Edy Tavares To Join Raptors’ D-League Affiliate
Former Hawks big man Edy Tavares, waived by Atlanta earlier this season, is nearing an agreement to join Raptors 905, Toronto’s D-League affiliate, reports international basketball journalist David Pick (via Twitter). If and when Tavares officially signs, he’ll remain an NBA free agent, as the Raptors would only hold his D-League rights.
Players can’t sign outright with D-League teams, instead signing a D-League contract and entering the league’s player pool, where teams can claim them. As D-League Digest tweets, the Northern Arizona Suns, the club with the top waiver priority in the D-League, claimed Johnny O’Bryant today. With the move, the Raptors’ D-League squad has moved up to the top waiver spot, giving them the opportunity to land Tavares, per Chris Reichert of The Step Back (Twitter link).
The 43rd overall pick in the 2014 draft, Tavares joined the Hawks for the 2015/16 season, appearing in just 11 games and averaging 6.6 minutes per contest. The 24-year-old Cape Verde native also made 29 D-League appearances, averaging 9.2 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 3.3 BPG in 21.6 minutes per game. The Hawks decided to move on from him earlier this year when they needed an opening on their 15-man roster to sign Ryan Kelly.
Tavares received interest from the Spanish club FC Barcelona, according to a recent report, and likely would’ve had other opportunities overseas if he chose to pursue them. His decision to head to the D-League instead suggests he hopes to get another shot with an NBA team.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/10/16
Here are Thursday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Knicks have recalled guard Ron Baker and center Marshall Plumlee from Westchester, the club announced today (via Twitter). The duo participated in a D-League exhibition game on Wednesday against Brooklyn’s affiliate, with Baker scoring 26 points en route to a Knicks win.
- The Celtics have assigned rookie guard Demetrius Jackson to the Maine Red Claws, the club announced today (via Twitter). Like most assignments so far this season, Jackson’s will likely be a brief one, designed to get him some extra practice time.
- The Pelicans have assigned forward Cheick Diallo to the Austin Spurs via the flex assignment rule, according to Chris Reichert of The Step Back.
- The Nets assigned forward Chris McCullough to the Long Island Nets, the club announced via press release. McCullough has appeared in three games for Brooklyn this season, averaging 0.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 5.7 minutes per game.
Nets Cut Greivis Vasquez, Re-Sign Yogi Ferrell
3:22pm: The Nets have officially re-signed Ferrell, the team announced this afternoon in a press release. According to international basketball journalist David Pick (via Twitter), the rookie will get a two-year deal — details on a potential guarantee aren’t yet known.
12:34pm: The Nets are making a roster move at point guard, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, who reports (via Twitter) that the team is re-signing Yogi Ferrell and waiving Greivis Vasquez. Brooklyn’s roster count will remain at 15 players when the pair of moves becomes official. For now, Vasquez’s release is official, having been announced by the club in a press release.
Vasquez, who will turn 30 in January, signed a one-year contract with the Nets this summer as an unrestricted free agent, but has only appeared in three games for the team due to an ankle injury. According to Wojnarowski, that ankle injury will require surgery, so Brooklyn likely felt the need to add some immediate help at the point guard spot, where Jeremy Lin is also sidelined.
“Greivis did everything we asked of him and more to try to get back on the court at full strength,” said Nets GM Sean Marks said in a statement issued by the team. “The passion, grit and perseverance he has shown since he joined the team have been remarkable. We are thankful to Greivis for all of his efforts and wish him well in the future.”
While Vasquez will become a free agent later this week, he’ll continue to receive pay checks from the Nets, since his deal with the team was fully guaranteed. The veteran point guard will count for $4,347,826 against Brooklyn’s cap this season, but the club can afford to eat that money — total team payroll will remain in the $76MM range after Ferrell’s signing, which is still well below the 2016/17 salary floor.
