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Cavs Re-Sign Richard Jefferson

July 28th, 2016 at 12:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

JULY 28, 12:46pm: The Cavaliers have officially re-signed Jefferson, the team announced today in a press release.

“RJ’s versatility on the court and leadership off it were core parts of our identity and success last year,” GM David Griffin said in a statement. “In many respects, his impact was greater as the stakes got higher. His NBA Finals performance is a testament to his dedicated, steady approach and his presence in our locker room throughout the year and postseason cannot be overstated. We’re very thankful he decided to continue his career and we know that his teammates appreciate what he brings to this team at a very deep level.”

JULY 6, 10:12pm: The contract will be worth $5MM over two seasons, Chris Mannix of The Vertical tweets.

9:59pm: The Cavaliers and veteran Richard Jefferson have agreed to a deal that will see the player remain in Cleveland, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). It will be a two-year arrangement, according to the scribe, but the dollar amount is not yet known.

This certainly comes as a reversal for Jefferson, who told reporters that his career was done after the Cavs won the NBA Finals, adding that it was a “hell of a way to go out.” A few days later, the veteran forward admitted that his decision to retire was hardly set in stone, adding that his Cavaliers teammates were trying to talk him out of it, and that it was “still up for debate.”

Jefferson appeared in 74 games for Cleveland in 2015/16, averaging 5.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 17.9 minutes per contest. The small forward shot .458/.382/.667 from the field on the campaign.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Wizards Re-Sign Marcus Thornton

July 28th, 2016 at 12:43pm CST by Eddie Scarito

JULY 28: The Wizards have issued a press release announcing their deal with Thornton, which is a minimum-salary pact.

JULY 7: The Wizards have agreed to a deal with Marcus Thornton, Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops reports (Twitter link). It will be a one-year, $1.3MM arrangement that is fully guaranteed, Scotto adds.

The 29-year-old had indicated back in March that he hoped to return to Washington in 2016/17, and it appears that Thornton’s wish has been granted. The veteran will compete for minutes off the bench with Tomas Satorasnky, Kelly Oubre and Trey Burke. You can view the Wizards’ current depth chart here.

Thornton made 14 appearances for Washington last season, averaging 8.4 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 16.0 minutes per outing. His slash line was .393/.333/.762.

Nets Sign Egidijus Mockevicius

July 28th, 2016 at 10:29am CST by ChrisCrouse

JULY 28: The Nets have officially signed Mockevicius to a camp deal, per RealGM.com. Mockevicius certainly won’t be assured of a regular-season roster spot, but Brooklyn currently doesn’t have a ton of depth at center, with only Justin Hamilton behind Lopez, so the rookie could receive 15-man consideration if he impresses in camp.

JUNE 26: The Nets have agreed to a partially guaranteed, one-year deal with Egidijus Mockevicius, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). The exact terms of the deal were not disclosed, however, it’s likely a minimum-salary arrangement.

Mockevicius played four seasons at Evansville, shooting 61.7% from the field. The 6’10″center is ranked 97th in Jonathan Givony’s T0p 100 prospects on DraftExpress.com. The big man averaged 15.6 points and 14.1 rebounds per game while sporting a 29.3 player efficiency rating during his senior season.

Brook Lopez is the only center under contract for the Nets, as the team’s depth chart at Roster Resource indicates. Brooklyn will need to add at least one more bruiser in the frontcourt and Mockevicius’ staying power will likely be tied to who else the team can add in free agency.

No Deal Yet For Celtics, Colton Iverson?

July 28th, 2016 at 10:19am CST by Luke Adams

10:19am: A source tells Jay King of MassLive.com that there is no agreement at this point between Iverson and the Celtics, despite the fact that the seven-footer wants a shot to play in the NBA.

That doesn’t necessarily mean that Iverson and the C’s won’t eventually finalize a deal — Pick’s report didn’t materialize out of thin air, so it seems likely that the two sides are talking. We’ll pass along any updates as they become available.

