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Magic Sign Wesley Iwundu To Three-Year Deal

The Magic have signed Wesley Iwundu to a three-year, $4.1MM deal, according to Micheal Scotto of Basketball Insiders. Scotto adds that Iwundu’s deal is fully guaranteed.

Iwundu received more guaranteed money than any other second-rounder in this year’s draft class.

Orlando selected the swingman with the No. 33 overall pick in the 2017 draft out of Kansas State University. As a senior, Iwundu scored 13.0 points while pulling down 6.3 rebounds per game. He made 37.6% of his shots from behind the arc on 2.4 attempts per contest.

Pistons Sign Luis Montero To Two-Way Deal

July 24: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

July 21: Free agent guard Luis Montero is poised to sign a two-way contract with the Pistons, a league source tells Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype. It will be the first two-way deal in franchise history for Detroit.

Montero, 24, went undrafted in 2015, but caught on with the Trail Blazers and made his NBA debut for Portland during the 2015/16 season. After playing limited minutes in 12 games for the Blazers, Montero has spent most of his time with various G League clubs.

In 2016/17, Montero averaged 8.8 PPG and 6.2 RPG in 49 total contests for the Reno Bighorns and the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

Our two-way contract FAQ provides more details on two-way deals, while our tracker shows which players have signed or agreed to them so far.

Spurs Sign Matt Costello To Two-Way Deal

July 24: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

July 20: The Spurs are set to sign Summer League standout Matt Costello to a two-way contract, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link). It will be the first two-way deal in the franchise’s history.

A Michigan State alum, Costello went undrafted in 2016, but caught on with the Hawks and spent training camp with the club. The big man didn’t make Atlanta’s regular season roster, but was signed – and then waived again – by the Grizzlies at the end of the preseason so that Memphis could gain his G League rights. Costello ultimately spent the season with Iowa, averaging 9.5 PPG and 10.3 RPG in 23 contests.

Costello showed off his rebounding prowess again this summer in Las Vegas, as his 12.0 RPG led all players in Summer League action. The 23-year-old played for the Timberwolves’ squad in Summer League, and according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link), Minnesota also had significant interest in locking up Costello to a two-way contract. However, he’ll make the move to San Antonio, and figures to spend much of 2017/18 with the Austin Spurs.

For more information on how two-way contracts work and how much they pay, be sure to check out our FAQ.

Heat Sign Derrick Walton Jr. To Two-Way Deal

Miami has signed Derrick Walton Jr. to a two-way deal, according to the team’s website. The contract will be the first two-way deal in franchise history, as our updated 2017/18 NBA Two-Way Contract Tracker indicates.

Players on two-way deals will spend most of their season in the G-League since they cannot spend more than 45 days with an NBA club, as our glossary page on two-way contracts shows.

Walton Jr. spent four seasons at the University of Michigan, where he scored 11.6 points per game. As a senior, he scored 15.5 points per game while adding 4.9 assists and 4.8 rebounds per contest.

Cavaliers Hire Koby Altman As GM

The Cavaliers have named Koby Altman their new GM, according to the team’s website.

Altman, who spent the last five seasons with the franchise, was promoted to Assistant GM in September of 2016. He’s been serving as the interim GM since the team parted with David Griffin.

“Over the past month, Koby Altman has led our front office group through this transition period, impressing many inside the franchise and outside the organization, as well,” Owner Dan Gilbert said. “We are very excited that he will now be officially leading the basketball side of our franchise. Koby has the credentials, knowledge, experience and instincts to be an outstanding General Manager.

“In addition to these positive attributes and outstanding relationships around the league, Koby will inspire and impact the best possible culture throughout the organization. We are going to see a capable and passionate leader who will also cultivate new ideas and innovation. The speed of the game is ever faster on the court and in the front offices around our league. I am confident that Koby is equipped and prepared to lead and succeed in this dynamic environment.”

Gilbert added that other front office moves are expected to take place. “We are looking forward to announcing additional restructuring involving these remarkable executives in the very near future,” said Gilbert.

