Transactions Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Alex Davis Will Return To D-League

September 18th, 2016 at 6:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

Alex Davis, who played for one of the Magic’s summer league teams, has committed to return to the D-League this season, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. Davis will join Orlando’s D-League affiliate, the Erie Bay Hawks.

The 6’9″ forward appeared in 50 games for Erie last season, averaging 8.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per night.

The 24-year-old, who played college ball at Fresno State, was part of the Orlando White team in the Orlando Summer League. He averaged 5.4 points and 3.0 rebounds in five games.

Bulls Sign D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera

September 16th, 2016 at 6:45pm CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 16th: The signing is official, per the RealGM transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 15th: The Bulls have taken another step toward filling out their training camp roster, according to Scott Agness of VigilantSports.com, who reports (via Twitter) that the team has signed former Georgetown guard D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera to a training camp contract. The deal will likely be a minimum-salary pact featuring little or no guaranteed money.

Smith-Rivera, who will turn 24 in December, initially declared for the 2015 NBA draft, but withdrew his name and returned to his Georgetown for his senior year. In 2015/16, the 6’3″ guard saw his PPG (16.2), FG% (.413), and 3PT% (.330) slip for a third straight season, though he did dish out a career-high 4.5 APG. Smith-Rivera went undrafted this June.

While the Bulls may be planning on having Smith-Rivera join their new D-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, Chicago currently only has 13 guaranteed salaries on its books for 2016/17, so the Georgetown alum could get a chance to earn a regular-season roster spot. In addition to those 13 players on guaranteed contracts, the Bulls also have Spencer Dinwiddie and Cristiano Felicio on non-guaranteed deals.

Warriors Sign Elgin Cook

September 16th, 2016 at 6:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

SEPTEMBER 16th: The signing is official, per the RealGM transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 14th: The Warriors have signed former Oregon star Elgin Cook, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Details were not released, but Golden State is far over the salary cap, so it is assumed to be a minimum-salary deal.

The signing of Cook brings the Warriors up to the maximum of 20 players for training camp. Golden State has just 14 guaranteed contracts, so there should be a camp battle for the final roster spot.

The 6’6″ small forward wasn’t selected in this year’s draft and played for the Kings’ entry in the summer league, averaging 6.3 points and 2.8 rebounds in four games. He averaged 14.7 points and 5.1 rebounds during his senior season with the Ducks.

Celtics Sign Jalen Jones, Damion Lee

September 16th, 2016 at 6:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

SEPTEMBER 16th: The signing is official, according to the RealGM transactions log.

SEPTEMBER 14th: The Celtics have signed undrafted free agents Jalen Jones and Damion Lee, RealGM reports. The exact details of the arrangements are not yet known, but with Boston virtually out of cap room, they are almost assuredly one-year, minimum salary training camp pacts. The duo are far more likely to begin the season as a member of the Maine Red Claws in the D-League than in Boston.

Jones is a 23-year-old shooting guard out of Texas A&M. He appeared in 33 games as a senior, averaging 15.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 27.3 minutes per outing. His slash line on the campaign was .425/.324/.702. Jones participated in the Las Vegas summer league as part of the Raptors’ squad where he averaged 3.2 points on 35.3% shooting.

Lee, who is also 23 and a shooting guard, appeared in 30 games for Louisville in 2015/16, averaging 15.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 33.5 minutes per contest. His shooting line was .428/.341/.843. Lee participated in both the Orlando and Las Vegas summer leagues as a member of Miami’s squad, averaging a combined 7.5 points and 2.0 rebounds on 32.5% shooting.

Pistons Sign Trey Freeman

September 16th, 2016 at 8:44am CST by Eddie Scarito

SEPTEMBER 16: Freeman has officially signed with the Pistons, per RealGM’s transactions log. Terms of the agreement still haven’t been reported, but it will likely be a one-year, minimum-salary summer contract.

AUGUST 29: The Pistons have agreed to a deal with unrestricted free agent guard Trey Freeman, Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops reports (on Twitter). The exact details of the arrangement are unknown, but it does include a partial guarantee, according to Scotto. The addition of Freeman will give Detroit a preseason roster count of 17.

Freeman played for the Rockets summer league squad in Las Vegas this year, appearing in five games and averaging 5.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 18.4 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .265/.200/.750.

The 23-year-old went undrafted after completing his senior campaign at Old Dominion. Freeman’s numbers for the 2015/16 season were 22.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 35.1 minutes per night. His shooting numbers on the year were .429/.349/.829.

Pistons Sign Nikola Jovanovic

September 16th, 2016 at 8:40am CST by Luke Adams

The Pistons are adding another undrafted free agent to their roster for training camp, having signed former USC forward Nikola Jovanovic to a contract, according to RealGM’s transactions log. Jovanovic confirmed the agreement himself on Twitter, announcing that “it’s official!”

Jovanovic, who worked out for the Pistons just a few days before the 2016 draft, wasn’t selected in June after forgoing his senior year at USC to become draft-eligible. In his final season with the Trojans, the 22-year-old averaged 12.1 PPG and 7.0 RPG, shooting 52.4% from the field.

The Pistons have 14 players on guaranteed contracts on their books for 2016/17 so far, so the team’s final roster slot could be up for grabs in training camp. Jovanovic will face some stiff competition for that opening though — so far, Detroit has added Lorenzo Brown, Ray McCallum, and Trey Freeman on non-guaranteed deals. The club still has two more open spots on its 20-man offseason roster.

Jovanovic’s deal is believed to be for one year, and will likely be worth the minimum salary ($543K), with little to no guaranteed money.