As for Ferrell he signed with the Nets this summer as an undrafted free agent, but was waived by the club last month. A starter for the entire course of his college career at Indiana, Ferrell averaged 17.3 points, 5.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game in his senior season. During the preseason, the 23-year-old played sparingly for the Nets, appearing in three exhibition games and getting on the floor for a total of 28 minutes in those contests.
Ferrell had joined the Long Island Nets, so his signing represents the Nets’ first D-League call-up of the season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/8/16
Here are Tuesday’s D-League assignments and recalls:
10:35pm:
- The Knicks have assigned Ron Baker and Marshall Plumlee to their D League affiliate in Westchester, Ian Begley of ESPN.com tweets. The duo are expected to participate in the team’s scrimmage against the Nets’ affiliate on Wednesday, Begley adds.
- The Thunder have recalled Huestis from their D-League affiliate, the team announced via press release.
2:51pm:
- The newest member of the Bulls, R.J. Hunter, has been assigned to the team’s D-League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, according to a press release. Hunter signed with Chicago during the first week of the regular season after being cut by Boston, but has yet to appear in a game for the Bulls.
- For the second time in two days, the Nets assigned Chris McCullough to the Long Island Nets to practice with the D-League squad, then recalled him later in the day, the club announced in a pair of press releases. McCullough is expected to be active for Brooklyn’s game tonight against the Timberwolves.
- Josh Huestis, who recently changed agents, was assigned to the Oklahoma City Blue today by the Thunder to participate in the D-League team’s practice. The Thunder issued a press release confirming the move.
Josh Smith To Play In China
Longtime NBA forward Josh Smith will be heading overseas for the coming season, according to international basketball journalist David Pick, who reports (via Twitter) that Smith is joining the Sichuan Whales, the reigning champs in the Chinese Basketball Association. A source tells Pick that the short-term deal will be worth $1.5MM+.
For Smith, it’s a change of direction, as he had reportedly turned down a lucrative offer to play in China earlier this year. Back in September, the 30-year-old said that his “main goal” was to continue playing in the NBA, and that if he had “jumped to leave [his] NBA chances behind, it would’ve been an act of desperation.” A month and a half later, apparently with no appealing NBA opportunities available, Smith is heading to China after all.
A 17th overall pick back in 2004, Smith has already spent 12 seasons in the NBA, despite the fact that he won’t turn 31 for another month. In 891 career regular season contests for the Hawks, Pistons, Rockets, and Clippers, the veteran forward has averaged 14.6 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.9 BPG, and 1.2 SPG. He has also appeared in 73 career postseason games.
In Sichuan, Smith will be joining a team coming off a championship win earlier this year. Former NBA players Mike Harris and Hamed Haddadi are among the leading scorers for the Blue Whales.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/7/16
Here are today’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA
10:00pm:
- The Nets have recalled Chris McCullough from the Long Island Nets, according to a press release issued by the team. Brooklyn sent the 21-year-old forward to the D-League earlier today, as noted below.
2:46pm:
- After assigning them to the Austin Spurs on Sunday, the Spurs have recalled Bryn Forbes, Danny Green and Dejounte Murray today, the club announced in a press release. Green appears to be on the verge of returning from the quad injury that has sidelined him so far this season.
- The Knicks assigned Willy Hernangomez, Maurice Ndour, and Marshall Plumlee to their D-League affiliate today, allowing the trio to practice with the Westchester Knicks, per Ian Begley of ESPN.com (Twitter link). They’re expected to be back with New York tomorrow.
- The Mavericks assigned A.J. Hammons to the Texas Legends today, then recalled him a few hours later, according to Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com (Twitter links).
- Former first-round pick Bruno Caboclo was sent to the Raptors 905 by the Raptors today, according to Toronto’s D-League affiliate (via Twitter). Caboclo has yet to appear in an NBA game this season, so the Raptors have been getting him work with their D-League squad when possible.
- The Nets assigned Chris McCullough to their D-League team, the Long Island Nets, the team announced today (via Twitter).
