Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nets Agree To Sign Jeremy Senglin, Jacob Wiley

June 23rd, 2017 at 2:50pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets are poised to add a pair of undrafted rookies on free agent contracts, according to reports. A league source tells Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link) that Jeremy Senglin has agreed to a partially guaranteed deal with Brooklyn, while Matt Norlander of CBSSports.com reports (via Twitter) that Jacob Wiley will get a two-way contract and a partial guarantee from the club.

Senglin, a point guard out of Weber State, averaged 21.1 PPG during his senior season, with an impressive shooting line of .522/.429/.766. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com ranked him 48th among NCAA seniors in this year’s draft class.

As for Wiley, the 6’7″ forward out of Eastern Washington impressed teams in pre-draft workouts with his “intensity and relentless motor,” according to Ian Begley of ESPN.com, who adds that Wiley also displayed the ability to guard multiple positions. He averaged 21.1 PPG and 9.2 RPG in his senior year in 2016/17.

The deals are not yet official.

Clippers Expected To Sign Isaiah Hicks

June 23rd, 2017 at 1:38pm CST by Luke Adams

Former North Carolina forward Isaiah Hicks will sign a contract with the Clippers, reports TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link). Aldridge doesn’t offer any specifics, but it sounds like it will be a training camp deal for Hicks. He’ll be eligible to officially sign once the 2017/18 league year begins in July.

Hicks, the No. 60 prospect on Jonathan Givony’s big board at DraftExpress, was a member of UNC’s championship team during his final season with the Tar Heels. In 38 games, he averaged 11.6 PPG and 5.4 RPG.

The Clippers, having made it a priority to get younger and more athletic this offseason, have been active in adding young talent within the last 24 hours. The Clippers acquired the No. 48 overall pick and used it to draft Sindarius Thornwell on Thursday night. The team also reportedly traded for the No. 39 pick and selected Jawun Evans, though that transaction – like Hicks’ deal – isn’t yet official.

Lakers Agree To Sign P.J. Dozier

June 23rd, 2017 at 9:30am CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers have reached an agreement with undrafted free agent P.J. Dozier, according to Chris Haynes of ESPN.com, who reports (via Twitter) that the former South Carolina guard will sign a free agent contract with Los Angeles. Details of the deal aren’t yet known.

Dozier, who declared for the draft this spring following his sophomore year, averaged 13.9 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 1.7 SPG for South Carolina last season. Although he wasn’t selected on Thursday night, he was viewed as a top-60 prospect by DraftExpress, ranking 52nd on Jonathan Givony’s big board.

The Lakers won’t be able to make Dozier’s deal official until the new league year begins in July, but when they do, he’ll join a promising group of rookies in Los Angeles. The club added Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, and Thomas Bryant in Thursday’s draft, which was Magic Johnson‘s first as president of basketball operations.

Knicks Agree To Sign Nigel Hayes, Luke Kornet

June 23rd, 2017 at 8:32am CST by Luke Adams

After nabbing Frank Ntilikina and two other prospects in Thursday night’s draft, the Knicks continue to secure young talent, having struck two deals with undrafted rookies, according to reports.

Former Wisconsin big man Nigel Hayes, who will play for the Knicks in Summer League, has also agreed to a free agent contract with the team, league sources tell Ian Begley of ESPN.com (Twitter link). According to Begley, Hayes’ training camp contract will include a partial guarantee.

Meanwhile, ESPN’s Chris Haynes reports (via Twitter) that the Knicks are also in agreement with former Vanderbilt big man Luke Kornet. League sources inform Haynes that Kornet’s deal will be a two-way contract, meaning he figures to spend most of the 2017/18 season in the G League with the Westchester Knicks.

Both Hayes and Kornet were viewed as top-100 prospects by DraftExpress, with Hayes coming in at No. 80, while Kornet ranked 69th. Their deals with the Knicks aren’t yet official, since undrafted free agents can’t sign contracts until at least July.

Sixers, Melo Trimble Agree To Deal

June 23rd, 2017 at 7:43am CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have reached an agreement on a free agent contract with former Maryland point guard Melo Trimble, reports Chris Haynes of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Trimble was draft-eligible this year, but wasn’t one of the 60 picks made on Thursday night.

Trimble is coming off a 2016/17 season in which he averaged 16.8 PPG, 3.7 APG, and 3.6 RPG for the Terrapins. The 6’3″ guard was a junior last season, but elected to forgo his remaining NCAA eligibility by entering the draft a year early. He ranked 84th on DraftExpress’ big board.

The 76ers have now reached reported deals with both Trimble and Indiana’s James Blackmon Jr. since the draft ended. The expectation is that those players will be in camp with Philadelphia this fall, though neither deal can be made official until after the new league year begins in July, and camp signings often aren’t finalized until later in the offseason.