8:51am: Three years after landing him on draft night, the Celtics have agreed to a deal with big man Colton Iverson, according to international basketball reporter David Pick (Twitter link). It’s not clear if there’s any guaranteed money included on Iverson’s deal, which will bring him to camp with the C’s.

Iverson, who played his college ball at Minnesota and Colorado State, was selected 53rd overall in the 2013 draft with a pick Boston acquired from Indiana in exchange for cash. Since then, Iverson has played overseas, spending time with various teams in Turkey and Spain. The 27-year-old played for Pinar Karsiyaka last season, averaging 11.4 PPG and 6.4 RPG in 33 Turkish League contests (21.2 MPG).

The timing of Iverson’s move is interesting, since the Celtics’ depth chart looks pretty crowded this season. Iverson will be the team’s 19th player under contract, not counting 2016 second-round pick Abdel Nader, who remains unsigned. Of those 19 players, 16 are believed to have guaranteed contracts for the coming season, while John Holland‘s deal is non-guaranteed and Ben Bentil received a partial guarantee.

With an uphill battle to make the regular-season roster, Iverson could end up being one of the players the Celtics cut in training camp and assign to their D-League affiliate in Maine.

Celtics Ink Jaylen Brown

July 27th, 2016 at 6:19pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Celtics have officially signed 2016 lottery pick Jaylen Brown, the team announced via press release. Brown was one of the five remaining 2016 first round picks who had yet to put pen to paper on their rookie deals.

Brown was selected with the third overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft. He appeared in six games this summer for the Celtics split between the Utah and Samsung Summer Leagues in Las Vegas, averaging 16.0 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals in 29.0 minutes per game. Brown was named to the Samsung All-NBA Summer League Second Team in Las Vegas.

The 6’7” forward from the University of California was selected to the five-player USBWA Freshman All-America team, was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and was the lone freshman this season to make the All-Pac 12 First Team, according to the release. He averaged 14.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 34 appearances and shot .431/.294/.654 from the field in his lone collegiate season.

Celtics, Ben Bentil Finalize Contract

July 27th, 2016 at 6:10pm CST by Luke Adams

6:10pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

11:46am: After signing second-round pick Demetrius Jackson, the Celtics have also finalized a deal with another second-rounder, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe, who reports (via Twitter) that Ben Bentil received a three-year deal with a partial guarantee in year one. Himmelsbach first reported over the weekend that Boston and the young power forward had agreed to terms on a contract.

There had been some uncertainty about whether or not Bentil would join the Celtics right away, since the team selected six players in the draft. However, first-round picks Guerschon Yabusele and Ante Zizic will be stashed overseas, and Boston hasn’t yet committed to adding Abdel Nader to its roster. That left the door open for Bentil, Jackson, and third overall pick Jaylen Brown to join the C’s as rookies.

Of course, just because Bentil received a contract from the Celtics, that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s guaranteed a roster spot for the regular season. Including Tyler Zeller and Gerald Green, Boston has 14 guaranteed salaries on its books for the 2016/17 season. Jackson figures to receive a more sizable guarantee than Bentil, and the team also has John Holland on a non-guaranteed deal, so it may be an uphill battle for Bentil to crack the regular-season roster unless the Celtics make a trade or cut a player with a guaranteed contract.

Bentil, who left school after his sophomore year, averaged 21.1 PPG and 7.7 RPG during his last season at Providence. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com ranked him as this year’s 45th-best prospect, and the Celtics made him the 51st pick in last month’s draft.

Celtics Sign Tyler Zeller To Two-Year Deal

July 27th, 2016 at 6:09pm CST by Will Joseph

JULY 27th, 6:09pm: The signing is official, Boston announced via press release.

