Suns Sign Alan Williams To Multiyear Deal
The Suns have signed forward/center Alan Williams to a multiyear contract, the team announced today. Williams inked a 10-day deal with Phoenix on March 8th and saw his first action in Thursday’s game at Utah.
A Phoenix native and UC Santa Barbara product, Williams wasn’t taken in last year’s NBA draft. He went to China, where he posted averages of 20.8 points and 15.4 rebounds for Qingdao, becoming the top rebounder in the Chinese Basketball Association. He’s also the top rebounder and second-leading scorer in UC Santa Barbara history.
Williams played for the Rockets’ entry in the 2015 Summer League, earning All-NBA Summer League Second Team honors. He averaged 20.5 points and 11.8 rebounds in four games in the Las Vegas league.
Pistons Sign Lorenzo Brown To 10-Day Deal
FRIDAY, 9:20am: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.
THURSDAY, 11:06am: The Pistons intend to ink Lorenzo Brown to a 10-day contract, Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reports (Twitter link). Detroit has an available roster slot so no additional move would be required to bring Brown into the fold.
Brown rejoined the Pistons’ D-League affiliate after his second 10-day contract with the Suns expired and Phoenix elected not to sign him for the remainder of the season. In 25 appearances for the Drive this season Brown is averaging 18.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists in 33.3 minutes per contest. His shooting line in the D-League is .503/.352/.860.
The point guard didn’t see much burn for the Suns during his time with the team, appearing in eight games and notching 2.9 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 7.6 minutes of action per night. His slash line for Phoenix was .320/.125/.750.
Nets Sign Henry Sims To 10-Day Deal
THURSDAY, 8:22am: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.
TUESDAY, 2:11pm: The Nets plan to sign Henry Sims to a 10-day contract, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The former Cavs and Sixers big man has been out of the NBA since the Suns cut him in the preseason, having joined the D-League affiliate of the Pistons this year. The contract will pay $57,726, with the Nets responsible for $55,722 while the league office picks up the rest for the three-year veteran.
Brooklyn already has Sean Kilpatrick on a 10-day contract, which expires at the end of Saturday, but he’s one of just 14 players on the Nets roster, so the team can make Sims its 15th man without offloading anybody. New Nets GM Sean Marks has said he wants to use 10-day contracts to discover players who can be a part of next season’s roster, and like Kilpatrick, Sims holds promise. The 25-year-old started 32 games for the Sixers last season, averaging 8.0 points and 4.9 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per contest across 73 appearances overall.
Sims put up 15.7 points and 8.9 rebounds in 30.0 minutes per game for D-League Grand Rapids this season after limited preseason court time with Phoenix. It was somewhat surprising to see him linger in free agency this summer before he signed his non-guaranteed training camp contract with the Suns in September, and while he drew attention as one of the top prospects in the D-League, it was just as perplexing to see him without an NBA job for most of the season.
Knicks Sign Tony Wroten To Mulityear Deal
MARCH 16TH, 5:40 pm: The signing is official, tweets Ian Begley of ESPN.com.
MARCH 7TH, 12:10pm: The deal isn’t yet done and the Knicks are still evaluating Wroten, according to Beck (Twitter link), while Berman indicates that the sides are continuing to negotiate
11:51am: The contract is expected to cover only this season and next without a full guarantee on next year’s salary, league sources tell Begley (Twitter link). Marc Berman of the New York Post also hears the deal is only a two-season arrangement (Twitter link). Berman’s source reiterates the notion that Wroten might not appear in a game this season because of his health.
11:19am: “Minimal” guarantees exist on the salary in year two and year three, Beck also reports (Twitter link). Still, the Knicks appear to be unable to sign any outside free agent to a three-year deal until July. It’s theoretically possible, given the doubts about his ability to play this season, that the sides are planning to wait until then, but Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com hears the signing is expected to take place sometime this week (Twitter link).
10:57am: It’s highly unlikely Wroten appears in a game for the Knicks this season in spite of their deal, as Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck hears. Beck cites concerns about Wroten’s health, though he’s 14 months removed from his torn right ACL (Twitter link).
10:26am: The Knicks and Tony Wroten are finalizing a multiyear contract, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Charania refers to it as a three-year deal in his tweet, but the Knicks don’t have the power to sign any outside free agent for more than this season and next, since they’re limited to the minimum salary exception, so it’s unclear where talk of the third year is coming from. In any case, the Knicks have an open roster spot, so they don’t have to let anyone go to bring in Wroten, the ex-Sixers combo guard whose 16.9 points per game in an injury-shortened 30-game stint last season were more than anyone else on his team.
