Rockets Sign Chris Johnson

September 22nd, 2017 at 8:55pm CST by Austin Kent

SEPTEMBER 22: Johnson’s deal is now official, per the NBA’s transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 21: The Rockets will sign swingman Chris Johnson tomorrow, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. The journeyman’s deal will be partially guaranteed.

Johnson is one of two recent NBA players who share the same name, this one – the younger one at 27 years of age – having played more recently than the other via a 70-game stint with the Jazz in 2015/16.

With Utah, his latest of five brief tenures with NBA franchises, Johnson averaged 2.9 points in 12.2 minutes per game. He’ll enter camp with the Rockets as their 20th player, a number that includes the reported agreement with Bobby Brown.

Houston already boasts a decent amount of depth at the three, so Johnson will have an uphill battle clawing his way into the mix with Trevor Ariza, P.J. Tucker and Troy Williams before opening day.

Suns Acquire Troy Daniels In Trade

September 22nd, 2017 at 6:25pm CST by Austin Kent

The Grizzlies have traded shooting guard Troy Daniels to the Suns in exchange for a second-round pick, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets.

John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7, also privy to the deal, adds that the Suns will also acquire a second-round pick in the deal and that the pick the Grizzlies will acquire is heavily protected.

As details emerged, Charania has summarized the deal as follows: Phoenix receives Daniels and the middle of Memphis’ second-rounders (they hold their own, Charlotte’s and Miami’s). The Grizz, in contrast, who free up nearly $4MM in cap room this season by pulling the trigger here, acquire the top-55 protected second-rounder.

Shipping Daniels to Phoenix drops Memphis down to 19 players (15 guaranteed), freeing up a roster spot and creating a little extra spending flexibility as they pursue a deal with restricted free agent JaMychal Green.

Having spent time with four franchises over the course of his four-year career, Daniels’ impact on the court is negligible. He hasn’t, however, been given a significant chance to showcase his abilities.

Daniels’ best season in the NBA thus far was his first. As a rookie with the Rockets, he posted 8.4 points in 17.7 minutes per game.

Bucks Waive JeQuan Lewis

September 22nd, 2017 at 4:15pm CST by Austin Kent

The Bucks have waived JeQuan Lewis, the team announced in a press release on its website. The guard initially signed on with the club in early July but couldn’t break through what’s turned out to be a crowded backcourt.

The release of Lewis marks Milwaukee’s third cut in the past two weeks. Yesterday they requested waivers on Bronson Koenig and prior to that they waived Jalen Moore.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes, the Bucks had signed Lewis to an Exhibit 10. Had he remained with the franchise’s G League affiliate for 60 days, he would have earned $50K.

Lewis went undrafted out of VCU this summer.

Suns Sign Anthony Bennett

September 22nd, 2017 at 1:36pm CST by Luke Adams

1:36pm: The Suns have officially signed Bennett, according to RealGM’s transactions log.

10:00am: The Suns have reached an agreement to sign former first overall pick Anthony Bennett to a contract, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical (via Twitter). According to Charania, Bennett’s deal with Phoenix will be non-guaranteed.

Bennett, 24, has bounced around the NBA since being selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Cavaliers in the 2013 draft. After spending his rookie season in Cleveland, Bennett was part of the trade that sent Kevin Love to the Cavs, and played for the Timberwolves in his second season. Since then, the power forward has also spent time with the Raptors and Nets, but didn’t see much action for either club. In total, he has averaged 4.4 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 151 career NBA games (12.6 MPG).

Bennett’s most recent NBA experience came early in the 2016/17 season, when he appeared in 23 games for Brooklyn. He was waived by the Nets in January and headed to Turkey to play with Fenerbache for the rest of the season. According to Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun (Twitter link), the UNLV product battled an ankle injury over the summer, but he seems to be healthy enough now to get a look from the Suns.

Currently, the Suns are carrying 12 players on fully guaranteed contracts, which could leave an opening for Bennett to make the team’s regular season roster. However, Alex Len is expected to sign his qualifying offer soon, and would claim one of those final three spots. Derrick Jones, who is on a non-guaranteed contract, looks like a good bet to make the roster too, so Bennett may end up competing with the likes of Elijah Millsap and Peter Jok to be Phoenix’s 15th man.

Sixers Sign Jacob Pullen

September 22nd, 2017 at 1:34pm CST by Luke Adams

1:34pm: The Sixers’ deal with Pullen is official, per RealGM’s log of NBA transactions.

