Mavericks Exercise Team Option On Yogi Ferrell
The Mavericks have officially exercised their 2017/18 team option on Yogi Ferrell‘s contract, according to RealGM’s transactions log. A Saturday report had indicated that the Mavs informed Ferrell his option would be picked up.
An undrafted free agent out of Indiana, Ferrell was a revelation on his first 10-day contract with the Mavericks last winter, stepping right into the starting lineup at the point and recording 32 points in his fourth game with the club. Ferrell’s impressive first week with the franchise earned him a rest-of-season deal with a second-year option.
For the season, Ferrell averaged 11.3 PPG, 4.3 APG, and a .412/.403/.877 shooting line in 36 games (29 starts) in Dallas. He also appeared in 10 games for the Nets earlier in the season, though his numbers in Brooklyn were more modest (5.4 PPG, 1.7 APG).
As our team option tracker for 2017/18 shows, the Mavs had to make decisions on three club options before the end of the month. The club has elected to turn down its options on Dirk Nowitzki and DeAndre Liggins, though Nowitzki figures to be back on a renegotiated contract.
Mavericks To Decline Option On Dirk Nowitzki, Negotiate New Deal
The Mavericks will decline their $25MM option on Dirk Nowitzki for next season and work out a new contract, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
The team is considering a two-year deal for the veteran forward, although one source tells Stein that Dallas will do “what Dirk wants.” He has previously indicated that he wants to continue his NBA career on a year-by-year basis.
Nowitzki signed a two-year deal last summer worth $50MM that contained a team option for 2017/18. Turning down that option will give Dallas more financial flexibility when free agency starts on Saturday.
The move leaves Dallas with $64.4MM in guaranteed contracts for next season, along with $55MM in cap holds for Nowitzki and Nerlens Noel, tweets Bobby Marks of The Vertical. The team could have as much as $21MM to work with, but only if Nowitzki agrees to take the $4.3MM room mid-level exception (Twitter link).
Sources tell Stein that Dallas plans to re-sign Noel and focus on its young core and won’t pursue Pelicans free agent Jrue Holiday, who has been linked to the team in past rumors.
Nowitzki has played 19 NBA seasons, all in Dallas. He remained productive this year, averaging 14.2 points and 6.5 rebounds in 54 games after returning from an early-season Achilles injury.
Rashawn Thomas To Get Partial Guarantee From Thunder
Rashawn Thomas of Texas A&M Corpus Christi has agreed to a partially guaranteed contract with the Thunder, tweets international writer David Pick.
Thomas, a Mid-Major All-American, turned down several overseas deals before getting the opportunity with Oklahoma City, Pick adds. The partial guarantee means he will have a chance to make the roster in training camp.
A 6’8″ power forward, Thomas averaged 22.8 points and 8.9 rebounds during his senior season with the Islanders.
No contracts can be finalized until the NBA’s new year starts in July.
Mavericks Will Sign Motley To Two-Way Contract
Power forward Johnathan Motley of Baylor has agreed to a two-way contract with the Mavericks, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical.
The two-way deal, a feature of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, permits teams to keep two extra players under their control, even if they aren’t on the active roster. They will receive what amount to G League contracts, but the salaries will be higher than what G League players typically get, and no other other team can sign them. See here for more information on two-way contracts.
Motley, 22, averaged 17.2 points and 9.9 rebounds in 33 games during his junior season with the Bears. He was projected as the 42nd pick in the final mock draft by DraftExpress and 47th by Chad Ford of ESPN.com, but a knee injury made teams reluctant to take him, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News.
Motley’s contract cannot be finalized until the NBA’s new year begins July 1st.
Warriors, JaCorey Williams Agree To Deal
The Warriors are said to have reached an agreement with Middle Tennessee forward JaCorey Williams, Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders reports. It’s unclear whether the deal is just for Summer League or one that will span into training camp.
Coming off of their second title in three seasons, the Warriors don’t exactly need reinforcements, but the 23-year-old big man averaged 17.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in college.
Should the agreement be for more than just a Summer League deal, there’s a chance that the parties could have come to terms on a two-way deal. Earlier today, of course, we wrote that the Warriors and Oregon’s Chris Boucher had agreed on a two-way contract.