Altman has his work cut out for him in Cleveland. Kyrie Irving recently requested a trade and as Austin Kent of Hoops Rumors noted, the organization may have helped itself in trade negotiations by legitimizing Altman’s role.

Pau Gasol Re-Signs With Spurs

July 24: The signing is official, according to a team press release. The deal will be for $48MM over three seasons with the final year’s salary being partially guaranteed, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com reports (ESPN Now link)

July 21: Veteran center Pau Gasol has agreed to a three-year contract with the Spurs, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com reports. The third year will be partially guaranteed, Wojnarowski adds.

Gasol opted out of the final year of his contract this summer but was expected all along to rejoin the Spurs. Gasol, 37, left $16.2MM on the table when he made that decision but he wanted to facilitate the team’s offseason.

The tradeoff was getting a couple more years of security. That helped the Spurs sign several free agents, including Rudy Gay.

Gasol played a lesser role last seson for San Antonio than he had for other clubs. However, he remained efficient when he did play. Averaging a career-low 25.4 minutes per game, the Spaniard chipped in 12.4 PPG, 7.8 RPG, and 1.1 BPG. He also developed into a three-point shooter, shooting an eye-popping 53.8% from outside, with 0.9 threes per game.

Heat Sign Matt Williams

The Heat have signed Matt Williams, according to the team’s website. Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel tweets that as of now, the agreement won’t be a two-way deal. He adds that as long as Williams’ guaranteed salary isn’t over $50K, the deal could eventually be converted into a two-way contract.

Williams played for Miami’s two summer league teams this offseason, where he averaged 9.9 points per game. The combo guard made 39% of his shots from behind the arc during the eight contests.

The University of Central Florida alum was not selected in the 2017 draft. He spent five seasons at the school, including one year where he was redshirted. During his senior campaign, he averaged 15.1 points per game while making 40.9% of his shots overall.

Pelicans Sign Darius Miller

JULY 24, 1:35pm: The Pelicans have officially signed Miller to a two-year deal with a second-year team option, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. David Pick adds (via Twitter) that – contrary to an earlier report – the deal is worth $4.3MM, which suggests New Orleans may have used a portion of its mid-level exception to complete the signing.

JULY 6, 3:19pm: Miller is expected to get a two-year deal worth more than $3MM, per Sportando (Twitter link). Of course, Miller’s minimum salary for 2017/18 is worth over $1.5MM, so this sounds like a minimum contract.

JULY 5, 5:23pm: The Pelicans have agreed to a deal with Darius Miller, according to international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it’s likely a minimum salary arrangement.

Miller, who won a championship at Kentucky alongside Anthony Davis, was selected in the second round of the 2012 draft by New Orleans. He spent three seasons with the team before being waived.

The small forward signed on with Brose Bamberg part way through the 2014/15 season and remained with German club through the end of last season. He thrived during his European opportunity, earning first-team honors this past season after winning the BBL Finals MVP during the 2016 postseason.

Knicks To Hire Gerald Madkins as Assistant GM

The Knicks will hire Gerald Madkins as assistant GM, tweets Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times. The Kings and Bucks also expressed interest in him (Twitter link).

Madkins, 48, had been an assistant GM with the Clippers for the past two seasons. Since joining the organization in 2012, he also served as director of basketball operations and director of scouting.

Before joining the Clippers, Madkins held scouting positions with the SuperSonics and Rockets and was VP of player personnel for the Hornets.

A former NBA player, Madkins spent time with the Cavaliers and Warriors in the 1990s. He was named Continental Basketball Association Rookie of the Year in 1993.

Hawks Claim Nicolas Brussino Off Waivers

The Hawks have added Argentinian forward Nicolas Brussino on a waiver claim, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

The-24-year-old was placed on waivers Thursday by the Mavericks, who parted ways with him before his $1.31MM salary for next season became guaranteed. Brussino was set to make $1.55MM in 2018/19, also non-guaranteed.

He signed with the Mavericks last summer and saw modest playing time during his rookie season. Brussino averaged 9.6 minutes in 54 games, scoring 2.8 points per night.

He played for six years in Argentina before coming to the NBA and was reportedly considering offers from Europe before the Hawks claimed him.