8:43am: The Sixers and point guard Jacob Pullen have agreed to a deal that will see Pullen attend training camp with the club, according to international basketball reporter David Pick (Twitter link).

Pullen, a former Kansas State standout, went undrafted in 2011 and has spent his professional career since then playing for a variety of teams overseas. Following stints in Italy, Israel, Spain, and Croatia, the 27-year-old spent the 2016/17 season playing for BC Khimki in Russia, averaging 8.9 PPG in 23 VTB United League games and 10.3 PPG in 17 EuroCup contests. He also recently attended a free agent mini-camp hosted by the Bucks.

While terms of Pullen’s agreement with the Sixers aren’t yet known, he’ll have an uphill battle to actually earn a regular season roster spot with the club. Philadelphia only has 12 players on fully guaranteed contracts, but Robert Covington, Richaun Holmes, and T.J. McConnell aren’t among those players with full guarantees, and they’re essentially locks to open the season on the roster.

Finalizing a deal with Pullen would give the 76ers a roster count of 18 players with training camp around the corner.

Bulls Sign Jarell Eddie, Jaylen Johnson

September 22nd, 2017 at 1:22pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls have finalized a pair of signings, inking Jarell Eddie and Jaylen Johnson to contracts, according to RealGM’s log of official NBA transactions. While details of those deals aren’t known, I’d anticipate little to no guaranteed money for Eddie and Johnson.

Eddie, who will turn 26 next month, is a 6’7″ swingman who has seen NBA action with the Wizards and Suns over the last two years. Having gone undrafted in 2014, Eddie played for the G League’s Austin Spurs in his rookie season, then made his NBA debut with the Wizards in 2015/16, playing sparingly in 26 games for the club. Last season, Eddie signed a pair of 10-day contracts with Phoenix near the end of the season, appearing in just five games for the Suns.

As for Johnson, the former Louisville power forward entered the draft this spring following his junior year, but wasn’t selected in June. The 21-year-old averaged 8.0 PPG and 5.8 RPG in his final college season, with a .589 FG%.

The two signings bring Chicago’s roster count to 19 players, with restricted free agent Nikola Mirotic the likeliest candidate to fill the final roster spot. If we assume that Mirotic eventually re-signs and that Eddie and Johnson didn’t get guaranteed contracts, the Bulls would have 14 players on fully guaranteed deals. That would leave one roster spot up for grabs, assuming the team enters the season with a full 15-man squad.

While Eddie could compete with Diamond Stone and David Nwaba for that final spot, Johnson seems like a good bet to end up as an affiliate player for the Windy City Bulls.

Timberwolves Sign Aaron Brooks

September 21st, 2017 at 4:43pm CST by Austin Kent

8:44pm: The Wolves have signed Brooks, Zgoda confirms, citing a press release from the club.

4:43pm: Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press has tweeted that he believes the deal is done.

3:15pm: The Timberwolves are expected to sign Aaron Brooks before training camp opens on Saturday, Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune tweets. The 32-year-old point guard played 65 games for the Pacers last season.

A Brooks deal would reunite the nine-year veteran with former head coach Tom Thibodeau. Brooks played 151 games for the Bulls from 2014-2016, averaging 9.6 points and 2.9 assists per game in the process.

The Wolves currently have 16 players on their roster, only 12 of whom have guaranteed deals, so there’s certainly room for Brooks to carve out a role for himself into the regular season although no details of what a potential contract might look like have been revealed.

Don’t expect the vet to siphon any time or opportunity away from incumbents Jeff Teague or Tyus Jones but he could fill a niche as an aggressive guard familiar with Thibodeau’s style.

Bucks Waive Bronson Koenig

September 21st, 2017 at 4:29pm CST by Austin Kent

The Bucks have requested waivers on guard Bronson Koenig, the team announced on its official website. The 22-year-old former Wisconsin Badger initially signed a two-way deal with the franchise back in July.

Koenig wrapped up his final season with the Badgers this spring as the school’s all-time three-point leader and quickly signed on with Milwaukee when that chapter ended.

Given Milwaukee’s crowded backcourt, it’s not surprising that the team let the 6’3″ guard go. Behind Malcolm Brogdon and Matthew Dellavedova, journeymen Gary Payton II and Kendall Marshall are the current frontrunners to emerge as the club’s third point guard.

Koenig’s release comes less than two weeks after the Bucks waived Jalen Moore – another player they had signed to a two-way deal.