Chris Paul To Opt Out Of Contract
7:36pm: A tweet from ESPN’s Marc Spears says that, while Paul is expected to opt out, he hasn’t formally told the team or filed with the league at this point.
5:20pm: The Clippers have been informed that All-Star guard Chris Paul will decline his player option for 2017/18, Brad Turner of the LA Times tweets.
Paul, who recently turned 32, averaged 18.1 points and 9.2 assists in his 12th NBA season and is among the biggest names on the market this summer. While the Clippers will obviously look to retain him – and are the ‘overwhelming favorite‘ to do so – the veteran has also been linked to the Spurs (June 2 report) and, to a lesser extent, the Rockets and Nuggets (June 15 report).
The news of Paul’s decision comes shortly after it was announced that Blake Griffin, too, opted out of the final year of his own deal, effectively jump starting an inevitably busy offseason for Clippers president Doc Rivers.
Had Paul accepted his player option, he would have made $24.3MM this season. Now, under the new collective bargaining agreement, he’ll be eligible to make around $200MM over five years, so long as he stays with the Clippers.
Blake Griffin Opts Out, Becomes Free Agent
Unsurprisingly, Clippers forward Blake Griffin has formally opted out of the final year of his contract, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets. The All-Star will hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent.
While the Clippers are expected to at least attempt to retain Griffin and fellow free agent Chris Paul, the forward also expects to see interest from other teams looking to add a star.
Earlier this week we wrote about the Rockets targeting the 28-year-old power forward and it wasn’t long ago when Wojnarowski mentioned that the Celtics could be the biggest threat to the Clippers as far as luring Griffin away was concerned.
Had Griffin not opted out through his early termination clause, he would have made $21.4MM in 2017/18. Instead, as Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times tweets, he’ll be eligible for as much as $175MM through five years so long as he stays with the franchise.
If Griffin leaves the Clippers, he’ll be eligible for a four-year, $130MM deal.
Pacers Decline Team Option For Lavoy Allen
The Pacers have declined their 2017/18 team option on Lavoy Allen‘s contract, Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports tweets. The big man would have otherwise made $4MM this season.
In a report earlier this week, Agness wrote that such a decision was likely, citing the forward’s social media accounts and the general change in direction the franchise has been forced to undergo over the course of a pending Paul George exodus.
With Allen off the books, The Vertical’s Bobby Marks adds, the Pacers could free up as much as $27MM-$30MM so long as they’re also willing to part with Jeff Teague and C.J. Miles.
Rockets To Sign L.J. Peak, George De Paula
The Rockets have agreed to free agent deals with a couple of undrafted prospects, though the moves are not yet official. Per Mark Berman of Fox 26, the club has an agreement in place to sign Georgetown’s L.J. Peak.
Ranked 46th of DraftExpress.com’s list of top 100 prospects, the junior Hoya will look to stick on a roster seeking to add as many potential weapons as possible. In Peak, the Rockets will get a 21-year-old fresh off a campaign in which he posted 16.3 points and 3.5 assists per game.
Per Chris Haynes of ESPN, the Rockets will also take a flyer on Brazilian point guard George de Paula. An international early entrant in this year’s draft, de Paula comes in at No. 72 on DraftExpress’ big board.
At this time it’s not entirely clear whether the deals will be for Summer League or for training camp, but it sounds like both players should have a spot on Houston’s 20-man camp roster.
Kings Release Arron Afflalo
The Kings have released Arron Afflalo today, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets. The guard had a contract guarantee that would have otherwise triggered today.
Afflalo had initially signed a two-year $25MM with the Kings last offseason but the second year, worth $12.5MM, would have only been guaranteed if he remained on the club’s roster through today.
Considering the different state that the franchise is in now versus last year, it’s no surprise that the team has decided to part ways with the veteran.
Per Bobby Marks of The Vertical, rather than pay the $12.5 that had been earmarked for the 2017/18 campaign, the Kings will instead stretch $1.5MM in payouts to Afflalo over the course of the next three seasons.
In 61 games for the Kings last year, including 45 starts, Afflalo put 8.4 points per game.