It’s somewhat of a surprise to see New York go for Wroten, despite longstanding mutual interest, since Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reported last week that Tim Frazier and Ray McCallum were considered more likely options for the Knicks roster vacancy. The team reportedly had concerns about Wroten’s defense and unfamiliarity with the triangle offense. Still, the Knicks visited recently with him, as Isola also reported, and the team put him through a “workout/physical/interview,” Isola tweets this morning.
The Heat did their due diligence with a check-in on Wroten earlier this season, but the 22-year-old has nonetheless remained unsigned since the Sixers waived him on Christmas Eve. His lingering free agency raised eyebrows, since he has the pedigree of having been the 25th overall pick in 2012. He made his case that he had recovered from a January 2015 torn right ACL when he returned to game action a few weeks before Philadelphia cut him, though he wasn’t quite the same, shooting just 33.8% from the field in eight games, well beneath his 41.3% career mark.
Clippers Sign Jeff Ayres For Rest Of Season
WEDNESDAY, 3:27pm: The signing is official, the team announced.
TUESDAY, 1:57pm: The Clippers will sign Jeff Ayres to a contract that covers the rest of the season, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The Grizzlies had reportedly been eyeing the veteran big man following the expiration of his second 10-day contract with the Clips, but instead L.A. and Ayres are apparently circling back to one another for the balance of 2015/16. It’ll have to be a prorated minimum-salary deal, since that’s all the Clippers can hand out.
Ayres, 28, appeared for just 14 total minutes spread over five games with the Clips on his pair of 10-day deals, which he signed January 23rd and February 2nd. L.A. later turned to rookie Alex Stepheson, who also signed two 10-day contracts with the team, the last of which ran to term last week. Memphis snapped him up the next day, furthering the idea that the Clippers and Grizzlies, who would meet in the first round of the playoffs if they started today, are trolling the same free agent waters. The teams also pulled off a deadline-day swap, exchanging Lance Stephenson and Jeff Green.
A roster spot is open for the Clippers, who won’t have to make a corresponding move to usher Ayres back onto the team. Just how much he’ll make depends on when he signs, but, as a veteran of five previous NBA seasons, he’d get $194,224 if the deal becomes official today. The Clippers would only have to pay him $167,166, with the league picking up the tab for the difference, but the Clips are above the tax threshold, so the signing would add $417,915 to their projected tax bill.
Stepheson, who’d make less money based on his lack of experience, would have been a cheaper option for the Clippers, but Ayres gives the team some veteran know-how, particularly about the Spurs, a potential playoff opponent who had Ayres on their roster for the two seasons prior to this one. He averaged 13.0 minutes per game and made 10 starts for the title-winning 2013/14 San Antonio team.
Bucks Ink Jared Cunningham To 10-Day Deal
WEDNESDAY, 11:36am: The signing is official, the team announced.
TUESDAY, 6:33pm: The Bucks are close to signing Jared Cunningham to a 10-day deal, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter). Milwaukee currently has the league maximum of 15 players on its roster, which likely means that the team has applied for an extra slot via the hardship provision, though that is merely my speculation. Otherwise, the Bucks would be forced to waive a player prior to inking Cunningham.
In order for a team to be granted an extra roster spot, it must have three players who have missed at least three straight games because of injury or illness, plus a fourth player who is also unable to perform. The Bucks certainly meet that criteria, with O.J. Mayo, Steve Novak and Michael Carter-Williams all lost for the season and Greivis Vasquez expected to be out of action until at least the end of March.
Cunningham, 24, recently rejoined the Idaho Stampede in the NBA D-League as a returning player after the Magic waived him. Orlando had acquired him via the swap that sent Channing Frye to the Cavaliers at the trade deadline. The shooting guard appeared in 40 games for the Cavaliers, including three starts, but he didn’t see action for the Magic. His numbers on the season are 2.6 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 8.9 minutes per contest. His slash line is .352/.313/.625.
Grizzlies Sign Xavier Munford To 10-Day Pact
WEDNESDAY, 10:38am: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.
TUESDAY, 6:18pm: The Grizzlies intend to sign point guard Xavier Munford to a 10-day deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reports (Twitter link). Memphis applied for an extra roster spot via the hardship provision, which will presumably be approved by the league, according to Charania. The Grizzlies currently have 17 players on their roster, which is already two over the regular season maximum.
Memphis currently has nine players who are dealing with some sort of ailment, according to CBSSports.com, ranging from minor issues that could allow four of them to play in the team’s next game Wednesday against the Timberwolves to Marc Gasol‘s season-ending broken foot. The Grizzlies have already used 25 players through a combination of trades, signings and attrition this season. That’s significantly more than any other team, including the banged-up Pelicans, whom the league has also allowed to exceed the 15-man roster ship via hardship, as Hoops Rumors’ Chuck Myron ran down earlier today.