And-Ones: Pressey, Cavs, Rose, Bulls

September 15th, 2016 at 9:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Warriors have acquired the D-League rights to training camp invitee Phil Pressey via a trade with the Jazz’s D-League affiliate, according to a press release from the Salt Lake City Stars. The Santa Cruz Warriors secured the returning player rights of Pressey in exchange for the same rights to point guard Aaron Craft and a 2017 D-League second-round pick. Pressey, a 25-year-old point guard, signed what is believed to be a non-guaranteed, one-year contract with Golden State, which already has 16 other players under contract. By acquiring his D-League rights, the Warriors can not only ship him to their affiliate if he makes the 15-man roster but also keep him in the organization even if he doesn’t secure a spot.

In other news around the league:

The Cavs are renegotiating the contract of assistant coach Larry Drew, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com reports. The former head coach of the Hawks and Bucks will be head coach Tyronn Lue’s chief assistant and associate head coach this season. Drew, who is entering his third season with Cleveland, will get a raise but the two sides are still working out the details, Vardon adds.
Attorneys for the woman who has accused Knicks point guard Derrick Rose of sexual assault are demanding an NBA investigation into the 2013 incident, Julia Marsh of the New York Post relays. Waukeen McCoy, one of those lawyers, suggested that the league and team should enforce the morality clause in Rose’s contract and suspend him, Marsh adds. A lawsuit filed in California is scheduled for trial on October 4.
Nate Loenser has been the named the head coach of the Bulls’ new D-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, the team announced via press release. Loenser was the Chicago Bulls’ video coordinator last season. He’s also coached at Southern Mississippi and Iowa State. Bulls assistant GM Brian Hagen will also serve as Windy City’s GM.
Guard Langston Galloway signed a two-year, $10MM contract with the Pelicans but he still doesn’t think he’s established himself in the league, as he told Jake Rauchbach of Basketball Insiders in an exclusive interview. “I’ve got a lot to prove,” Galloway told Rauchbach. “I want to be one of those top guys one day and I gotta go out and prove it to each of the guys that I play against every night. Like, ‘Hey, I am trying to be at that level.’ That’s what I gotta go out there and do.”

Pelicans Invite Chinese Forward He Tianju To Camp

September 15th, 2016 at 6:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans have extended a training-camp invitation to forward He Tianju of the Chinese Basketball Association’s Liaoning Flying Leopards, according to Justin Verrier of ESPN.com. Assuming the offer is accepted, the 6’9” Tianju would play in New Orleans’ two preseason Global Games matchups in China against the Rockets, Verrier adds (Twitter links).

Tianju, who has played six seasons in the Chinese Basketball League, is considered an above-average three-point shooter. The 25-year-old small forward also has a history with the Pelicans, having played on their summer-league squad in 2015. He had a nine-point game in 12 minutes of action in one of those Las Vegas Summer League games against the Bucks.

The Pelicans already have 15 players with guaranteed contracts on their roster, along with three others on non-guaranteed deals. So even if Tianju signs a training-camp deal, it’s highly unlikely the Pelicans will keep him around. But the bonus of playing two games in his home country would certainly be a major selling point.

Coach Alvin Gentry told John Reid of the New Orleans Times Picayune during Tianju’s summer-league foray that Tianju needed to improve his footwook.

”Defensively, he has got to be able to move his feet better to play the quicker players,” Gentry told Reid.”But I think he is smart enough and his rebounding is very good. I think he’s done a very good job on the boards. The only thing I see is his lateral quickness and guarding quicker players out on the floor.”

Nuggets Sign D.J. Kennedy

September 15th, 2016 at 5:54pm CST by Eddie Scarito

SEPTEMBER 15: Nearly a month after agreeing to terms with him, the Nuggets have officially confirmed their deal with Kennedy, issuing a press release announcing the signing.

AUGUST 16: The Nuggets and unrestricted free agent shooting guard D.J. Kennedy have agreed to a deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (via Twitter). The pact will be for three years and includes a partial guarantee, Charania notes.

The 26-year-old originally went undrafted out of St. John’s back in 2011. His NBA regular season experience consists of two games with the Cavaliers during the 2011/12 campaign where he averaged 6.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 29.5 minutes per outing.

Kennedy has split the remainder of his playing career thus far between the NBA D-League and overseas. He spent the 2015/16 campaign with the Russian club Enisey Krasnoyarsk, appearing in 40 games and averaging 14.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists. Kennedy’s shooting line on the year was .451/.287/.809.

Nuggets Sign Jarnell Stokes

September 15th, 2016 at 5:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

SEPTEMBER 15: Stokes’ deal with the Nuggets is now official, the team announced today in a press release. Terms of the deal still aren’t known, but it’s likely a minimum-salary pact that includes little to no guaranteed money.

SEPTEMBER 4: The Nuggets are close to a deal with reigning D-League MVP Jarnell Stokes, tweets Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post. Stokes played briefly for the Grizzlies and Heat last season.

The 6’9″ center/power forward helped Sioux Falls win a D-League record 40 games in 2015/16, posting averages of 20.6 points and 9.3 rebounds per night in 28 games. At the NBA level, Stokes appeared in two games with Memphis before being traded to Miami in November. The Heat shipped him to New Orleans in February, but the Pelicans released him the next day.

Stokes, 22, was a second-round pick in 2014 by the Jazz, who traded him to Memphis on draft night. He has spent most of his career in the D-League. Dempsey expects him to have a legitimate shot at earning a roster spot in Denver Twitter link).