Kings Waive Jordan Farmar
As expected, Jordan Farmar‘s latest stint with the Kings came to an end today after less than a week. As James Ham of CSNBayArea.com tweets, Sacramento has waived Farmar, clearing the way for Darren Collison to come off the suspended list and rejoin the team. The Kings confirmed Farmar’s release in an announcement on their website.
The Kings were allowed to temporarily carry a 16th player on their 15-man roster after moving Collison to the suspended list for the last three games of his eight-game ban, as we detailed last Wednesday. However, since the team played its eighth game of the season on Sunday, a roster move was required today in order to get back down to 15 players.
Farmar, who turns 30 later this month, appeared in two games for the Kings over the last few days, averaging 6.0 PPG and 4.5 APG in 17.5 minutes per contest. The veteran point guard signed a non-guaranteed contract with Sacramento, so the team will only be charged a prorated portion of the minimum salary for the few days he was on the roster.
Farmar will return to the free agent list, assuming he clears waivers on Wednesday.
Pelicans Sign Archie Goodwin, Cut Lance Stephenson
NOVEMBER 7:
12:50pm: The Pelicans have announced their deal with Goodwin, signing him using their newly-opened 15th roster spot. Per Scott Kushner of The Advocate (via Twitter), it’ll be a two-year contract that won’t be guaranteed in the second year.
11:49am: The Pelicans have officially waived Stephenson, the team announced today in a press release. A report this morning suggested the team will be open to re-signing him when he gets healthy. Meanwhile, Goodwin’s signing has yet to be confirmed, but it’s expected to happen soon.
NOVEMBER 6:
7:53pm: The Pelicans are finalizing a deal with Goodwin, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical, and the contract will be for two seasons (Twitter link). Stephenson will be waived to create the roster opening (Twitter link).
7:33pm: The Pelicans have interest in adding former Suns guard Archie Goodwin, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein describes Goodwin, who was waived by Phoenix last month, as a “likely potential signee.”
New Orleans lost Lance Stephenson Saturday night to a groin injury that is expected to require surgery. Doctors project his recovery time at several weeks. The Pelicans are already missing Tyreke Evans and Quincy Pondexter, who both have knee issues, along with Jrue Holiday, who is on a leave of absence to care for his ailing wife.
New Orleans could apply to the league for a hardship waiver to add a 16th player to its roster. A more likely option, tweets Scott Kushner of The Advocate, is simply to waive Stephenson, who only has a $100K guarantee on his minimum-salary contract. However, the Pelicans would be required to pay Stephenson’s full salary until he recovers from the injury.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/6/16
Here are Sunday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the league:
- The Spurs assigned Bryn Forbes, Danny Green and Dejounte Murray to their D-League affiliate in Austin, tweets Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News. The moves were just for practice purposes because the D-League team was training at the Spurs’ practice site.
- Pistons first-round pick Henry Ellenson, who was assigned to the D-League on Saturday, plans to use the experience to improve his game, writes Aaron McMann of MLive. Ellenson and fellow rookie Michael Gbinije were sent to the Grand Rapids Drive for a weeklong assignment while the Pistons are on a western road trip. Ellenson, who has played sparingly so far this season, welcomes the chance. “I’ve got to look at it as an opportunity to improve,” he said. “That’s probably the biggest thing. The team is doing really well right now, so they’re going to go handle business on the West Coast. I’m going to go handle my own this week — and that’s how I’m going to take it.”
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 11/5/16
Here are Saturday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the league:
- The Knicks assigned Ron Baker, Maurice Ndour and Marshall Plumlee to their D-League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks, earlier today so they could practice with the team, according to their Twitter feed. New York has since recalled all three players.
- The Pistons have assigned Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije to the Grand Rapids Drive, the team’s D-League affiliate, according to a team press release. Ellenson has only appeared in two games for Detroit, while Gbiniji has only seen action in one.
- The Thunder assigned Josh Huestis to the Oklahoma City Blue earlier today so he could participate in practice, per a team press release. The practice has commenced and the team has subsequently recalled the forward.