Munford will join the team out of the D-League where he has appeared in 40 games for the Bakersfield Jam, the Suns’ affiliate. The 23-year-old is averaging 20.4 points, 4.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists to accompany a shooting line of .490/.415/.817.
Nuggets Sign Axel Toupane To Second 10-Day
MONDAY, 10:17am: The signing is official, the Nuggets announced (Twitter link). It’ll cover six games, against the Heat, Magic, Hornets, Hawks, Cavs and Sixers.
SUNDAY, 10:37am: The Nuggets will sign Axel Toupane to a second 10-day contract, tweets Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post. The rookie swingman has impressed the Denver coaching staff since signing with the team on March 3rd, averaging 4.6 points in 13.4 minutes of action. He scored 10 points Thursday in a win over Phoenix.
“Axel has been terrific,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone told Dempsey. “I like guys — and it’s appropriate for guys on a 10-day contract — to fit in before you try to stand out. Axel comes in here — yeah, he knows Joffrey [Lauvergne] for a long time — but he doesn’t try to be anything he’s not. He knows his role, he works hard.”
Toupane, who collects $30,888 on each 10-day deal, was an affiliate player with the Raptors before joining the Nuggets. He had been with Toronto’s D-League team since being cut in the preseason. Denver picked him up after Danilo Gallinari tore two ligaments in his right ankle. This is Toupane’s first season in North America after several years with Strasbourg IG in his native France.
“Everybody did a great job to work with me on the team and make me feel part of the family,” Toupane said, according to Dempsey. “I had no expectation coming here. I just wanted to, every time the coach called my name, just go all out and give everything I had. I’m just happy to be here and just go hard and give everything I have.”
Wolves Ink Greg Smith To Second 10-Day Pact
SUNDAY, 12:54pm: The signing is official, the team announced. It’ll cover four games, against the Suns, Grizzlies, Rockets and Warriors.
SATURDAY, 10:35am: The Timberwolves intend to sign Greg Smith to a second 10-day contract, reports Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press (Twitter link). Teams can only sign players to two such deals per season and if Minnesota wishes to retain Smith when this second agreement ends, it will have to sign him for the remainder of the campaign. The power forward’s initial 10-day pact expired on Friday.
It’s not a surprise that the Wolves would elect to retain Smith for another 10 days, as the team is still thin in its frontcourt. Kevin Garnett is dealing with knee issues and Nikola Pekovic isn’t slated to return until at least April as he struggles to recover from his torn Achilles tendon. Minnesota still has an open roster spot after reaching buyout arrangements with Andre Miller and Kevin Martin, so the flexibility remains to add another player in addition to Smith.
Smith has seen appeared in six contests and averaged 2.8 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.7 minutes per game during his time in Minnesota so far. The 25-year-old is shooting an outstanding 87.5% from the field, connecting on seven of the eight shots he has taken since joining the squad.
Grizzlies Sign Ray McCallum To 10-Day Deal
2:29pm: The signing is official, the team announced via press release. It will be a 10-day pact for McCallum, per the official announcement.
SATURDAY, 11:29am: The signing is expected to be announced today, Charania tweets. It’s unclear if it will be a 10-day arrangement or cover the remainder of the season.
THURSDAY, 9:09pm: Free agent point guard Ray McCallum is en route to Memphis to meet with the Grizzlies and the team is likely to sign him, Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports reports. The Grizzlies currently have 15 players on their roster, provided Briante Weber was indeed signed to a 10-day deal. Weber’s signing took place Wednesday, according to the RealGM transactions log, though Memphis has made no official announcement regarding the move.
It is unclear if Memphis has been granted a hardship exception by the league that would allow them to add a 16th player, which McCallum would be if the Weber signing is indeed official. The move to add McCallum is in response to Mario Chalmers being lost for the season due to a torn Achilles tendon. The team waived Chalmers earlier today in an effort to clear roster space. Marc Gasol is also done for the season, while Jordan Adams, Chris Andersen, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph and Brandan Wright are all out for indefinite periods with maladies of some kind.
McCallum has had contract discussions with the Knicks and the Rockets since the Spurs waived him last month, Charania notes. McCallum is eligible to appear in the playoffs for the Grizzlies since he was released on February 29th, one day before the cutoff for postseason eligibility, Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports tweets. The 24-year-old has appeared in 31 games this season and is averaging 2.2 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 8.3 minutes per outing.