Bulls Trade Jimmy Butler To Timberwolves

June 23rd, 2017 at 12:43am CST by Arthur Hill

JUNE 22, 8:58pm: The trade is now official, with commissioner Adam Silver announcing it during the TV broadcast of tonight’s draft. The Wolves used the No. 16 pick on Creighton’s Justin Patton to complete the deal.

6:44pm: The Timberwolves are set to acquire Bulls forward Jimmy Butler, with K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune tweeting that the two sides have reached an agreement in principle on a Butler deal.

According to Johnson (via Twitter), the Bulls will receive Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn, and the No. 7 overall pick. The Wolves will also receive the No. 16 selection from Chicago. Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter) first reported that a deal was close.

The deal reunites Butler with Tom Thibodeau, his former coach in Chicago, who now serves as coach and president of basketball operations in Minnesota. Butler has been an All-Star the past three seasons and averaged 23.9 points and 6.2 rebounds with the Bulls this year.

The Timberwolves are taking on much more salary in the deal than they are unloading. They had about $24MM in available cap room after waiving Nikola Pekovic on Tuesday and receiving cap relief for his remaining salary.

Butler has three seasons left on the $95MM deal he signed with the Bulls in 2015. He is due to make nearly $18.7MM next year and more than $19.8MM in both 2018/19 and 2019/20. He also has a 5% trade bonus in his contract, tweets Bobby Marks of The Vertical, giving him an extra $1.8MM over the next three seasons.

In return, the Bulls will receive LaVine, a promising 22-year-old combo guard whose season ended in early February when he suffered a torn ACL in his left knee; and Dunn, the fifth overall pick last year. Both players are on rookie contracts and were discussed when the two teams talked about a Butler trade a year ago. Chicago will also land Lauri Markkanen, the seventh overall pick.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Clippers Acquire Sindarius Thornwell From Bucks

June 23rd, 2017 at 12:35am CST by Luke Adams

JUNE 23, 12:35am: The deal is official, with the Clippers sending cash considerations to the Bucks in exchange for Thornwell’s draft rights, per a press release.

JUNE 22, 11:03pm: Having already reached a deal for the No. 39 pick, the Clippers have picked up another second-rounder, according to Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times. Turner reports (via Twitter) that Los Angeles has bought the No. 48 overall pick from the Bucks.

The Clippers are using the pick on South Carolina guard Sindarius Thornwell, per Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link).

Thornwell was the SEC Player of the Year in 2016/17, averaging 21.4 PPG to go along with 7.2 RPG and 2.1 SPG. He also upped his shooting percentages to .445/.395/.830, all career-bests.

The exact details of the deal aren’t yet known, but it appears that the Clippers paid cash to obtain the pick from Milwaukee.

Wizards Reach Agreement With Kris Jenkins

June 23rd, 2017 at 12:18am CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards have reached a free agent agreement with Villanova’s Kris Jenkins, tweets David Aldridge of TNT.

Jenkins is best known as the hero of the 2016 NCAA championship game, when he sank a last-second shot to defeat North Carolina. The 6’6″ forward returned to the Wildcats for his senior season and put up 13.1 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.

Washington didn’t have any picks in tonight’s draft and will be looking for inexpensive players to help rebuild its bench, so Jenkins may have a chance to make the 15-man roster.

Rockets Trade Dillon Brooks To Grizzlies

June 23rd, 2017 at 12:11am CST by Arthur Hill

JUNE 23, 12:11am: The trade is now official, the Grizzlies confirmed in a press release announcing the acquisitions of both Brooks and Rabb.

JUNE 22, 10:47pm: The Rockets drafted Oregon’s Dillon Brooks at No. 45 and will trade him to Memphis, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. In return, Houston will receive the worst of the Grizzlies’ 2018 second-rounders. In addition to their own, Memphis has the rights to picks from Charotte and Miami.

A 6’7″ junior, Brooks averaged 16.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game for the Ducks. He could be part of a youth movement for the Grizzlies, who also acquired 35th pick Ivan Rabb from the Magic tonight.

Houston eliminated a potential financial commitment by dealing the 45th pick and using the 43rd choice on 19-year-old Isaiah Hartenstein, who will likely spend at least one more year overseas. That fits in with the Rockets’ reported desire to clear cap room and pursue elite free agents next month.

Cooke, Beachem Agree To Deals With Wolves

June 23rd, 2017 at 12:03am CST by Arthur Hill

Dayton’s Charles Cooke has agreed to a free agent contract with the Timberwolves, tweets Chris Haynes of ESPN.com. The 6’5″ senior averaged 15.7 points per game with the Flyers this year, but wasn’t listed among the Draft Express top 100 prospects.

The Wolves also reached an agreement with Notre Dame senior small forward V.J. Beachem, according to David Aldridge of TNT (Twitter link). Beachem averaged 14.5 points per night and is 67th on the Draft Express list. Neither deal can become official until after July 1st, per league rules.

Minnesota dealt away Zach LaVine in tonight’s trade for Jimmy Butler, so there may be an opportunity for Cooke or Beachem to make a run at a roster spot.