JULY 23rd, 10:15am: The Celtics will re-sign restricted free agent Tyler Zeller to a two-year deal, Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald reports (on Twitter). The deal is worth $8MM per year and there is a team option for the second year, Bulpett adds. The Celtics also signed second round pick Demetrius Jackson and have agreed on a partially guaranteed deal with second round pick Ben Bentil, according to Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe (Twitter link).

R.J. Hunter, James Young, John Holland and Bentil are in position to fight for the final roster spot, Himmelsbach tweets. It remains to be seen just how much more creative Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge is going to be after he said he was looking to add another significant piece to a group that features newcomer Al Horford. If there were to be another move for Boston, it would likely come in the form of a large trade, according to recent reports. The Celtics also plan to sign unrestricted free agent Gerald Green.

Zeller spoke fondly of the Celtics after the season and was open to a return. It would not have been surprising, however, if he had signed elsewhere with the hopes of having a larger role than the one he had last season with Boston. Zeller averaged 6.1 points and 3.0 rebounds last season. He did not play in three of the six playoff games.

Celtics Sign Demetrius Jackson

July 27th, 2016 at 6:07pm CST by Eddie Scarito

JULY 27th, 6:07pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

JULY 26th, 5:40pm: The Celtics have signed 2016 draftee Demetrius Jackson to a four-year, $5.5MM deal, Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops reports (via Twitter). It’s unknown how much of that salary is guaranteed, but the fourth year is a team option, notes Scotto.

Jackson, 21, was the No. 45 overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft by Boston. He joins a crowded Celtics roster that now has 18 players heading into training camp, which is three over the regular season maximum.

The point guard spent three seasons at Notre Dame, appearing in 103 games and averaging 11.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting .467/.381/.782 from the field.

Celtics Sign Gerald Green

July 27th, 2016 at 6:05pm CST by Will Joseph

JULY 27th, 6:05pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

JULY 23rd, 8:50am: The Celtics will sign unrestricted free agent Gerald Green, Sean Deveney of The Sporting News reports (on Twitter). It is a guaranteed one-year deal, Deveney writes in a full story. Green’s deal is for the minimum, Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald tweets.

It’s a homecoming of sorts for Green, whom the Celtics drafted at No. 18 in the 2005 draft. Green has played for eight franchises and spent last season with the Heat. Miami never reportedly seemed interested in re-signing Green, but the swingman did play decently. Green averaged 8.9 points per game last season.

By adding Green, the Celtics continue to seem headed toward making a trade. It’s been an interesting summer for Boston, which landed Al Horford early in free agency and it may not be over. Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge has already said he would still like to add one more big piece. The Celtics will have 14 guaranteed contracts on their roster, once they sign No. 3 pick Jaylen Brown, as Deveney points out.

Mavericks Sign Jameel Warney, Keith Hornsby

July 27th, 2016 at 5:56pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 27th, 5:56pm: The team has officially signed Warney, the Mavs announced via press release. Dallas also signed free agent guard Keith Hornsby, as was relayed in the same announcement. Hornsby went undrafted out of LSU this year. No contract details for either player were released by the team.

JULY 26th, 2:55pm: The Mavericks have reached an agreement with undrafted free agent Jameel Warney, reports Michael Scotto of The Associated Press (via Twitter). Exact details of the deal aren’t known, but if figures to be a minimum-salary pact, and according to Scotto, it will include a partial guarantee.

Warney, 22, played his college ball at Stony Brook, averaging 20.1 PPG and 10.7 RPG in his senior season, the second straight year he averaged a double-double. The young power forward also chipped in 3.1 blocks per contest, and shot 62.9% from the field. His performance earned him a spot on Jonathan Givony’s 2016 big board at DraftExpress.com, as he squeezed in at No. 100.

The Mavs have 14 players on guaranteed contracts on their books, and have another three players with partial guarantees, so Warney will face an uphill battle as he attempts to earn a regular-season roster spot. Warney will enter camp behind Dirk Nowitzki, Dwight Powell, and Quincy Acy on Dallas’ depth chart at power forward.